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The SSDs aren't any faster than consumer NVME M.2 drives. Apple does get to save some pennies because the the SSD controller is in the SoC instead of being on t
by goosedragons 4y ago
The SSDs aren't any faster than consumer NVME M.2 drives. Apple does get to save some pennies because the the SSD controller is in the SoC instead of being on the board with the NAND chips. They've also neutered performance on the M2 base models by only including 1 NAND chip on the board instead of 2 so you no longer get the benefits of striping and faster speeds. To top it off they then charge you $200 to bump a base model 256GB to 512GB which is absolutely ridiculous when you can get a very good 1TB M.2 NVME SSD at retail for less.
While their absolutely is benefits to how they handle their RAM the upgrade prices are nuts. $200 extra for 8GB more, 64GB requires a CPU upgrade and costs $400 extra over 32GB. I've heard the CAMM modules Dell developed and seem poised to replace SO-DIMMs in laptops will allow for faster speeds and replaceable LPDDR too with less Z height and eaiser board design so hopefully we will see an uptick in PC laptops with replaceable memory again.
- Kon-Peki 4y agoThe way these arguments always seem to end is that the main issue most people have is not the impossibility of upgrades so much as the cost of buying the well-equipped machine in the first place. I don’t know why manufacturers charge so much for spec bumps (this isn’t limited to Apple). Is it really only because they can?
- acdha 4y agoOne reason historically was that the knuckle on the price curve shifted between the time the machine was released and when you upgraded. When a new generation of RAM came on the market, prices often fell rapidly as the process matured and competition set in. This also played into sale or discount strategies: if the same model becomes cheaper over time but list pricing doesn’t adjust, you’re making a good bit more from everyone who isn’t price sensitive even if you allow resellers to discount it periodically or offer better pricing to business orders (“free RAM upgrade”).
- jstummbillig 4y agoBecause that is how the business model works: You have the entry model to create a customer. Then those who really need more, are gonna pay substantially more. See basically every SaaS product.
- CharlesW 4y ago> They've also neutered performance on the M2 base models by only including 1 NAND chip on the board instead of 2 so you no longer get the benefits of striping and faster speeds. This is addressed in TFA, which suggests it's a side effect of smaller 128GB modules becoming scarce — or maybe more accurately, "not reliably available at Apple volumes". The article asks "why is Apple even bothering with a 512GB version?", and the two answers are: (1) To create a cheap-ish "price anchor" config, and (2) as a reasonably-priced choice when price is paramount. Also, for those who want to do 4K video editing or whatever, it's easy to throw a couple M.2s in an external dual Thunderbolt enclosure¹ to create very large, very fast local storage to complement the 512GB boot/apps/documents drive. ¹ https://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/product/1635760-REG/sabrent_ec_t3dn_thunderbolt_3_to_dual.html https://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/product/1635760-REG/sabrent_e...
- goosedragons 4y agoSo they should have just boosted the 256GB models to 512GB and 512GB to 1TB. The only model where it makes sense to be this agressive on price is the $600 Mini. Considering you can get a decent 512GB SSD like the 980 at retail, with the SSD controller for less than $50 so you have to wonder how much they're really saving on that $1300 MBA and $2000 MBP? $5? $10?
- mwint 4y ago> should have just Have you ever done supply chain and/or pricing work? Nothing like this is ever “just”. Especially at Apple’s volumes.