Memory Shortage Drives PC Prices Up 70% as AI Demand Reshapes the Computing Market

What Happens When PC Memory Prices Are Too Much to Handle?

The world's largest PC maker tells us why the next PC you buy may be more premium or less powerful than ever. Despite the hit of President Donald Trump’s boneheaded tariff scheme, the tumult of 2025, and rampant price fluctuations, laptops did alright in 2025. Unfortunately, 2026 will bear even less sunshine and rainbows. The largest PC makers don’t imagine the personal computer will stay the same. The next PC you buy may either be more powerful than ever, or it could be dependent on the cloud computing that is the reason prices are skyrocketing in the first place. Data released by analyst firm IDC on Monday showed that PC shipments grew nearly 10% year-over-year compared to 2024. None of today’s largest laptop makers did better than Lenovo. The company still holds 25% of the PC market share with 70.8 million PCs shipped in 2025 (HP, the next-largest company, shipped 57.5 million). The company’s market share grew compared to 2024. There’s more likelihood that a PC buyer will be looking at a ThinkPad or a ThinkBook than the next Dell XPS. The memory shortage has wreaked havoc throughout the entire PC market. Desktop PCs took the initial hit, with RAM costs soaring through the stratosphere and up into high orbitâ€"more than 500% in some cases. Laptops were sure to follow. Dell has already told Gizmodo it would modify prices depending on what happens in the future. IDC warned PCs won’t just be more expensive; they may have less RAM inside to compensate for ballooning costs. In recent months, SSD (solid-state drives for storage) prices have similarly blown through the roof. This won’t just impact do-it-yourself PC builders, but every single PC buyer in 2026. During CES 2026, I sat down for an exclusive interview with Steve Long, Lenovo’s commercial head in charge of its intelligent devices group. I wanted to gather more about the future of PCs, beyond mere prices. I’ve heard the fears from more than one consumer about the end of consumer-end computing. AI data center compute has created such a fervor for high-end memory that all three major semiconductor companies in charge of memoryâ€"namely Samsung, Micron, and SK Hynixâ€"have tuned their business to supplying firms like OpenAI for its multi-state Stargate data centers. With data centers sucking all the oxygen out of the room, what’s left for consumers who want higher-end compute for work or gaming? The future may be split between those who have access to local compute for high-end tasks and those who don't. “I don't believe in a world that it's all going to the cloud [or] it's all going to be local,†Long said. “It’s going to be a hybrid world.†Lenovo may be able to manage the memory shortage better than other companies. Last November, Bloomberg reported that the world’s largest PC maker had hoarded RAM just before prices started getting truly untenable, stockpiling upwards of 50% more than usual. Long confirmed the company had made long-term agreements with vendors all the way back in late September and October to meet the expected memory demand for 2026. However, the memory shortage will likely last far longer than just this year. Experts have claimed the RAM shortage will last through 2027 and into 2028. I asked Long if Samsung was the PC maker’s main memory supplier, at least based on recent reports from reliable outlets like DigiTimes, though he demurred and said the company used “multiple vendors†for all the regions the company operates in. Meanwhile, other companies as large as Google, Microsoft, and Meta have reportedly camped operatives in South Korea, home to two of the big three memory makers, to relentlessly beg for DRAM. Lenovo made it clear that it may have to raise future prices due to the RAM shortage. Long said, “We’re getting prices from our supply chain that are coming up higher for us.