The RAM shortage is here to stay, raising prices on PCs and phones

Your adjacent smartphone aliases PC mightiness costs much amid a world representation shortage that the International Data Corporation expects to “persist good into 2027.” A new study from the investigation patient lays retired the imaginable effect of the RAM crunch, saying it “signals the extremity of an era of cheap, abundant representation and storage” — for now, astatine least.

The value of RAM has skyrocketed complete the past fewer months arsenic the world’s biggest representation makers — Micron, Samsung, and SK Hynix — allocate much resources for AI companies, which are buying up tons of representation for their monolithic information centers. Though PC gamers looking to upgrade their build’s RAM whitethorn person been the first to consciousness the effect of this crunch, it’s coming for different devices, too.

As noted by the IDC, the costs of a smartphone “is heavy dependent” connected the type of representation it uses, pinch soaring RAM costs starring phonemakers to “raise prices significantly, trim specifications aliases both.” Budget-friendly smartphones from brands for illustration Xiaomi, Oppo, Vivo, Honor, and Huawei will “have nary different option” but to walk on these higher costs to consumers, according to the IDC. These manufacturers person already optimized the parts they usage to support prices debased and person small room to switch retired existing parts for cheaper ones. Xiaomi and Honor have already started raising prices connected their tablets, while Xiaomi has warned astir value increases coming for its smartphones, too.

Samsung and Apple, connected the different hand, mightiness person a spot much leeway, arsenic they’re capable to “secure representation proviso 12-24 months successful advance,” the IDC says. They whitethorn not adhd much than 12GB of RAM successful their flagship smartphones, an upgrade some the iPhone 17 Pro and Samsung Galaxy S25 Ultra came pinch this year. Altogether, the IDC expects the mean trading value of phones to emergence by 3 to 5 percent if the “moderate” script plays out, aliases by 6 to 8 percent pinch a “pessimistic” outlook.

Moving to PCs, the IDC says the representation shortage creates a “perfect storm” for the PC industry, coming astatine the aforesaid clip Microsoft ends support for Windows 10 and pushes memory-hungry AI PCs. Several PC and laptop makers person already confirmed incoming value hikes, including Dell, HP, Acer, and Asus.

Meanwhile, the makers of AI-heavy devices for illustration Microsoft’s Copilot Plus PCs whitethorn person to raise prices aliases trim the magnitude of RAM they put successful their PCs. That whitethorn beryllium difficult arsenic Copilot Plus PCs travel pinch a minimum of 16GB of RAM. Though the IDC isn’t changing its charismatic PC marketplace forecast for 2026, it says the mean trading value of PCs could emergence by 4 to 6 percent successful a mean scenario, aliases 6 to 8 percent successful a “pessimistic” one.