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Why Do Phones Now Have up to 6GB of RAM?

Heland Ortega June 7, 2016 · 2 min read

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As many manufacturers are now following the hype of having an impressive 6GB of RAM loaded in their high-end smartphone, is this actually something to be excited about? Have you ever wonder why do phones now have up to 6GB of RAM?
6GB PIC 1 RAM, or random access memory, is the memory that temporarily stores the data into a phone which allows it to be accessed more quickly. With so many applications hogging up the memory space, one not only needs a processor with eight or more cores but also a RAM complimenting that. In addition, there are also apps that hog a lot of RAM (I’m looking at you Facebook!) and if you have more than one of the same open on your phone, then the phone might start experiencing lag.

Some processors powering our handsets these days are 64-bit, which allows this amount of data to be addressed at the same time. Now, 64-bit mobile processors already had an extension that allowed them to theoretically make use of 6GB of RAM. In addition, Android is a system that expands into the RAM available to it. This means that the more RAM you have, the more of a performance buffer you end up with.

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Do you really need 6GB of RAM?

The answer could be a simple yes or no. The real benefit of having a 6GB RAM phones is future-proofing. Undoubtedly, a phone with 6GB of RAM sounds to be incredible for gaming and multi-tasking, and it is bound to attract folks who love the extreme performance.

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As of today, having this large amount of RAM is not required. It’s just for marketing and product differentiation only. Maybe next year or two, it might come handy and will become a top end standard for all. Are you planning to get a high-end smartphone with 6GB of RAM like the Asus ZenFone Deluxe 3 or Vivo Xplay5 Elite? Tell us more about it in the comment section below. You could also check our list of 6 Smartphones with 6GB RAM here.

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Heland Ortega

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This article was written by Heland Ortega, Junior Contributor of YugaTech. He is a graduate of Information Technology and Multimedia Arts at FEU Institute of Technology in where he is also now working as a full-time faculty. You can follow him at @helandortega.

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38 Comments

Thunderer · 8 years ago

From what I now, it’s for multi-tasking so the apps you open don’t really re-open again if you “tab-out” of them specially if you’ve got way too many apps open and you want to seamlessly switch between them without the app reloading again . Also, should be good for gaming overall, not the casual ones.

androidsucks · 9 years ago

hahaha!! wala talagang silbe pag android e puro specs pakabagal padin di tulad iphone

Toshi Gasparillo Arevalo · 10 years ago

im not a geek pero reason sa i phone run smoother ay ang limited option for a single process.
Example:ilan ang option menu para mag share ka ng text sa android at ios?
Dun pa lang malalaman mo na mas maraming process sa android kaysa sa ios tama ba ko?
Sa interface pa lang tons of optiom meron sa android,s a ios ilan?
Dun lang sa homescreen tapos na.

unggoy · 9 years ago

And how often does an iPhone user complain that that “feature” is only available on Android? The thing is, most of those features are not needed. Android is too much bloat, and I personally prefer the minimalist approach that Apple is doing with their phone and OS.

karlxix · 10 years ago

meanwhile Iphone has 1GB lol

unggoy · 9 years ago

And works better than most 3-4gb android phones.

Ghi · 8 years ago

Also costs 4 to 5 times more than an android phone

M · 10 years ago

6GB RAM for me is just marketing.. i guess Android is still not close to Apple’s memory management =)

you can try looking at iPhones, check for hardware specs, but iPhones runs smoother than most of the Androids..

if only Android phones can have better hardware and software integration -_-

Noshillsallowed · 9 years ago

No appletard, it is usually the OEM skin why Android has a bad reputation in things. So bad

hello · 10 years ago

It’s all about bragging rights. Payabangan kasi dito sa ‘Pinas, eh

Cesar Noel · 10 years ago

Asus zenfone 2 is already 4GB Ram better than Samsung’s Galaxy S6

William Co · 10 years ago

As for future-proofing, chances are, those who buy these kinds of phones are the first adopters. So, by next year, they will be upgrading to 8GB RAM phones and using future proofing as justification for upgrading (again).

Most of the time, it’s software optimization that matters. My Flare X with 3 GB RAM feels no better (it even crashes more often) than my other phone (Vibe P1) with 2GB. The Flare X slows down even if the memory manager shows almost a GB free.

Personally, I feel 2GB is enough for low-end end phones with 3-4 GB as a luxury. At the moment 6GB Is overkill.