†The Lenovo exec is in charge of the company’s B2B (business-to-business) side of the chain, though he’s had previous experience at other companies on the consumer end. When tariffs drove up prices on gadgets, consumers saw a variance of impact since OEMs (original equipment manufacturers) and retailers all had to take a hit at varying points in the chain. For example, in 2025 Lenovo raised the price of gaming gear like its Legion Go S with SteamOS twice in the year, from an expected $550 to $600, and later to $650 after release. Long said more PCs will edge toward premium with higher-end specsâ€"more RAM and more storageâ€"plus higher-performance chips. Better specs will inevitably cost more, even when PC producers try to offer finer components to go along with pricey memory. The lower-end market, on the other hand, may be forced to rely on expanding cloud compute. It won’t be an immediate shift but a long slide toward a changing PC ecosystem. PC makers may have fewer choices of RAM sizes. In an interview with Wccftech, Micron’s VP of marketing, Christopher Moore, said that having so many options for RAM, such as 12GB, 16GB, and 24GB would “drop our output.†Instead, Micron is trying to produce more standardized quantities of DRAM for PCs. Essentially, RAM sizes used to be dictated by PC makers. Now, memory is being generated by the whims of the silicon manufacturers. Even if Micron ends up supplying consumer products, it will have more say over how much RAM your next PC gets to use. Costs for computing components were already at record highs, though chipmakers are starting to push the highest-end processors harder than ever. At CES 2026, Intel finally dropped the full details of its Intel Core Ultra Series 3 (Panther Lake) chips slated for this year’s laptops. AMD and Qualcomm also sport new higher-end processors, most notably the top-end ARM-based Snapdragon X2 Elite Extreme. Whereas most of the previous-gen lightweight laptops came with mid-range Intel Lunar Lake chips, a greater number of Intel-based devices this year will come with a Core Ultra X9 388H CPU, the top-end configuration. “Memory is a hard business, from a silicon standpoint,†Long said. “Silicon is going to be constrained as well, like your CPUs and some of the other components.†Lenovo is managing the situation better than most, at least according to Long. So what happens to the smaller companies who don’t have the advantages Lenovo has? The Lenovo VP said, at least from his company’s standpoint, they “wouldn’t mind†some consolidation. That doesn’t mean we’ll only have one or two PC providers. Consumers may have fewer brands that don’t linger on Best Buy shelves to choose from. Companies like Framework, which makes customizable and repairable PCs, have had to increase the costs of their laptops and desktops several times since the tail end of 2025. Sure, PCs likely won’t become monopolized any time soon. One of the reasons I enjoy covering the computing landscape is because of the depth of work spinning out of makers big and small. Perhaps the one good thing to come from this mess of AI is the expansion of operating systems on offer. There has been a sizable backlash to Microsoft’s push for Copilot AI in Windows 11. That leaves an opening for open-source Linux. Long said Lenovo is open to more devices running different software (the company’s Legion Go 2 handhelds will include a version running Linux-based SteamOS). Hell, we now have Valve coming out with its own Steam Machines that have the gaming-specific version of Linux set to arrive early this year. Meanwhile, Google is planning to combine ChromeOS with Android, meaning low-end Chromebooks may have more native app options available. All but the most high-end Chromebooks (like the overpowered Lenovo Chromebook Plus 14) will still need to rely on the cloud for most on-device tasks. Our options for personal computers aren’t dwindling, at least not yet. There’s still a huge market among the hardcore DIYers and the laypeople alike for personal computing power. However, the era of cheap PCs may be coming to an end, to be replaced with even more devices reliant on the cloudâ€"plus a paid cloud subscriptionâ€"to handle what we could once do on our own.

