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Report: iPhone Memory Costs Set to Quadruple by 2027
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code-m
macrumors 601
code-m
macrumors 601
code-m
macrumors 601
I don’t know, some MR forum members say their had enough of iPhone and jumped to Android/Samsung. Smart phone maker infidelity wars. 😝
code-m
macrumors 601
Are you protesting by not using AI? If enough do it the message will be sent.
Of course they know their S&D charts very well so they know the price sensitivity etc. In any case one could easily skip a generation or two and wait it out unless you destroyed your phone. 1500-1600 is already very expensive for a phone and there's a limit to the AI investments as there is a limit to everything. The market eventually balances out...
code-m
macrumors 601
That would mean that Apple would have to double RAM and not charge as much due to scrutiny.
Nah the AI price increases are effecting CPU, RAM and SSD. Apple only had CPU hanging by a thread and you want them to jump on the other two boats as well. 😂
code-m
macrumors 601
Or people and Mother Nature will get their wish where Apple releases a new iPhone every two years vice annually. The stock will be hit but who knows.
Kriss_De_Valnor
macrumors member
I can imagine everything at this moment. Apple may delay incoming (and shocking) price increase but it will happen. I work with both platforms and what I can see now in Windows PC market is shocking. Mind you I can easily sell parts (Kingston FURY Impact RAM and Samsung 990 Pro SSD) from my old HP Omen gaming laptop I upgraded with and make good money on eBay.
code-m
macrumors 601
Hots
macrumors newbie
Can we quit editorializing?
Ternus has a number of decisions to make; it's far too presumptive to assume this will be his first, or even his first major one. We don't even know the majority of them, because there are likely unannounced products (smart glasses, anniversary phone, AI Siri) in the works that will also demand decisions on quality, messaging, release timing, pricing, …
Writers, stop editorializing the news. I get that you want to tell a story like Ternus is some main character that has to battle one huge company-defining problem like pricing the next smartphone, but I assure you there is much more in play already, and he isn't waiting for some inauguration day to set in line some gargantuan new pricing strategy.
code-m
macrumors 601
People forget that it’s Apple Inc. and not some family run company. Why Ternus has the finally say, I believe he will stay out of other departments wheelhouse as their are more experienced in the changing environment.
Next people will say Ternus is running the legal department.
Next people will say Ternus is running the legal department.
1BadManVan
macrumors 68040
Yup, that’s my plan. Upgrade to the 18 this year, I have a 14 pro max anyways so I’m due. But also same reason I upgraded my MacBook this year. I don’t see them holding off prices next year if ram and ssd costs go up as high as they are predicting.
racerhomie
macrumors 6502a
It’s solving 60 year old math problems too!
An amateur just solved a 60-year-old math problem—by asking AI
Reduce video and images sizes? Every new phone seems to have a better camera to use more space.
Actually, maybe AI can help Apple improve Messages image/video management. That needs work.
Hmmm...
AI=layoffs and prices go up.
Great how companies are all in on AI. But, at some point people won't be dumb and pay these prices. Or will they?
AI=layoffs and prices go up.
Great how companies are all in on AI. But, at some point people won't be dumb and pay these prices. Or will they?
Let costs decuple.. people will still buy iPhones. It's just fact.
Memory could account for as much as 45 percent of an iPhone's component costs by 2027, up from around 10 percent today, according to a JPMorgan analysis cited by the Financial Times ($).
Apple buys memory for roughly 250 million iPhones a year and has historically been one of the largest customers in the category. But Apple has reportedly now gone from a position where it could set terms to one where it now has to compete with rivals for supply.
The principal reason is the heavily subsidized AI build-out that's underway.
In a race to make data centers that can handle more compute for frontier AI models, AI infrastructure buyers like Nvidia are now reportedly outbidding consumer electronics makers for limited supply from the likes of Samsung, SK Hynix, and Micron. Meanwhile, cloud companies are reportedly making upfront payments worth billions of dollars to secure capacity.
It's a marked break from the industry norm of committing to volumes with suppliers first and negotiating prices later.
