According to research firm IDC, the global smartphone market will shrink by 12,9% this year due to an unprecedented shortage of memory chips.
According to research firm IDC, the global smartphone market will shrink by 12,9% this year due to an unprecedented shortage of memory chips.
According to Bloomberg, the new forecast has been significantly adjusted compared to previous estimates.
According to IDC, approximately 1.1 billion mobile devices will be shipped in 2026, which is significantly less than last year, when 1.26 billion gadgets were shipped.
Smartphone manufacturers are adapting to rising component prices by limiting specifications, abandoning unprofitable entry-level models, and encouraging consumers to buy more premium devices.
«The pandemic crisis seems like a joke compared to this. The smartphone market will experience a seismic shift by the end of this crisis — in size, average selling prices, and the competitive environment. We don’t expect the situation to improve until at least mid-2027,» said IDC Senior Research Director Nabila Popal.
The publication writes that premium phones, like most of the iPhone line, will survive the crisis better, although companies such as Xiaomi and Lenovo are already warning of possible price increases.
«The days of cheap smartphones are over, as even after the crisis is over, we do not expect memory prices to return to 2025 levels,» Popal concluded.
Previously, dev.ua prepared a detailed analysis of why RAM prices are rising faster than gold and have already caught up with PlayStation 5.
It has gotten to the point that due to memory shortages , ready-made PCs are starting to be sold without RAM.
Micron, one of the world’s three largest memory suppliers, warned that «challenging industry conditions» for DRAM and NAND flash memory will persist in 2026 and «beyond.»
