Android 12 RAM usage & app killing

[StealthRequiem]

I've noticed in Mobile Manager that A12 is using less RAM than A11. I can tell from launch times that it's also not holding apps in memory for as long. I haven't seen A12 go above 4.5 GB while A11 was always around 6.5 GB.
Is this just the way A12 works or is there a setting to keep the apps alive for longer? High performance system mode doesn't seem to make a difference, nor does the background app management toggle in battery settings. I have an 8GB model and curious to know the RAM usage for 16GB users.

[shadowzephyr]

Same. The RAM usage is noticably lesser since updated to A12 while having same set of applications & usage. From developer options, I recalled having average 1 day usage of at least 6GB RAM in A11, and now it's not even reach 5GB. Using 16GB version.

[StealthRequiem]

This is really disappointing. Android 12 isn't using spare RAM, even on the 8GB model. I have apps that are taking longer to open in Android 12 than they were in 11, probably because they are not being held in RAM. I wonder if this is to prioritize battery following negative experiences. Speculation. But I'm sure that figures reported in Mobile Manager are reflective of performance.
The feature at fault I think is ASUS Optiflex. Although it is in the menu, I can see no evidence in Android 12 that it's doing anything. The 'speed up based on app usage', which I had to re-enable, always defaults to the same 15 apps, at least one of which I never ever use. And why only 15 apps?
If I'm wrong I'm hoping that ASUS will step in and correct me. If it's a bug it means the Z8 has a capability that users have paid for which isn't being used by the OS.

[StealthRequiem]

Although app opening times are worse in Android 12, I'm starting to wonder whether Mobile Manager is reporting the correct usage. I mean, 2.8 GB? Seriously?

[StealthRequiem]

I think it's a problem also with Mobile Manager. Running Services in developer options shows less free RAM, whereas the MM figure seems to be all over the place, perhaps no longer including cached processes.