Asus says memory shortage should 'start to normalize' by 2027, but 'nobody wants to be the first one to lower prices'

It's set to be an exciting year for laptops, with Intel Core Ultra Series 3 chips bringing newfound performance and Nvidia DLSS 4.5 pushing gaming to new heights. But the ongoing RAM price crisis is here to spoil the fun. With prices already skyrocketing on RAM sticks, along with manufacturers like Framework raising the cost of its PCs, it's only a matter of time before we see laptop makers charge more for their products -- and that goes for phones, consoles and more. Now, many have been questioning when we'll start to see RAM prices go back to normal. With Micron claiming the RAM crisis won't improve until 2028, it's looking like the shortage will be drawn out. That said, there is still a glimmer of hope, seeing as Intel says there's about "9 to 12 months" of stock before we see price hikes. As for Asus, it has a different take. Speaking with Sascha Krohn, Asus' Director of Technical Marketing, he believes the memory shortage should "start to normalize" by 2027, but there may be a battle between brands on who will start to lower prices first. If predictions ring true, it could only be a year until RAM comes back down in cost, but there are other factors at play. "It's really hard to say," Krohn starts off. "I think, like memory vendors or like the actual memory chip manufacturers, they never run their factories at 100% capacity. They try to always run their fabs at maximum capacity because, you know, for the best price, you want to use all the resources you have, but they usually have some idle capacity that they can also use to then adjust, right? "They can bring additional manufacturing lines online or reactivate maybe some older ones to have extra capacities. So if there's an increase in demand, they can increase their supply. But there's only so much flexibility there. And I think the demand right now for memory is so high, and we all know where it comes from." If you're not aware, the RAM crisis kicked off due to a higher demand for High Bandwidth Memory (HBM) for AI data centers, all to power services like ChatGPT and Gemini. Consumer memory supply is dwindling, but it's all needed for all the upcoming tech. Krohn continues: "My personal gut feeling is that it's going to be relatively long. I think prices are not going to come down very soon. I saw that some people expect prices to already drop in the middle of 2026 or towards the end of 2026. That's the most optimistic I heard. And then the most pessimistic is like 2028 or maybe even beyond 2028. "I think it's probably going to be something in between. So my personal gut feeling is that it's probably going to be 2027 when we see memory prices start to normalize." Of course, it's understandable that it's basically impossible to predict just when we'll finally see prices come down from their new heights, but there's also the matter of when companies themselves will start to lower prices. Even when the memory crisis starts to even out and prices start to drop, Krohn brings up an important point about what companies will do once costs plummet. If the price is right for a brand, it may be a tad longer before the cost of tech from manufacturers drops, too. "I think as long as that demand is going to continue like this, the memory price situation will probably continue like this. And if past situations have taught us anything, it's that even once the supply constraint is no longer there, it still takes a while until prices go back to what they would naturally be," Krohn details. We've seen costs rise well above the asking price when Nvidia's RTX 50-series GPUs launched, and even today, prices generally stick above retail price for each GPU, especially from third-party brands. Now, the same could possibly happen with RAM. "There's a lot of hesitation in lowering prices, right? Everybody who's selling something, obviously, if you could sell it for a high price last week, why would you sell it for a lower price this week, right? And nobody wants to be the first one to lower prices. So it usually takes like a couple of months or even quarters for prices to slowly go down again." It's a matter of who pulls the trigger first, and once one company drops its price, the rest are sure to follow. But even if the memory shortage ends by 2027, it could be a few months longer until costs start to normalize again. There are a ton of devices we're looking forward to from Asus and more, namely the Asus ROG Zephyrus Duo and even the new Death Stranding-inspired Asus ROG Flow Z13 we saw during CES 2026. But it appears that those after a new PC or upgrade will be paying a hefty chunk of change this year. Fortunately, we may have a bit of wiggle room before prices start to rise on laptops, phones, gaming consoles and more, according to Asus. Once costs start to jump, though, it will be a matter of when RAMageddon starts to ease and when companies start to drop their prices again.

Major memory module manufacturer says: 'Trust me, we're not laughing our way to the bank'

