Surging memory chip prices make profitable budget phones ‘impossible’, analysts say

As the memory chip shortage persists, budget smartphone makers are taking the hardest hit, with analysts warning that low-priced handsets have become “impossible to manufacture” profitably. The cost of memory for handsets priced under US$100 is expected to surge 400 per cent in the third quarter of 2026, with the bill of materials for the most common configuration reaching US$70 from just US$14 in the same period last year, according to data from research firm Omdia. Current memory prices have..