Meta · Microsoft · Apple · Samsung · The Guardian Technology
Sony raised the price of the PS5 by £90 on 2 April and is reportedly considering delaying its successor
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Meta added £30 to the cost of its Quest 3S VR headset on 19 April and Samsung recently upped the price of some smartphone models, such as the 512GB S25 Edge, by £50.
Key facts
- The analyst firm TrendForce estimates prices for mainstream laptops typically costing about $900 (£667) might increase by as much as 40% in 2026 owing to the memory chip shortage and rising cost
- Meta added £30 to the cost of its Quest 3S VR headset on 19 April and Samsung recently upped the price of some smartphone models, such as the 512GB S25 Edge, by £50
- Sony raised the price of the PS5 by £90 on 2 April and is reportedly considering delaying its successor, while Microsoft increased the price of an Xbox last year by £20 to £50 (depending on model)
- Microsoft phased out lower-end models of its Surface computers while also adding £170-£200, depending on model, to the starting price
Summary
The end of the cheap laptop, the bargain phone and affordable games consoles may be on the horizon. Recently, the biggest manufacturers of laptops and phones, including Microsoft, Samsung and Dell, started putting up prices and pulling cheaper models, which is going to make finding budget phones and laptops under £400 much harder. The root cause is a shortage of memory chips which the tech press has dubbed “RAMageddon”. Memory chips are crucial to about every modern piece of electronics and are also used in other important components such as graphics cards, creating a knock-on effect. The analyst firm TrendForce estimates prices for mainstream laptops typically costing about $900 (£667) might increase by as much as 40% in 2026 owing to the memory chip shortage and rising cost of other parts.