The Random Assessment Memory (RAM) is one of the most crucial features in a laptop. RAM is also found in smartphones, tablets, and desktop computers.
When buying a laptop, you may have seen recommendations that you should buy a laptop with the highest capacity of RAM. While RAM is not the only factor to consider when buying a laptop, it is an important component that enables your laptop to process data fast.
RAM also determines what task your laptop can handle effectively. If you want to buy a laptop that can edit videos using Premier pro, play games, or handle other resource-hungry processes, you need at least 16 GB RAM to run these processes seamlessly.
Is 16GB RAM Enough?
Depending on the tasks you want your laptop, tablet, or smartphone to perform, 16GB RAM is enough to handle most processes. It is enough for gaming and performing resource-hungry processes. If you use high-end apps and programs on your laptop or computer, 16GB is sufficient.
If you get a laptop with a 16GB RAM, a fast processor, and a good graphic card, you can run any programs without overheating the laptop or overworking your laptop fan.
What Can 16GB RAM handle?
If your laptop or desktop computer has 16GB RAM, there is a lot you can do with it. Some of the things a 16GB RAM can handle include:
- Light tasks such as browsing, studying, and research
- Responding to emails and office-related tasks
- Streaming videos
- Gaming and streaming games
- Video editing apps
- You tube video editing
- 4K streaming
16GB RAM is more than basic. It is perfect for serious work and editing on the laptop and for having fun when gaming. With a reliable RAM, experiencing lagging and freezing when streaming videos or gaming is rare.
How Much RAM Is Sufficient For Gaming?
A good gaming experience depends on your laptop or desktop features. 8GB RAM is enough for a gaming laptop, on the lower side. To be sure of a flawless gaming experience, a capacity of 16GB RAM and above is enough.
A laptop with 8GB or 16GB RAM processes games fast. With reliable RAM, you avoid gaming issues such as laptop freezing in the middle of a game. If your laptop can comfortably handle gaming, then basic computer tasks should not be an issue.
How Much RAM Do I Need For a Student’s Laptop?
Students’ laptops are mainly used for browsing when researching, preparing academic documents, and entertainment. 4GB RAM is enough to run basic apps that student use. Computer science students might need a high RAM, for instance, 8GB RAM to handle apps and programs.
Studying might not be the only task a student’s laptop performs. Sometimes, students stream movies on Netflix, and with the current monetization of social media apps like Tik Tok, there is a need for a reliable laptop for video editing. The 16GB RAM is perfect for video editing and streaming.
How To Tell How Much RAM Your Laptop Has
If your laptop uses Microsoft Windows and you need to check or confirm how much RAM it has, follow these steps:
- Press CTRL+Shift+Esc to open the task manager
- Go to the performance tab and click on Memory
- Your RAM will be displayed on the right (shows the total RAM, how much is in use, and how much is available)
Which Is the Best RAM For a Laptop?
The amount of RAM you need for a laptop depends on how you plan to use the laptop. For basic tasks like running Microsoft Office apps and browsing, a 4GB RAM may be enough.
If you need a laptop that can run multiple processes concurrently, you should consider at least 8GB RAM or 16GB RAM. Running multiple processes such as browsing, gaming, streaming, video editing, and other apps requires sufficient memory.
If you want your laptop to work with high-end programs, do serious gaming, and have lightning speed, 32GB RAM would be enough. Remember, for a laptop/pc to be more reliable, it has to combine good RAM with other great features like a powerful processor, a good cooling system, and reliable graphics cards.
Is It Safe to Upgrade your RAM?
If your laptop RAM is in sufficient, you can decide to upgrade the RAM to a higher capacity RAM. Most laptops come with an extra RAM slot where you can slide in your new RAM.
However, before making the upgrade, you should check if your laptop can accommodate a RAM upgrade to avoid a malfunction. Use free memory testing tools to test how much your laptop can accommodate to be sure that you are making the right decision. Only upgrade the RAM if you are sure that your laptop can handle it.
Here are some benefits of upgrading the RAM:
- Better laptop speed when using programs
- Less start-up time
- Improved gaming speed
- Improved browsing speed
- Faster data transfers
Note that upgrading the laptop RAM does not solve all laptop issues. Some laptop issues such as overheating when gaming, slow internet, and shutting off irregularly might not be RAM-related issues.
Conclusion
16GB RAM is enough for most laptop needs. It is the best RAM for basic laptop performance, gaming, video editing, and streaming. Some laptop programs are very demanding and require more RAM for the laptop to perform flawlessly.
Before buying a laptop, it is good to identify the main tasks you want to perform with the laptop to determine the ideal RAM capacity for your laptop. RAM upgrade is safe and could make things easier and faster for a laptop but it is not the solution for all slow laptops.