05/03/2026
If your old PC is too slow or broken down completely in 2026 it would be cheaper to actually repair it!
Key insights on the 2026 PC price landscape:
Soaring Memory Costs: A 130% surge in combined DRAM and SSD prices is expected by the end of 2026. Memory is projected to peak at 23% of the total bill-of-materials (BOM) for PCs, up from 16% in 2025.
Manufacturer Price Hikes: Major vendors, including Dell, HP, Lenovo, Acer, and ASUS, have reportedly implemented or warned of 15-20% price increases.
Impact on Entry-Level Devices: Low-margin entry-level laptops (sub-$500) may become nonviable, with experts predicting this segment could disappear by 2028.
AI Demand Diverting Supply: Memory manufacturers are prioritizing high-margin server DRAM and High Bandwidth Memory (HBM) for AI data centers, severely limiting the supply of consumer-grade memory.
Windows 10 End of Life: The cessation of support for Windows 10 is driving high demand for new, higher-spec, and more expensive AI-enabled PCs.
Timing of Increases: Price increases are expected to hit hardest in the first half of 2026, making the beginning of the year a critical window for purchasing before further component inflation
