Apple Increases Prices for Macs and iPads, Blaming a Shortage of Memory Chips
Apple said component costs tied to the artificial intelligence boom forced higher prices on Macs and iPads, with some models rising as much as $300.
- On Thursday, Apple announced price increases for Macs and iPads, citing a memory chip shortage driven by artificial intelligence demand, which the company called an "unprecedented challenge."
- AI data centers have created an extraordinary surge in demand for memory, with each gigabyte using nearly 3X the factory capacity of typical laptop components. Apple CEO Tim Cook described the resulting price hikes as "unavoidable" due to an "unsustainable" situation.
- Despite hiking prices, Apple did not add extra storage or memory to affected models; the 512 gigabyte MacBook Air now costs $1,299, up from $1,099, while the 256 gigabyte Pro Wifi model increased similarly.
- Apple's increased prices have begun hitting third-party retailers like Amazon, with some select products retaining original pricing. Shares of Apple fell $13.29, or 4.5%, to $279.88 on Thursday afternoon following the announcement.
- Analysts expect Pro and Pro Max prices to rise later this year, potentially by $200, as memory prices rose up to 98% in Q1 and are poised to climb 58% to 63% this quarter.
13 Articles
13 Articles
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On Thursday, Apple raised prices on basically every Mac, every iPad, the HomePod, the Apple TV, and the Vision Pro. Not a refresh-with-new-specs bump where they hand you a faster chip to soften the blow, but a global markup on hardware that didn't change, live on the store the same morning. Apple's stock fell 6.1%, its worst single day since April 2025.The same day, Microsoft raised Xbox prices for the third time in 13 months.Apple put the blame…
Tim Cook announced it a few weeks ago: Apple is passing on the rising prices of memory chips to customers. It is "unavoidable," said the soon-to-be-divorced Apple boss.
Apple and Micron Blame Each Other for Price Hikes and Memory Shortage
Apple ramped up its prices for MacBooks and iPads, including Apple TV, HomePod, and Vision Pro amid surging memory prices due to a massive shortage. Apple CEO Tim Cook indirectly blamed the companies that supply memory chips for use in its hardware portfolio. One of these companies is Micron. 'There's less supply at a time when consumers want devices and the memory guys are passing along huge price increases,' Cook had recently told The Wall Str…
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Last week, Apple introduced major price hikes across a number of products, including Macs, iPads, and more. This week, Apple's newly increased prices have begun to hit third-party retailers like Amazon, but there are a few select products that are retaining original prices, which now represent solid discounts on each device. MacBook Pro Note: MacRumors is an affiliate partner with Amazon.
Micron, a U.S. memory manufacturer, is taking aim at Apple one after another. As Apple raised the prices of its key products citing soaring memory prices, Micron is countering that the price increases were caused by excessive pressure to lower prices during an economic downturn, which hindered capital investment. This is being interpreted as a reversal of the power dynamic where finished product manufacturers once held the power of life and deat…
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