Overview
The big thing with intelligence is really affecting smartphones in a major way. It is affecting the memory that they use. Lots of companies are trying to build computer centers to help train these artificial intelligence systems. Because of this big companies that make memory, like Samsung and SK Hynix are focusing on making a kind of memory called High Bandwidth Memory. This means that other companies, the ones that make phones are having a hard time getting the memory they need. There are not enough of some types of memory like DRAM and NAND to go around. The prices of these things are going up and up. Apple, the company that makes iPhones is really feeling the effects of this.
Samsung and SK Hynix Jack Up LPDDR RAM Costs
ZDNet Korea has some news: Samsung and SK Hynix have changed their deals with Apple. This means the price of LPDDR RAM for iPhones is going up a lot. It is going up by 80 to 100 percent from the quarter. Samsung is increasing their price by 80 percent. SK Hynix is actually doubling their price. This is an increase.. It might not be the end of it. The second half of 2026 might see bigger price jumps. This will make iPhones, like the iPhone 18 Pro and the iPhone Fold more expensive.
I still remember the iPhone 17 Pro and the iPhone 17 Pro Max and the iPhone Air had 12GB LPDDR5x RAM. A tech blogger said month that the price of the 12GB LPDDR5x RAM in the iPhone 17 Pro and the iPhone 17 Pro Max and the iPhone Air went up a lot. It was 230% more. The price was $25 to $29 for one unit, which is around Rs. 2,200 To Rs. 2,600. Now it is $70 for one unit, which is around Rs. 6,300. The 12GB LPDDR5x RAM, in the iPhone 17 Pro and the iPhone 17 Pro Max and the iPhone Air is made by Samsung and Apple has to buy it from them.
Apple is in a scramble and we need to think about what this means for people like us.
The Apple scramble is getting a lot of attention.
We have to consider what the Apple scramble will do to our lives.
The Apple situation is very confusing. It is hard to understand what the Apple scramble is all, about.
We just want to know how the Apple scramble will affect us.
Apple is looking for suppliers to avoid the problem but they have not found any yet. Apple is trying really hard to negotiate with the suppliers they have. They are using the things they already have in stock to get by for now. This is an idea because it is helping Apple to stay in business for the time being. However the price increases could affect Apple and the iPhone, which means that Apple might have to increase the price of the iPhone or make some changes, to what the iPhone can do. Apple is still dealing with the iPhone. Trying to figure out what to do about the price increases and the suppliers.
It’s wild how AI’s data hunger is reshaping everything. Smartphones, once RAM kings, are now sidelined. Expect ripples across Android too, but Apple’s scale makes it headline news. If you’re eyeing an upgrade, maybe snag one soon before tags creep up.