The pressure is already reshaping Apple's product plans, and the rumored split-launch cycle for the iPhone 18 series is said to be part of that new reality. Apple is expected to stagger the iPhone 18 launch, holding the lower-priced model until spring 2027 rather than shipping the full lineup in the usual fall window. Instead, only the iPhone 18 Pro models will be launched in September, with a foldable iPhone expected to be unveiled around the same time.
Apple hardware engineering chief John Ternus takes over from Tim Cook as CEO on September 1, and Cook will transition to his new role as Apple's first executive chair, where he is expected to take a direct role in day-to-day operations. Meanwhile, Ternus's first big decision will be whether Apple absorbs the increasing cost of memory or passes it onto consumers.
Bank of America analyst Wamsi Mohan reckons the decision could come down to whether Apple holds prices to please consumers or accepts a margin hit, especially in markets like India and China where it competes with local smartphone makers. "By the time September rolls around, Apple has two choices: one, they reprice [products] higher, or two, they say 'let's go ahead and gun for market share,'" Mohan told the FT. He thinks there is a decent chance that Apple will opt for market share.
Article Link: Report: iPhone Memory Costs Set to Quadruple by 2027
drunkaviator
macrumors regular
Apparently companies are reluctant to build new Fabs, as they're betting this is a bubble and setting up new capacity is very expensive. These companies tend to follow a more long term planning, due to the capital intensive / high risk nature of the industry.
drunkaviator
macrumors regular
How would they do that? Please explain. All of the knowledge and tech needed to do this is tightly locked down by companies like TSMC. Even Apple doesn't know the process / recipe to make their chips. Making a CPU takes 3 months and requires literally hundreds of chemical, mechanical and baking steps that must be flawlessly executed.
This appears to be a repeat by Financial Times / JP Morgan of an earlier article from TrendForce:
www.trendforce.com
RAM + Storage was estimated to be $39 out of the $485 BOM for an iPhone 16, or about 8%.
appleinsider.com
We've had earlier reports that RAM costs have gone up to about $70 (partly because we now have 50% more RAM - 12GB vs 8GB - and not just due to the increase of chip prices of ~200%)
www.macrumors.com
So if RAM is $70 and NAND is $60, and all other parts cost the same, the BOM would add up to about $576. $130 of $576 is ~23% (and not 45% as per the article), or about a $100 increase. That would normally translate to a $200 increase in phone pricing by Apple.
I give it 50/50 that Apple raises prices by $100 vs keeping them the same. Yes, that would lower margins a bit, but the increase in sales and market share should increase revenue/profit to offset that
Memory Price Surge Intensifies Retail Pricing Pressure, Putting Global Smartphone Production at Risk of a Sharp Decline in 2026, says TrendForce
TrendForce’s latest smartphone industry research predicts that soaring memory prices are set to weigh heavily on global smartphone production in 2026. Total output is forecast to decline 10% YoY to approximately 1.135 billion units. With memory prices showing no clear signs of easing, the...
www.trendforce.com
RAM + Storage was estimated to be $39 out of the $485 BOM for an iPhone 16, or about 8%.
iPhone 16 models cost a little more to make than the iPhone 15
Analysts say the iPhone 16 series costs Apple a few more dollars to produce than its iPhone 15 counterparts thanks to rising component costs.
We've had earlier reports that RAM costs have gone up to about $70 (partly because we now have 50% more RAM - 12GB vs 8GB - and not just due to the increase of chip prices of ~200%)
Apple Reportedly Agrees to 100% Price Hike on Samsung Memory Chips
Apple has agreed to pay Samsung twice as much for the LPDDR5X memory chips that it needs for ongoing iPhone 17 production, claims a report from Korean outlet Dealsite. According to the report's sources, Apple recently held emergency meetings with Samsung's semiconductor division to negotiate...
www.macrumors.com
So if RAM is $70 and NAND is $60, and all other parts cost the same, the BOM would add up to about $576. $130 of $576 is ~23% (and not 45% as per the article), or about a $100 increase. That would normally translate to a $200 increase in phone pricing by Apple.
I give it 50/50 that Apple raises prices by $100 vs keeping them the same. Yes, that would lower margins a bit, but the increase in sales and market share should increase revenue/profit to offset that