The continued concern over RAM availability and its impact on component prices has led one research firm to predict that the entry-level PC market will disappear in as little as two years.
Gartner has suggested in its latest report that the ongoing RAM shortage due to AI data center demands is going to have a big impact on consumer electronics, with the firm predicting a 17% increase in PC prices and a 13% increase in smartphone prices compared to 2025. Given the low margins on many entry-level offerings, the firms predicts that by 2028 the sub-$500 PC will no longer exist.
The surge of RAM and DRAM pricing is predicted to increase further, peaking at 130% by the end of 2026. This will ultimately lead to consumers holding onto aging PCs for longer, with Gartner predicting that this could increase by nearly 20% for consumers that already have a modern system. This comes with concerns around security vulnerabilities over time, but is supported by the increasing cost of older DDR4 RAM as supply of DDR5 continues to dry up.
If you’ve been keeping up with all the different ways that this RAM shortage has been impacting consumer electronics, none of this will surprise you. GPU manufacturer Zotac has already indicated that this current shortage presents an existential threat to many similar companies in the market, while two out of the three storage manufacturers globally have already filled all production orders for 2026.
It’s already got companies like Sony thinking about the impact on its future console business, with the PlayStation 6 potentially delayed until 2029. Nintendo is also weighing up potential price increases for the Switch 2 in the future should costs continue to rise.