As the ongoing AI-fueled RAMpocalypse worsens, Nvidia graphics cards may be the next gaming hardware to become even more expensive. According to a report from the Taiwanese outlet Economic Daily News, Nvidia will be raising the price of its memory and GPU bundles by between 20% and 30%.
Nvidia seems to have increased the price of GPU kits last week for its manufacturer partners like MSI, Asus, and more, which are responsible for assembling the consumer-facing video cards that use Nvidia-supplied GPUs. The latest report indicates those price increases are up to 30%. While manufacturers aren’t technically required to pass these increased production costs on to consumers, if history is any indication, they almost certainly will. Before the news, GPU prices had held fairly stable since earlier this year.
For those unfamiliar with the current situation around computer hardware, there is an ongoing memory shortage caused by increased data center production. As tech companies rush to build data centers that power generative AI, the three primary RAM manufacturers, Samsung, SK Hynix, and Micron, have pivoted from mostly producing dynamic random access memory (DRAM)— which is what most consumer electronics use — to producing more high-bandwidth memory (HBM) — which is what most data centers use.
As a result, there has been a shortage of DRAM, which has driven up the prices of hardware like PCs, gaming consoles, and more. This memory shortage is commonly referred to as the RAMpocalypse or RAMageddon. Samsung, SK Hynix, and Micron’s pivot toward HBM has been so severe and sudden that these companies were sued for exploiting market conditions to inflate prices by under-producing DRAM.
Gaming hardware has been hit with unprecedented price increases due to the RAM shortage. In May, Valve increased the price of the Steam Deck by an extra $240 to $300, depending on the model. Sony raised prices on both versions of the PlayStation 5, with the base optical drive version up $150 from its launch MSRP in 2020. Microsoft recently announced another cost increase for the Xbox Series X and S coming in August, with the 1B disc-drive Series X going from $649.99 to $799.99. That’s $300 more than it was at launch. The Nintendo Switch 2 is getting a $50 price hike effective on Sept. 1. Needless to say, it’s a brutal time to be in the market for gaming hardware.