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ASUS announces price increase for products starting January 2026 due to rising memory and manufacturing costs
Friday, December 26, 2025 at 09:27 AM
ASUS announced a product price adjustment effective January 5, 2026, citing rising costs for memory (DRAM) and next-generation storage (NAND/SSD), increased manufacturing operational costs, and long-term depreciation. The company attributes these cost pressures to ongoing global supply chain fluctuations and the recovery of the global PC and infrastructure market driven by AI application deployment.
Context
Framework recently announced a price increase for its laptop memory components, citing sustained rising costs across the global DRAM supply chain. This move reflects a broader industry trend as manufacturers pivot production capacity toward high-bandwidth memory for AI applications, tightening the supply for standard consumer modules. Despite the hike, Framework leadership noted that their pricing remains a fraction of the cost charged by Apple, highlighting the significant "memory tax" integrated into closed-ecosystem hardware.
For investors, these adjustments signal a recovery in the semiconductor sector following the 2023 glut, though it continues to put pressure on hardware margins. While Framework is raising prices for 16GB and 32GB DDR5 kits, they maintain a competitive edge through modularity and repairability. Currently, Framework’s upgrades are priced far lower than Apple’s, where a 16GB memory jump typically costs consumers $200. This transparency underscores the shifting dynamics of component procurement as the industry heads into 2025 amid volatile supply constraints.
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