RAM Shortage Drives Up Laptop and GPU Prices

The ongoing RAM and storage shortage, driven by AI demand for memory, is causing widespread price increases across laptops and GPUs. A 32GB DDR5-6000 kit that averaged $72 last year now averages $392, and GPU prices are approaching 2.5 times their launch cost Source: Tom's Hardware, The Next Web.

Price Hikes

Asus and Gigabyte have raised prices across their entire RTX 50 and Radeon RX 9000 lineups, with the RTX 5090D V2 seeing increases of up to $666 Source: The Next Web. AMD has informed partners of at least a 10% increase in GPU and memory kit prices starting in August Source: The Next Web. These hikes follow Nvidia's earlier increases, and a third round is reportedly planned Source: The Next Web.

Impact on Laptops

Laptop makers are also affected. The MacBook Neo's price rose by $100 three months after launch Source: Ars Technica. However, some budget laptops offer value: the HP OmniBook 3 with 16GB RAM and 512GB SSD sells for around $520 Source: The Verge, and the Chuwi Unibook starts at $449 Source: Ars Technica. Framework's Laptop 12 now starts at 8GB RAM, reflecting the memory crunch Source: Engadget.

Market Reactions

Scalper bots are exacerbating the shortage, accounting for 91% of traffic on one retailer's DDR5 pages Source: Tom's Hardware. Console sales are down 29% year-over-year in the U.S. due to higher prices Source: Gizmodo. Analysts expect no relief until late 2027 or 2028 Source: The Next Web.