RAM, SSD prices are surging: How long will this last?
RAM, SSD prices are surging: How long will this last?
The market for gaming PCs is witnessing a major shift, with graphics card prices stabilizing after months of pandemic and AI-related shortages.
Mainstream to high-end GPUs like AMD's Radeon RX 9060 XT and 9070 series or NVIDIA's RTX 5060, 5070, and 5080 series are now available at their suggested retail prices.
However, this good news is marred by an unexpected spike in RAM prices due to a shortage of memory and flash chips.
RAM prices surge due to chip shortage
The ongoing AI boom and panic buying by end users and device manufacturers have caused a sudden spike in SSD and memory prices.
For instance, the price of Patriot Viper Venom 16GB (2 x 8GB) DDR-6000 RAM kit has skyrocketed from $49 in August to $110 now.
Similarly, Silicon Power's 16GB (2 x 8GB) DDR4-3200 RAM kit is now priced at $89, up from its previous cost of $34.
SSD prices also witness significant increase
The price of Western Digital's WD Blue SN5000 1TB SSD has also jumped from $64 in August to $111 now.
Team T-Force Vulcan's 32GB DDR5-6000 RAM kit is now priced at an eye-watering $310, up from its previous cost of $82.
These steep increases highlight the impact of the ongoing chip shortage on both RAM and storage prices.
High-capacity RAM kits face the brunt of price hikes
The ongoing chip shortage is affecting SSDs and DDR4 and DDR5 RAM kits of all capacities, but higher-capacity RAM kits are being hit a little harder.
If you're considering an SSD upgrade, the price increases aren't too bad yet.
However, if you were thinking about a RAM upgrade, it's best to hold on tight to whatever you already have and hope that nothing breaks anytime soon.
Impact of chip shortages on PC and phone manufacturers
PC and phone manufacturers, as well as makers of components that use memory chips like GPUs, have largely not increased prices yet.
These companies buy components in bulk and usually do so ahead of time, which softens the impact of price hikes in the short term.
Lenovo is reportedly "stockpiling memory and other critical components" to avoid passing on rising costs to its customers.
Memory and storage shortages pose long-term challenges
Memory and storage shortages are particularly hard to navigate as it can take years to ramp up capacity or build new manufacturing facilities.
Manufacturers have to balance today's demand with supply levels determined years ago, while also predicting tomorrow's supply levels based on today's demand.
This was a major issue during the pandemic-fueled chip shortages of 2021 and 2022.
Current prices are likely to stay high for several months and may ease only next year as chip supply improves.