Samsung and SK Hynix Double LPDDR DRAM Prices for Apple
Samsung and SK Hynix have raised their LPDDR DRAM prices for Apple by almost 100 percent. Samsung Electronics and SK Hynix have raised their prices for low-power DRAM (LPDDR) which they supply to Apple in the current quarter by more than 100 percent. The current price increase occurred because there is a global shortage of memory chips which has become more severe.
Market Shift Ends Apple's Low-Price Advantage
Apple has traditionally used its status as a leading smartphone maker which sells 250 million iPhones annually to obtain LPDDR at cheaper rates. The current market conditions force Apple to follow the general trend of price increases which affects the entire industry.
The supply shortage has been exacerbated by two main factors:
- Global tech companies are making big investments in AI equipment which is driving up their demand for DRAM.
- Samsung and SK Hynix and other memory suppliers have made High Bandwidth Memory (HBM) production their main priority which has reduced the availability of other memory types including LPDDR.
Details of the Price Negotiation
The industry sources confirmed that the first quarter supply negotiations resulted in major price changes for the LPDDR5X chips that iPhones use. Samsung Electronics proposed a price increase of more than 80 percent while SK Hynix suggested a price rise of approximately 100 percent compared to last quarter. The negotiation process helped to correct the previous price imbalance which benefited Apple.
Future Outlook and Broader Market Impact
The price of LPDDR for Apple products may continue to rise especially during the second half of the year when Apple plans to release its new flagship iPhone 18. An industry insider reported that Apple has changed its usual practice of long-term memory contracts to pay for memory through semi-annual negotiations because the market has become unpredictable.
The memory crisis has led to the situation where they have completed unit price negotiations only until the middle of this year according to an industry insider. Prices may rise further in line with the launch of new products in the second half of the year.
This price change belongs to a broader pattern. TrendForce expects that general-purpose DRAM prices will increase by 55 to 60 percent during the first quarter because prices had already risen by about 40 percent in the fourth quarter of the previous year.
