News

In 2025 and into 2026, one of the biggest challenges facing the smartphone industry isn’t revolutionary new features — it’s dramatic increases in core component costs, especially memory chips.

Why Prices Are Going Up

Across the global electronics supply chain, DRAM (memory) prices have surged sharply, driven by structural shifts in industry demand. With AI infrastructure booming and data centers consuming increasing amounts of high-performance memory, semiconductor manufacturers have prioritized high-margin products like high-bandwidth memory (HBM) over traditional mobile memory. This has led to tight supply and escalating prices for the memory modules used in smartphones and other consumer devices.

Trend data shows memory chip costs rising significantly — DRAM contract prices climbing by double-digit percentages and NAND flash storage also increasing — pushing smartphone bill of materials (BOM) up substantially.

Impact on Smartphone Manufacturers and Consumers

Smartphone makers are now facing hard choices. With memory prices representing a significant portion of overall device cost, manufacturers must either absorb shrinking margins or pass the increases on to consumers. This has already begun to happen — in 2025 several popular Android phones carried higher launch prices compared to their predecessors.

Entry-level and mid-range devices are especially affected. Because these models depend more on cost-effective memory and storage, rising prices have eroded their traditional “value for money” appeal.

Broader Market Outlook

Research firms now predict that average global smartphone prices may rise in 2026 as the memory shortage continues. Some forecasts suggest a global smartphone shipment decline — particularly in budget tiers — as higher prices dampen demand.

For many consumers, this trend could mean one of two things

• Upgrade sooner rather than later — before prices climb further.

• Reevaluate priorities — focusing on devices with balanced performance and memory specifications rather than chasing top-end, memory-heavy models.