Apple Faces Potential iPhone Price Increase as Samsung Raises Memory Costs

The global smartphone market may be heading toward a new round of price increases, with future iPhone models potentially becoming more expensive due to rising memory costs driven by Samsung.

Photo: commons.wikimedia.org by Ahmad Ali Karim, https://creativecommons.org/publicdomain/zero/1.0/

iPhone 17 Pro

Samsung's Memory Strategy and Apple's Dependency

According to SamMobile, Samsung and SK Hynix remain the two primary suppliers of memory modules for Apple. The US technology giant operates under long-term supply contracts with both companies, but those agreements are set to expire in 2026, requiring renegotiation under dramatically different market conditions.

Industry analysts believe that the rapid expansion of artificial intelligence infrastructure has created unprecedented demand for advanced memory solutions. This surge has already led to tightening supply and rising prices, giving major manufacturers-particularly Samsung-significant leverage in upcoming negotiations.

AI Boom Reshapes the Memory Market

The accelerating adoption of AI technologies has transformed memory chips into one of the most strategically valuable components in the global electronics supply chain. Data centers, AI accelerators, and high-performance computing systems are consuming vast volumes of DRAM and NAND memory, limiting availability for consumer electronics.

Under these conditions, analysts expect Samsung to prioritize profitability when renewing contracts, potentially passing higher costs directly to clients such as Apple.

"If Samsung's memory division is unwilling to offer favorable terms even to its own mobile unit, there is little reason to believe Apple will receive a special deal,” industry observers noted.

Internal Tensions Inside Samsung

One complicating factor is the internal structure of Samsung itself. The company's smartphone manufacturing and memory production are handled by separate divisions, which reportedly have not yet reached agreement on internal pricing for memory chips.

This internal deadlock highlights a broader shift in priorities: memory production, fueled by AI demand, is now significantly more profitable than smartphone manufacturing. As a result, the incentive to maintain lower prices for mobile devices-whether Samsung's own or Apple's-has weakened.

Impact on iPhone Pricing in 2026

Should memory costs rise substantially, Apple may have limited options. Absorbing higher component costs would compress margins, while passing those costs on to consumers would likely result in higher iPhone prices.

Market analysts increasingly view a price increase in 2026 as a realistic scenario, especially if memory shortages persist and AI-related demand continues to grow at its current pace.

Samsung's Profit Outlook

While higher memory prices pose challenges for smartphone manufacturers, they could significantly boost Samsung's overall profitability. Analysts suggest that the company's memory division may deliver exceptional earnings in 2026, driven by premium pricing and sustained global demand.

At the same time, reports from The Elec indicate that Samsung is considering limiting new smartphone features in order to control production costs and avoid raising prices, particularly in its competition with Apple.

As memory becomes an increasingly scarce and valuable resource, the balance of power within the tech industry continues to shift-potentially redefining how much consumers pay for flagship devices in the years ahead.