#memory-chip-crisis

#memory-chip-crisis

"We're making this change because the cost of building high-performance VR hardware has risen significantly. The global surge in the price of critical components - specifically memory chips - is impacting almost every category of consumer electronics, including VR."

A total of 289.7 million devices were shipped in the first three months of 2026, representing a 4.1% decline compared to the same period last year.

At least two of the company's upcoming machines could debut a little later than the company initially planned, referencing the refreshes to Apple's desktop and its laptop that's expected to get a touchscreen.

The flagship models of the Surface Laptop and Surface Pro now cost $1,499 - $500 more than they did at launch in 2024.

With shares going for more than 38.0 times trailing price-to-earnings (P/E), I'm personally in no rush to chase the stock, especially with quarterly earnings just under a week away. That said, some big-name analysts have been bold enough to stay in the bull camp. And that's despite the hot, seemingly overheated run, the relatively stretched multiple, and uncertainties clouding the future of AI.

A severe shortage of NAND flash, driven by the enormous demand for it to expand AI data centers, makes procurement impossible. Sony is currently unable to fulfill orders for CFexpress Type A, CFexpress Type B, and SDXC/SDHC memory cards.

Since the start of 2026, Tesla Inc., Apple Inc. and a dozen other major corporations have signaled that the shortage of DRAM, or dynamic random access memory - the fundamental building block of almost all technology - will constrain production. Cook warned it will compress iPhone margins. Micron Technology Inc. called the bottleneck "unprecedented." Musk got to the intractable nature o f the problem when he declared Tesla is going to have to build its own memory fabrication plant.

Do you have a phone in your pocket you'd like to upgrade in the next few years? Fancy a game console or handheld? A laptop, perhaps? Will you need a new router, whether you're purchasing outright or renting from your ISP? Each of these devices is expected to have shortages, price hikes, or both in 2026. And even if you don't plan to buy, you depend on goods and services from others who'll be paying more to upgrade their devices.