Curse of AI to push up PC prices as memory and CPU shortages bite
(2026/02/05)
- Reference: 1770297292
- News link: https://www.theregister.co.uk/2026/02/05/pc_prices_rising/
- Source link:
PC buyers can expect price hikes as chipmakers continue to prioritize AI production over all else, restricting the supply of key components across the tech industry.
Analyst Context says existing inventory initially buffered markets across Europe, however, prices are inflating as older stock depletes - and it forecasts further inflation as the year progresses.
The average UK distributor consumer desktop price, for example, rose almost eight percent year-on-year in the five weeks of 2026 to £565 ($767), while laptops edged up 1.1 percent to £454 ($619) "reflecting continued sell-through of stock purchased before component costs escalated."
[1]
[2]Counterpoint Research said today that memory prices have soared 80 to 90 percent this year versus Q4, with DRAM, NAND, and HBM all hitting new highs.
[3]
[4]
Constraints on specific configurations, alongside emerging CPU availability issues, are expected to limit choice and increase pricing pressure from Q2 onward, according to Context.
"Manufacturers are prioritizing production for AI datacenter infrastructure, redirecting capacity away from consumer-grade memory and storage towards high-bandwidth memory (HBM) and advanced storage required for large-scale AI workloads," said senior retail analyst James Bates.
[5]
New fabrication plants are being built to supply more of the memory that PC makers need, but these typically take several years to come online.
US chipmaker Micron recently started work on a [6]mega chip fab in New York state , which isn't scheduled to begin producing DRAM chips before 2030. Micron did, however, seal the deal on an [7]existing facility in Taiwan that could be delivering chips sometime next year.
The situation is so dire that major PC brands including HP, Dell, Acer, and Asus are considering sourcing memory chips from Chinese manufacturers for the first time, according to [8]Nikkei Asia .
[9]Server CPUs join memory in the supply shortage, pushing up prices
[10]Let them eat Pi: RAM shortage bumps Raspberry prices as much as $60
[11]DRAM prices expected to double in Q1 as AI ambitions push memory fabs to their limit
[12]Budget smartphones will be hit hardest as memory prices rise
HP and Dell have already started qualifying chips from ChangXin Memory Technologies (CXMT), it says, with HP planning to follow suit if the outlook does not improve around the middle of the year.
And it isn't just PCs – servers are also affected. Analyst Omdia said this week that [13]server CPU prices could go up by 11 to 15 percent due to supply problems, while Samsung Electronics and SK hynix were reportedly [14]raising server memory prices by as much as 70 percent this quarter.
[15]
The blast radius from the memory shortages is impacting other areas of the industry such as smartphones. Prices could [16]bounce 6 to 8 percent , disproportionately affecting the low end of the market.
Smartphone chipmaker Qualcomm saw its [17]share price take a hit after it warned of slower sales ahead, as did chip designer Arm, which estimated lower growth in royalty revenue for the next quarter, all due to a shortage of enough memory to go in the devices people want to buy.
With all these side effects from the AI infrastructure boom, it seems we are all going to pay the price for AI, whether we use it or not. ®
Get our [18]Tech Resources
[1] https://pubads.g.doubleclick.net/gampad/jump?co=1&iu=/6978/reg_onprem/personaltech&sz=300x50%7C300x100%7C300x250%7C300x251%7C300x252%7C300x600%7C300x601&tile=2&c=2aYTMtsf-Pt9WePe5SnZXaQAAAAE&t=ct%3Dns%26unitnum%3D2%26raptor%3Dcondor%26pos%3Dtop%26test%3D0
[2] https://counterpointresearch.com/en/insights/Memory-Prices-Surge-Up-to-90-From-Q4-2025
[3] https://pubads.g.doubleclick.net/gampad/jump?co=1&iu=/6978/reg_onprem/personaltech&sz=300x50%7C300x100%7C300x250%7C300x251%7C300x252%7C300x600%7C300x601&tile=4&c=44aYTMtsf-Pt9WePe5SnZXaQAAAAE&t=ct%3Dns%26unitnum%3D4%26raptor%3Dfalcon%26pos%3Dmid%26test%3D0
[4] https://pubads.g.doubleclick.net/gampad/jump?co=1&iu=/6978/reg_onprem/personaltech&sz=300x50%7C300x100%7C300x250%7C300x251%7C300x252%7C300x600%7C300x601&tile=3&c=33aYTMtsf-Pt9WePe5SnZXaQAAAAE&t=ct%3Dns%26unitnum%3D3%26raptor%3Deagle%26pos%3Dmid%26test%3D0
