In the midst of the ongoing PC component crisis, tech giant Samsung has quickly doubled the price of DRAM that it manufactures for various brands, bringing the contract price close to $20 on parts like DDR5 RAM. Ergo, PC part shoppers will be stuck paying premiums on essential components, as Samsung has stated that the sudden price spike is due to the company having no DRAM stock left.
As of this writing, Samsung is the largest business conglomerate in South Korea, and it is one of the major manufacturers of consumer RAM, alongside companies like SK Hynix and Micron. Samsung’s major customers for DRAM include companies like G.Skill and Corsair. Along with its PC component and smartphone businesses, Samsung is known for manufacturing storage space for PCs, smartphones, and game consoles. This includes SD cards of different sizes, including the recently-launched microSD Express format. Currently, microSD Express cards are utilized by the Nintendo Switch 2 as the console’s main method of expandable storage, with products like Samsung’s P9 Express card selling for competitive prices to consumers looking to add more space.
If You Are Thinking About Buying a Nintendo Switch 2, You Might Not Want to Wait Much Longer to Pull the Trigger
Skyrocketing RAM costs cast a worrying shadow over the Nintendo Switch 2, as prices rise across the industry and rumors of console price hikes grow.
PC Builders Will Bear the Cost of Samsung’s Price Hike
As the prices of consumer DDR5 RAM kits continue to skyrocket, a new report claims that Samsung has raised the contract prices of the DRAM that it manufactures. According to a Taiwanese media report shared by Twitter user Jukan05, Samsung has increased its DRAM contract price by more than 100%, from nearly $7 to the current rate of $19.50 per unit. The contract price is a number that represents the bulk pricing rate that manufacturers like Samsung and SK Hynix offer to large component makers like Corsair. While Samsung sells the actual DRAM chips, the latter companies then fit them on their own printed circuit boards (PCBs) and heatsinks, which they then sell to consumers and other companies. However, the ongoing shortage has caused consumer RAM makers to drastically increase their prices, with RAM kits costing over four times the amounts that were previously offered before October 2025.
Samsung stated via the media report that it has no stock of DRAM kits left, hence why it chose to double its contract prices. This change will inevitably affect DDR5 and DDR4 RAM kits that use Samsung components, as Samsung’s contract price for DDR4 kits has also risen to $18 per 16GB module. The price hike will also affect Samsung’s own line of smartphones and tablets across the board. One of Samsung’s current premium smartphones is the Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 7, which carries a hefty $1,999 price tag as of this writing.
Samsung’s Decision Comes at the Worst Time for PC Gamers
The sudden announcement from Samsung came days after one of Samsung’s main competitors in the DRAM fabrication space announced a major shift in its manufacturing processes. On December 3, Micron announced it was exiting the consumer RAM and SSD component business, turning its attention toward making parts for enterprise customers and corporations. Ergo, the Crucial lineup of consumer products will cease manufacturing on February 28, 2026, ending a 29-year run as one of the leading PC part brands across the globe. Micron stated that it was a move to ensure its success in the long term, as it continues to ship DRAM exclusively for AI-based servers that are currently being built up. Despite the announcement, Micron assured consumers that it would continue to offer warranties and support for its Crucial RAM and SSD lineup past the February 28 cutoff.
With Samsung also responsible for selling NVMe SSDs like the 990 Pro, the price of storage will also increase as the ongoing RAM shortage and crisis continue. As companies like Google and OpenAI continue opening data centers that require DRAM from Samsung and SK Hynix, it remains to be seen when consumers will see any relief.
Source: Tom’s Guide
