Now Reading: Memory-chip surge pushes smartphone prices up 15%, more hikes ahead
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Memory-chip surge pushes smartphone prices up 15%, more hikes ahead
Memory-chip surge pushes smartphone prices up 15%, more hikes ahead
A fivefold increase in memory-chip prices over nine months has driven average smartphone prices up by 15%, and analysts expect another 5, 10% rise in the coming months. Realme, Oppo, Vivo, Samsung…
A fivefold increase in memory-chip prices over nine months has driven average smartphone prices up by 15%, and analysts expect another 5, 10% rise in the coming months. Realme, Oppo, Vivo, Samsung and OnePlus have raised prices by Rs 500 to Rs 12,000 across select models since mid-August 2026, citing higher memory and component costs. Counterpoint Research reports that the sub-Rs 10,000 segment has collapsed: its volume share fell from 18% in Q3 2025 to just 4% by Q2 2026, as entry-level models are shifted to higher price bands.
Memory costs now account for over 45% of entry-level phone bills of materials, up from 15, 20% earlier, squeezing manufacturer margins. IDC Asia Pacific expects another 7, 10% price rise, while Counterpoint forecasts a 13% year-on-year decline in the Indian smartphone market in 2026. Festive-season discounts and financing schemes may offer temporary relief to consumers, but affordability remains a key challenge.
Indian Opinion Analysis
Both sources anchor on the same fact: memory-chip price surges have pushed average smartphone prices up 15%, with another 5, 10% rise expected. The Economic Times version frames this as a broad market squeeze across five brands, with sale volumes declining and festive-demand hopes deferred. It leads with consumer impact. Rediff leads with the collapse of the sub-Rs 10,000 segment, foregrounding a specific market-share crater (18% to 4%) that the Economic Times did not quantify. Where the Economic Times notes average price increases of roughly Rs 3,200, Rediff reports a fivefold memory-chip price rise and pinpoints the break in affordable-5G chipset efforts, adding nuance absent from the other story. A careful reader can trust the shared core data (Counterpoint Research, IDC estimates) while noting that only Rediff isolates the budget segment's complete erosion. Neither outlet adopts a government-critical or sensationalist stance, the gap is one of specificity rather than slant.
Coverage: 2 sources, 2 neutral
Sources (2): retail.economictimes.indiatimes.com (neutral report), rediff.com (neutral report)
This story was synthesised by AI from the 2 sources linked above.
Updated: this story now draws on 2 sources.
