Some Apple Products Just Got More Way More Expensive. Are iPhones Next?

Source Domain: www.cnet.com

Last week, reports began swirling that Apple would soon raise prices due to “RAMageddon,” a term for the storage and memory chip shortage driven by the rapid expansion of AI infrastructure. However, it was unclear when exactly that would happen or which devices would take a hit.

Now, we have some answers. Apple raised prices on select MacBooks, iPads and HomePods on Thursday. The Wall Street Journal was the first to report the price increases, and Apple confirmed them to CNET.

But so far, iPhone prices have remained static.

In a statement to CNET, Apple cited strong demand for storage and memory chips as the reason for the significant price hikes, including increases of up to 33% for some devices. Demand for chips is rising because, in addition to being used in virtually every electronic device, they also power AI compute in data centers.

“We have never seen a component price increase this much, this quickly,” Apple said in its statement. “We have now reached a point where we need to begin raising prices on a number of products, including today’s increases for iPad and Mac.”

Given that every iPhone uses these chips, it’s logical to expect price increases to hit iPhones. The question is when.

“Just because Apple didn’t raise the iPhone’s price today doesn’t mean it won’t,” said Patrick Holland, CNET’s director of content for hardware. “The company typically announces new iPhone models in the fall, and if there is an increase, it would likely come then.”

The rumored iPhone 18 Pro and Pro Max models could arrive this September alongside a rumored foldable iPhone, which is expected to start at more than $2,000.

Outside of the Apple store, though, the prices have not yet increased on Apple products, and some are still facing deep discounts during Amazon Prime Day sales, which ends Friday. After the sale, though, prices may increase across the board and keep rising.

Our tech experts believe the new iPhone prices will most likely increase this fall, and…

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