Khaberni - Carl Pei, co-founder of the British phone company "Nothing," holds pessimistic expectations for users who postpone purchasing a new smartphone in hopes of a price decrease soon.
In a post on the X platform, Pei explained how the year 2026 is reshaping the prices of smartphones in an unprecedented way. The reason, as expected, is a component that now constitutes more than 50% of the total cost of the device.
According to Pei, the memory or RAM has now become the most expensive physical component in the smartphone, according to a report by "Digital Trends," a site specializing in technology news, which was reviewed by "Al Arabiya Business".
Just two years ago, OLED screens, chips, or camera units were competing for the title of the most expensive component in the phone. In budget phones, high-refresh AMOLED screens were the most costly, while in flagship phones, the processor or camera unit topped the list.
But in 2026, memory topped the list. Pei said that the cost of memory has now exceeded that of the processor and screen, and the reason, as is known, is the global AI boom.
Data centers building infrastructure for artificial intelligence consume memory chips at a rate that pressures the available supplies for the rest of the market, including the world’s largest smartphone companies.
How did the memory crisis affect "Nothing"?
Pei pointed to his own company's experience as a clear example; in the Nothing Phone (4a), the latest mid-range phone from the company, the cost of memory doubled between the design adoption phase and the launch time, and then doubled again afterwards.
This is a type of price increase that can complicate financial calculations during the product development cycle.
Pei warned that phone prices will continue to rise next year, that is, in 2027. He said, "If you were waiting to upgrade your device, the best time was yesterday," indicating that phone prices are rising day by day.
It is unlikely that the prices of RAM will stabilize this year, which also means that the end-of-year discount seasons may not offer the usual discounts that consumers have been accustomed to in past years.
Indeed, 2026 has already seen the launch of flagship and mid-range phones at higher prices, and the rise in the prices of budget phones by up to $100 or more, in addition to some companies discontinuing entry-level devices or small computers like the Mac mini, and it seems that pricing pressures will continue in the coming period.
