Smartphone prices set to climb in 2024 as chip shortage hits
Thinking of upgrading your phone soon? You might want to hurry—smartphone prices are expected to rise in the coming year(s).
The reason: a global shortage of memory chips, mostly because AI data centers are snapping them up.
Xiaomi's Lu Weibing and Ingenuity's William Keating both say these price hikes will see a significant increase as supply gets tighter.
Why is this happening?
Chipmakers like Samsung, SK hynix, Micron, and SanDisk are seeing increased revenues since demand for DRAM and NAND chips is through the roof—not just for phones but also PCs and even cars.
SK hynix recently reported record profits. Samsung's building a new chip factory to keep up.
At the same time, manufacturers are holding back on expanding production so prices stay high. Experts expect this crunch (and higher prices) could stick around until at least 2026.