{"id":1268,"date":"2026-04-03T03:49:31","date_gmt":"2026-04-03T02:49:31","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/innovatenews.site\/index.php\/2026\/04\/03\/smartphone-price-hikes-are-inevitable-report-says-entry-level-phones-are-a-risk\/"},"modified":"2026-04-03T03:49:32","modified_gmt":"2026-04-03T02:49:32","slug":"smartphone-price-hikes-are-inevitable-report-says-entry-level-phones-are-a-risk","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/innovatenews.site\/index.php\/2026\/04\/03\/smartphone-price-hikes-are-inevitable-report-says-entry-level-phones-are-a-risk\/","title":{"rendered":"Smartphone price hikes are \u2018inevitable\u2019 report says, entry-level phones are a risk"},"content":{"rendered":"
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The topic Smartphone price hikes are \u2018inevitable\u2019 report says, entry-level phones are a risk<\/strong> is currently the subject of lively discussion \u2014 readers and analysts are keeping a close eye on developments.<\/p>\n

This is taking place in a dynamic environment: companies\u2019 decisions and competitors\u2019 reactions can quickly change the picture.<\/p>\n

As the ongoing RAM\/storage crisis continues to send shockwaves through the tech industry, a new report says that smartphone price hikes are \u201cinevitable\u201d while also further pointing out that entry-level phones are the hardest hit.<\/p>\n

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Counterpoint Research Korea reports that the prices of DRAM (memory) and NAND (storage) continue to skyrocket going into Q2 2026. That\u2019s having a major impact on the smartphone market, which breaks down into three categories.<\/p>\n

The sub-$200 devices are considered \u201centry-level,\u201d with the rising costs leaving a smartphone with 6GB of LPDDR4X RAM and 128GB of eMMC storage with those two components as a whopping 43% of the total cost of the bill of materials (BOM). As analyst @Jukanlosreve points out, entry-level smartphones will suffer heavily, as will associated brands such as various Chinese smartphone makers as well as chipset maker MediaTek.<\/p>\n

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Even flagship devices ($800 and up) could see their BOM rise by $100-150 in Q2 2026, with a hypothetical device with 16GB of LPDDR5X RAM and 512GB of UFS 4.1 storage taking up 23% and 18% of the total BOM.<\/p>\n

\u201cMid-range\u201d devices, those sold between $400-600, would also see major increases, but would be the least impacted of the bunch. A device with 8GB of LPDDR5X RAM and 256GB UFS 4.0 storage \u2013 a somewhat rare combination, but similar to the Pixel 10 \u2013 would see those components account for 20% and 16%, respectively, of the BOM.<\/p>\n

Counterpoint further notes two potential paths forward for brands \u2013 lessening reliance on entry-level smartphones and reducing the shipments of those devices, as well as shifting focus within the device to lower specs that are deemed \u201cnon-essential\u201d to make up for the higher costs elsewhere. Entry-level phones are now considered a \u201crisk\u201d for \u201cshort-term losses.\u201d<\/p>\n

Still, the report says that \u201csmartphone retail price hikes are expected to be inevitable in 2026,\u201d something we\u2019re already seeing with Samsung\u2019s more expensive mid-range Galaxy A phones, price hikes on Lenovo tablets, and more.<\/p>\n