[5] https://pubads.g.doubleclick.net/gampad/jump?co=1&iu=/6978/reg_onprem/personaltech&sz=300x50%7C300x100%7C300x250%7C300x251%7C300x252%7C300x600%7C300x601&tile=4&c=44aYTMtsf-Pt9WePe5SnZXaQAAAAE&t=ct%3Dns%26unitnum%3D4%26raptor%3Dfalcon%26pos%3Dmid%26test%3D0
[6] https://www.theregister.com/2026/01/16/micron_fab_breaks_ground/
[7] https://www.theregister.com/2026/01/20/micron_powerchip_fab_acquisition/
[8] https://asia.nikkei.com/spotlight/supply-chain/hp-dell-acer-and-asus-mull-using-chinese-memory-chips-amid-supply-crunch
[9] https://www.theregister.com/2026/02/04/server_cpus_memory_shortage/
[10] https://www.theregister.com/2026/02/02/raspberry_pi_ram_shortage_price_hike/
[11] https://www.theregister.com/2026/02/02/dram_prices_expected_to_double/
[12] https://www.theregister.com/2026/01/15/memory_crisis_smartphones/
[13] https://www.theregister.com/2026/02/04/server_cpus_memory_shortage/
[14] https://www.theregister.com/2026/01/06/memory_firm_profits_up_as/
[15] https://pubads.g.doubleclick.net/gampad/jump?co=1&iu=/6978/reg_onprem/personaltech&sz=300x50%7C300x100%7C300x250%7C300x251%7C300x252%7C300x600%7C300x601&tile=3&c=33aYTMtsf-Pt9WePe5SnZXaQAAAAE&t=ct%3Dns%26unitnum%3D3%26raptor%3Deagle%26pos%3Dmid%26test%3D0
[16] https://www.theregister.com/2026/01/15/memory_crisis_smartphones/
[17] https://www.theregister.com/2026/02/05/qualcomm_q1_2026/
[18] https://whitepapers.theregister.com/
Analyst Context says existing inventory initially buffered markets across Europe, however, prices are inflating as older stock depletes - and it forecasts further inflation as the year progresses.
The average UK distributor consumer desktop price, for example, rose almost eight percent year-on-year in the five weeks of 2026 to £565 ($767), while laptops edged up 1.1 percent to £454 ($619) "reflecting continued sell-through of stock purchased before component costs escalated."
[1]
[2]Counterpoint Research said today that memory prices have soared 80 to 90 percent this year versus Q4, with DRAM, NAND, and HBM all hitting new highs.
[3]
[4]
Constraints on specific configurations, alongside emerging CPU availability issues, are expected to limit choice and increase pricing pressure from Q2 onward, according to Context.
"Manufacturers are prioritizing production for AI datacenter infrastructure, redirecting capacity away from consumer-grade memory and storage towards high-bandwidth memory (HBM) and advanced storage required for large-scale AI workloads," said senior retail analyst James Bates.
[5]
New fabrication plants are being built to supply more of the memory that PC makers need, but these typically take several years to come online.
US chipmaker Micron recently started work on a [6]mega chip fab in New York state , which isn't scheduled to begin producing DRAM chips before 2030. Micron did, however, seal the deal on an [7]existing facility in Taiwan that could be delivering chips sometime next year.
The situation is so dire that major PC brands including HP, Dell, Acer, and Asus are considering sourcing memory chips from Chinese manufacturers for the first time, according to [8]Nikkei Asia .
[9]Server CPUs join memory in the supply shortage, pushing up prices
[10]Let them eat Pi: RAM shortage bumps Raspberry prices as much as $60
[11]DRAM prices expected to double in Q1 as AI ambitions push memory fabs to their limit
[12]Budget smartphones will be hit hardest as memory prices rise
HP and Dell have already started qualifying chips from ChangXin Memory Technologies (CXMT), it says, with HP planning to follow suit if the outlook does not improve around the middle of the year.
And it isn't just PCs – servers are also affected. Analyst Omdia said this week that [13]server CPU prices could go up by 11 to 15 percent due to supply problems, while Samsung Electronics and SK hynix were reportedly [14]raising server memory prices by as much as 70 percent this quarter.
[15]
The blast radius from the memory shortages is impacting other areas of the industry such as smartphones. Prices could [16]bounce 6 to 8 percent , disproportionately affecting the low end of the market.
Smartphone chipmaker Qualcomm saw its [17]share price take a hit after it warned of slower sales ahead, as did chip designer Arm, which estimated lower growth in royalty revenue for the next quarter, all due to a shortage of enough memory to go in the devices people want to buy.
