Prices of computers – both laptops and desktops – are about to jump the biggest in a decade. The industry no longer says “if” but “how much” when it comes to pay rises. All because of the shortage of two components without which no computer can be built: DRAM and NAND. And since factories have redirected processing capacity towards AI, ordinary consumers are taking a hit. This is a good time to complete the purchase of a laptop. Unless someone likes watching prices increase from week to week.
The shortage of DRAM and NAND did not come out of nowhere. Samsung, SK Hynix and Micron have repurposed their factories for the AI market. Brutal mathematics “helped” them with this: HBM memory for AI servers brings profits that cannot be compared with memory for laptops. And if it’s not profitable to make memory for consumer machines, then let this market go to hell or let the prices go up. Amen.
And so we end up in a situation where consumer shipments are declining, contract prices have been rising at a feverish pace for two months, and Micron is cutting the Crucial brand to focus all its resources on data centers. Yes, the well-known Crucial. Such strange things have happened that memory producers are furling consumer consumers because it is “not profitable” for them. From a business point of view, it’s right: memory companies are not charities. Consumers: that’s me and you, probably won’t like it. And whether you or I will buy laptops… is a secondary matter. They probably assume that if we need it, we will probably buy it. But for how much?
Price increases are just around the corner
TrendForce already knows that new price lists are ready among manufacturers. For Lenovo, current computer prices are valid only until the end of this year. Then prices will increase: up to 20 percent. HP and Dell are changing their product plans just before CES 2026. HP estimates that the cost of memory alone is 15-20% of the price of the computerso any increase in DRAM contracts is replicated in the final price.
Dell is going the same way. Here TrendForce indicates that the increases may take effect even in mid-December (2025) — even before customers make their last purchases before the holidays and catch the first promotions after the new year (and other magazine openings).
Let’s thank Microsoft.
But, for the record, it’s not just him. Just a year ago, the most basic laptop models had 8 GB of RAM. Today it’s not enough. I know perfectly well how much RAM means in Windows, so some time ago I bought a device with a decent, although not overkill, 32 gigabytes. Microsoft, on the other hand, enforced a minimum of 16 GB in laptops marked as Copilot+and Apple added its own: all entry-level MacBooks now start with 16GB RAM.
This is not just a whim. AI running on the device (and not on external servers) needs more memory, so manufacturers have no choice – even cheap models must have more expensive components. The increase in costs is therefore twofold. Memory is getting more expensive, more of it has to be produced, so the costs are increasing in a spiral. And there is no end in sight.
Small brands are the first to suffocate
The greatest always manage somehow. But small producers will be in for a shock. OneXPlayer, known for its expensive mobile gaming machines, stopped accepting orders for the Apex model: the entire available stock went up for pre-sale. The company must establish new prices with memory and SSD suppliers. That is, calculate how much more the customer has to pay. The cost of this situation will be passed on directly to the consumer.
Small companies, moreover, do not have the negotiating power of giants. If DRAM goes up globally, its prices jump even faster. Some brands will no longer be profitable and will simply disappear.
Read also: The Windows 11 app eats up your RAM. Creators frustrated
What does this mean for future computers?
It was already cheap. So, if you want to buy a laptop, you better do it right away: new machines will soon become noticeably more expensive. If you’re building a computer, the memory will cost you the most. Will it be cheaper after CES 2026? The button will be cheaper, the appearance of new products will be an additional impetus for the general price increase. Will prices drop? I won’t tell you that anymore. I would like that myself, because each of you should have the right to buy the best equipment at the best possible price. But I can’t promise you this, because the market is currently very fragmented. Will it be like with cards? This will show the moment of stabilization after the RAM fever. However, seeing the producers’ reluctance towards the consumer market, I don’t see it clearly…