'If you're going to buy memory, now might be a good time,' says Patriot marketing manager as prices still haven't peaked. Having written about games and hardware for over a decade, believe me when I say an even slightly candid interview is a rare treat. As such, Kyle Hansen's live-streamed, down-to-earth chat with memory manufacturer Patriot's marketing manager Shannon Robb about all things system memory was a particular delight during CES 2026. As entertaining as Robb and Hansen's well-established rapport is, the full 40-minute interview is also eye-opening. For a start, while we already know AI is a big reason why we're experiencing a supply crisis, Robb eloquently communicates the sheer scale of the industry's hunger for memory. He puts it in stark terms for Hansen, "The AI companies bought, like, 40% of the wafer production. We're not even talking finished goods, like, packages -- not even chips. They're just wafers." And what's even wilder is that a lot of that stock may not even be in active use, instead hoarded in storage as the industry struggles to find sufficient power to fit out functional data centers. Robb later adds that companies like Patriot aren't the reason for the sky-high RAM prices consumers are seeing, echoing similar comments recently made by Micron. He quips, "Trust me, we're not laughing our way to the bank with that because we've got to pay to get these parts." He also says, "We literally just have to get what we can get. Make it work, and obviously the market price -- because [of how] supply and demand works -- that goes up and we have to pay it," before going on to later elaborate, "The key driver of price right now is the IC components, which we can't do nothing with." To be clear, Patriot is a module manufacturer in the memory space, not a chip manufacturer. There are precious few of those, which is one of the reasons prices are spiking. The likes of Samsung, Micron, and key Patriot supplier SK Hynix are responsible for making most of the actual integrated circuits (ICs) that go into the market's memory modules. But in such a challenging landscape, Patriot has no plans to make like Micron and pivot away from the consumer memory market and focus on serving the data center community. Robb offers, "The market is eventually going to correct. It's just a matter of when. And the fact is we're here to stay. We've been here, Patriot, we're on our 41st year." That said, Robb shares that he doesn't believe we've yet seen memory prices peak. As for when we may finally see slightly more sensible RAM prices, he says, "As a company I'll say, 'Your guess is about as good as ours'. [Personally], I've been following it and it's been rough because originally I thought, you know, 'hey, maybe first half 2026 we might see it,' but then you look at some of the statements by like SK [hynix] and whatnot where they're like, 'we're not going to increase capacity. We're not going to,' because they don't want to be left holding the bag when this eventually pops." So, with even the big memory makers grappling with an expensive state of affairs, what's a PC gamer to do? Robb actually has some advice. When it comes to memory upgrades, he does offer a familiar line: "If you're going to buy memory, now might be a good time. I can't say 100%, but [pricing] looks like it's going to continue to go up for a bit." However, he then follows this up with a more level-headed observation: "It's just like GPUs; If GPUs are going crazy, if [your current hardware] still plays your games, don't upgrade till you need to. Same thing with memory." Hansen himself even quips, "No one needs a 5090!" Robb also observes, "There's so many people that could buy a Jedec stick, put it in, and have the same performance that they have now because they never even enable XMP," before later returning to his most salient point, "Get a kit that makes sense." It's simple, but advice that I think bears repeating. Rather than going for the top-of-the-line sticks bound to cost a frankly eye-watering amount right now, it's important to take stock of what you actually need. For instance, while I enjoy hiding in a bush in Arc Raiders from time to time, I'm much more likely to be shuffling decks and selecting dialogue options in what are arguably not the most demanding releases. If you're anything like me, then chances are you can hold off on that pricey upgrade. Robb elaborates, "I [say], 'Hey, focus on what makes sense.' Because the thing is, if you save on that crazy [memory] kit, who knows? You can go another tier up on your GPU or CPU or, even better, motherboard, cooling, maybe more -- maybe another terabyte of storage so you can fit more games, not sit there and swap them out all the time." This is all well and good advice, but components beyond RAM, like power supplies and CPU coolers, may also see price increases due to raw material prices surging on top of everything else. Bottom line, if your rig ain't broke, you can afford to hold off on upgrading any time soon.

Global memory chip shortage sends PC prices soaring

A global memory chip shortage has driven up prices for personal computers, smartphones, and consumer electronics, as manufacturers prioritize artificial intelligence applications. TrendForce forecasts conventional DRAM contract prices will surge 55% to 60% in the first quarter of 2026, following a 45% to 50% increase in Q4 2025. This increase stems from Samsung Electronics, SK Hynix, and Micron Technology redirecting wafer capacity to high-bandwidth memory (HBM) chips for AI accelerators. Micron's Chief Business Officer Sumit Sadana said, "We're sold out for 2026." Micron CEO Sanjay Mehrotra warned that tight industry conditions in DRAM and NAND flash memory will "persist through and beyond" 2026. HBM uses approximately three times as much wafer space as standard DDR5 due to larger chip sizes and lower production yields, according to IDC analysts. Profit margins on advanced server-grade modules reach up to 75%. Dell Technologies COO Jeff Clarke stated that the company has "never seen costs move at the rate" they are currently rising. Lenovo notified customers that all pricing would expire on January 1, 2026, and began stockpiling memory components. Framework, the modular PC maker, has raised prices multiple times; its 128GB desktop configuration increased from $1,999 to $2,459. Framework CEO Nirav Patel wrote that "the memory outlook as we enter 2026 continues to get worse." Taiwanese memory packaging and testing firms, including Powertech, Huatong, and ChipMOS, have raised service prices by up to 30%, operating near full capacity. Mainstream PC memory and storage costs rose 40% to 70% between Q1 and Q4 2025, according to Omdia. The International Data Corporation (IDC) warns that PC shipments could shrink by up to 9% in 2026 under pessimistic scenarios, with average selling prices rising 6% to 8%. Consumer device prices could rise up to 20%. SK Hynix announced plans to invest $13 billion in a new advanced packaging plant for AI memory, with construction beginning in April, though new production capacity will not arrive until 2027. Jitesh Ubrani, research manager at IDC, said, "Memory shortages are affecting the entire industry, and the impact will likely reshape market dynamics over the next two years. The severity of the shortage raises the risk that smaller brands may not survive."