Memory Price Surge Ripples Through China’s Smartphone Supply Chain,

Please note that this article cites information from Commercial Times and EE Times China.

As DRAM giants continue to hike prices amid a memory supercycle—driven by tight supply of legacy products like DDR4—the smartphone supply chain is feeling the heat. According to Commercial Times, citing smartphone makers, delivery lead times for DRAM and NAND have stretched dramatically, with LPDDR5X now taking 26–39 weeks, meaning orders placed today might not arrive until mid-2026.

The upward price trend shows no signs of slowing, and cost pressures for processor makers and smartphone brands are mounting. Analysts told Commercial Times that MediaTek could be among the first to feel the margin squeeze, while EE Times China reports that Xiaomi has already been forced to adjust prices in response to the surge.

MediaTek in Spotlight

Commercial Times warns that MediaTek’s smartphone chip margins could come under pressure as early as 4Q25, driven by rising memory and foundry costs. As chip production shifts to 2nm nodes in 2026, performance will improve, but wafer costs are also expected to rise significantly, the report adds.

Commercial Times further notes that standard smartphones now typically ship with 12GB memory, and high-end configurations are increasing. To offset costs, SoC vendors have already raised average selling prices (ASPs) to offset higher costs, suggesting smartphone prices could climb further, as highlighted by the report.

Xiaomi Feels the Heat from Soaring Memory Costs

Interestingly, EE Times China notes that when the Redmi K90 launched on October 23, prices jumped CNY 300–600 from the previous generation, with a CNY 600 gap between models sharing the same RAM but different storage—sparking user debate.

According to EE Times China, the 12GB+256GB standard edition was priced at CNY 2,599, while the 12GB+512GB version went for CNY 3,199—a CNY 600 difference for only an extra 256GB of storage.

Responding on Weibo, Xiaomi founder Lei Jun admitted that recent memory price hikes have been overwhelming. The company quickly adjusted, cutting the 12GB+512GB standard edition by CNY 300 in its first-month sale to CNY 2,899, according to EE Times China.

The report notes that Xiaomi President Lu Weibing explained that upstream cost pressures have already fed into the pricing of new products. He noted that global supply chain trends are beyond the company’s control, with memory costs surging far beyond expectations and continuing to intensify.

Mid- and Low-End Smartphones Hit Hard

Supply chain sources cited by the report note that major memory suppliers—including Samsung, SK hynix, and Micron—plan further price increases of up to 30% in Q4. As a result, the Redmi K90 is not alone: the report suggests that the vivo X300 series rose by CNY 100–300, OPPO Find X9 increased CNY 200–300, Realme GT8 jumped CNY 300–500, and the iQOO 15 series starting price climbed from CNY 3,999 to 4,199, roughly a 5% increase.

EE Times China reports that mid- and low-end smartphones are especially sensitive to cost swings. Xu Qi, President of Realme China, noted that for iQOO, the biggest expenses come from the display and memory, adding that price hikes affect not only launch pricing but also the entire product lifecycle, including major promotional periods, the report adds.