There has been some fear that Samsung’s rising memory costs would impact other manufacturers that use its DRAM in devices. Apparently, shortages are affecting the memory fabricator so much that Samsung’s own Galaxy phones may see a price increase.
A recent report indicates that Samsung is considering a price increase on Galaxy phones due to the expense of memory production (via Hankyung). Specifically, the article notes that “low to mid-priced phones” are being considered for price increases.
That would mean Samsung’s flagship Galaxy S series would be free from a jump in cost, though the surrounding details are vague. If true, Galaxy A and M series devices would suffer the most.
It’s been reported that Samsung is still struggling with a memory shortage, though the cause may have evolved or become clearer. The shortage is being attributed to the rising demand for high-bandwidth memory used in AI servers. Memory hardware used in those servers needs to be more complex than standard DRAM, so manufacturers like Samsung have shifted to producing a higher quantity, which has led to less room to produce standard PC and mobile DRAM.
HBM also costs a lot more to produce, but the price of Samsung’s own DRAM modules has seen an increase as well. We reported in May 2025 that Samsung’s inventory was listing price increases for DDR4 and DDR5 DRAM by as much as 20%. That increase was thought to be due to rising tariffs, though it may have had something to do with onset shortages as well.
On the flipside, Galaxy S devices may not be free from price increases entirely because of evolving AI hardware and the costs associated with that.
The DRAM shortage is expected to be in effect for “more than two years,” according to analysis reports. Samsung is attempting to curb that with an expanded advanced DRAM production line, but that’s still a year or more out.
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