The price of electronics continues to rise, as Apple and Xbox are just the latest companies to implement product price hikes amid surging memory and storage chip costs.
As reported by the BBC, Apple has raised the prices of some laptops and tablets by nearly 20 percent, citing an “unprecedented challenge” in the industry due to the surge in demand for RAM chips. Its recently released MacBook Neo laptop, for example, has seen a price hike from S$849 to S$999.
Shortly after Apple’s announcement, Microsoft followed suit by announcing that its Xbox Series X|S consoles will be getting more expensive, similarly blaming the rising costs of memory and storage. As noted via a post on Xbox Wire, these price hikes will be effective on 1 August 2026, and see the 512GB Xbox models increase by US$100, and the 1TB models increase by US$150. The company will also be sunsetting its 2TB model consoles.
Xbox console prices had already been increased by US$20 – US$70 in the US last October, with Microsoft adding that it expects the price of components to increase further by Fall 2027, leaving the door open for Xbox to further raise prices next year.
Apple’s and Xbox’s price hikes follow the rising trend of companies increasing the prices of their devices to combat rising hardware costs, with Sony also similarly hiking the prices of its PlayStation consoles back in April 2026. Nintendo has also increased the price of its Nintendo Switch 2 console by roughly US$60 in Japan, with the price increase kicking into effect globally from September 2026. Even Valve’s upcoming Steam Machine hybrid console, which is set for release soon, will launch with an increased price tag, with the company citing that its original price goal was “no longer viable” amid soaring component costs.
Much of the price increase for memory and storage components, particularly RAM chips, can be attributed to the global AI boom, which sees companies rushing to adopt the technology and the proliferation of AI data centres needed to power it. With the way the industry is heading, don’t expect these price hikes to stop anytime soon, so those looking to snag the latest technological doodad or gaming console might want to consider getting them soon before prices increase any further.
Kevin is a reformed PC Master Race gamer with a penchant for franchise “duds” like Darksiders III and Dead Space 3. He has made it his life-long mission to play every single major game release – lest his wallet dies trying.
Joey Leong
Si Jia
