We keep hearing about the RAM/chip crisis that’s triggered by heavy global investments in AI data centers, which are eating up supply and making prices go up by insane amounts in the process, but what exact amounts are involved for smartphone makers? How much more are they paying?
That’s what Xiaomi President Lu Weibing has revealed on Weibo today. According to him, for a package of 12GB of RAM plus 512GB of storage, the company is now paying CNY 1,500 ($217) more than in the first quarter of last year (January to March).
Redmi K90 Pro Max
That’s not $217 per RAM/storage package, it’s $217 more than before. And it is, of course, totally insane. Furthermore, what it’s paying today is apparently almost four times more than in 2025.
With some quick math applied, we can ascertain that last year, Xiaomi was paying around $72 for the same package, and the price it’s actually paying today is about $288. That’s the price of a lower-midrange phone!
So it will come as no surprise to you then that Xiaomi has announced that it will have to make the Redmi K90 Pro Max more expensive from April 11, but by just CNY 200 ($29), which means the company is still swallowing most of the RAM/storage appreciation. It will also cancel ongoing promos for the Redmi Turbo 5 and Turbo 5 Max. All of these hikes only apply to the Chinese market, where the company has the lowest margins on Redmi devices.
It’s unclear if we should expect further price hikes internationally, but if the prices for RAM and storage modules keep going up, it’s probably a matter of when, not if.
Source (in Chinese)
Leave a comment