With all these side effects from the AI infrastructure boom, it seems we are all going to pay the price for AI, whether we use it or not. ®
Get our [18]Tech Resources
[1] https://pubads.g.doubleclick.net/gampad/jump?co=1&iu=/6978/reg_onprem/personaltech&sz=300x50%7C300x100%7C300x250%7C300x251%7C300x252%7C300x600%7C300x601&tile=2&c=2aYTMtsf-Pt9WePe5SnZXaQAAAAE&t=ct%3Dns%26unitnum%3D2%26raptor%3Dcondor%26pos%3Dtop%26test%3D0
[2] https://counterpointresearch.com/en/insights/Memory-Prices-Surge-Up-to-90-From-Q4-2025
[3] https://pubads.g.doubleclick.net/gampad/jump?co=1&iu=/6978/reg_onprem/personaltech&sz=300x50%7C300x100%7C300x250%7C300x251%7C300x252%7C300x600%7C300x601&tile=4&c=44aYTMtsf-Pt9WePe5SnZXaQAAAAE&t=ct%3Dns%26unitnum%3D4%26raptor%3Dfalcon%26pos%3Dmid%26test%3D0
[4] https://pubads.g.doubleclick.net/gampad/jump?co=1&iu=/6978/reg_onprem/personaltech&sz=300x50%7C300x100%7C300x250%7C300x251%7C300x252%7C300x600%7C300x601&tile=3&c=33aYTMtsf-Pt9WePe5SnZXaQAAAAE&t=ct%3Dns%26unitnum%3D3%26raptor%3Deagle%26pos%3Dmid%26test%3D0
[5] https://pubads.g.doubleclick.net/gampad/jump?co=1&iu=/6978/reg_onprem/personaltech&sz=300x50%7C300x100%7C300x250%7C300x251%7C300x252%7C300x600%7C300x601&tile=4&c=44aYTMtsf-Pt9WePe5SnZXaQAAAAE&t=ct%3Dns%26unitnum%3D4%26raptor%3Dfalcon%26pos%3Dmid%26test%3D0
[6] https://www.theregister.com/2026/01/16/micron_fab_breaks_ground/
[7] https://www.theregister.com/2026/01/20/micron_powerchip_fab_acquisition/
[8] https://asia.nikkei.com/spotlight/supply-chain/hp-dell-acer-and-asus-mull-using-chinese-memory-chips-amid-supply-crunch
[9] https://www.theregister.com/2026/02/04/server_cpus_memory_shortage/
[10] https://www.theregister.com/2026/02/02/raspberry_pi_ram_shortage_price_hike/
[11] https://www.theregister.com/2026/02/02/dram_prices_expected_to_double/
[12] https://www.theregister.com/2026/01/15/memory_crisis_smartphones/
[13] https://www.theregister.com/2026/02/04/server_cpus_memory_shortage/
[14] https://www.theregister.com/2026/01/06/memory_firm_profits_up_as/
[15] https://pubads.g.doubleclick.net/gampad/jump?co=1&iu=/6978/reg_onprem/personaltech&sz=300x50%7C300x100%7C300x250%7C300x251%7C300x252%7C300x600%7C300x601&tile=3&c=33aYTMtsf-Pt9WePe5SnZXaQAAAAE&t=ct%3Dns%26unitnum%3D3%26raptor%3Deagle%26pos%3Dmid%26test%3D0
[16] https://www.theregister.com/2026/01/15/memory_crisis_smartphones/
[17] https://www.theregister.com/2026/02/05/qualcomm_q1_2026/
[18] https://whitepapers.theregister.com/
Anonymous Coward
That's the plan. Make it so large and interwoven into the fabric of the world economy it can't fail. Then when it ultimately does governments will have no option but to bail it out. Governments love this one simple trick to push austerity and raise taxes for all but the rich.
scarletherring
In fact, I'm starting to think that these soaring component prices are part of the plan as well: if it becomes effectively impossible to have on-prem compute, we'll all be forced into subscription-based cloud compute. Renting is more profitable than selling, long term. And these poor guys will need to find some use for all of those datacenters after the AI bubble inevitably bursts.
So when the AI bubble bursts ...
alain williams
do we all get cheap(er) PCs & 'phones ?
Re: So when the AI bubble bursts ...
Pickle Rick
Of course! Of course, of course, of course! Free delivery too, by a leprechaun riding a rainbow coloured flying piggie!
Re: So when the AI bubble bursts ...
brainwrong
No, we get cheaper power-guzzling data-centre hardware. Which will be more difficult for us to plug in and power than the data centre operators.
It'll take time to re-direct production to consumer hardware, assuming the manufacturers are still in business.
Re: So when the AI bubble bursts ...
JohnSheeran
We do but since half the current workers will have been long unemployed by then, you still won't be able to afford it.
Anyone asked MS about this?
Kevin Johnston
So just when the claims are starting that Windows 11 is finally gaining traction, AI comes along to ramp up the price of the kit needed for a Win11 capable PC. Time to rethink that upgrade strategy
Toast
TimMaher
Does this mean that my new, internet connected, app managed toaster will become more expensive?
This monster is becoming so distorting the world economy it needs reining in. Power, water, components, governments (at least the UK) all being sucked into a black hole.