- Updated: February 26, 2026
- 6 min read
Smartphone Shipments Set to Decline 12.9% in 2026 Amid Global RAM Shortage
Skip to main contentThe homepageThe VergeThe Verge logo.The VergeThe Verge logo.TechReviewsScienceEntertainmentAIPolicyHamburger Navigation ButtonThe homepageThe VergeThe Verge logo.Hamburger Navigation ButtonThe VergeThe Verge logo.Smartphone sales could be in for their biggest drop everGadgetsCloseGadgetsPosts from this topic will be added to your daily email digest and your homepage feed.FollowFollowSee All GadgetsNewsCloseNewsPosts from this topic will be added to your daily email digest and your homepage feed.FollowFollowSee All NewsTechCloseTechPosts from this topic will be added to your daily email digest and your homepage feed.FollowFollowSee All TechSmartphone sales could be in for their biggest drop everRAMageddon is wreaking havoc on smartphone shipments and prices. RAMageddon is wreaking havoc on smartphone shipments and prices.by Emma RothCloseEmma RothNews WriterPosts from this author will be added to your daily email digest and your homepage feed.FollowFollowSee All by Emma RothFeb 26, 2026, 9:22 PM UTCLinkShareGiftPhoto: Owen Grove / The VergePart OfRAM price hikes: the latest on the global memory shortagesee all updates Emma RothCloseEmma RothPosts from this author will be added to your daily email digest and your homepage feed.FollowFollowSee All by Emma Roth is a news writer who covers the streaming wars, consumer tech, crypto, social media, and much more. Previously, she was a writer and editor at MUO.The smartphone industry could experience a record-breaking decline in 2026 as a result of the RAM shortage stemming from memory-hungry AI giants. That’s according to the latest report from the International Data Corporation (IDC), which forecasts smartphone shipments to plummet 12.9 percent this year, marking its “lowest annual shipment volume in more than a decade.”At the same time, the average selling price for smartphones is set to hit new highs, with IDC predicting a 14 percent increase to a record $523. “While memory prices are projected to stabilize by mid-2027, they are unlikely to return to previous level,” IDC senior researcher Nabila Popal says, adding that the sub-$100 phone segment will become “permanently uneconomical.” Next week, Apple is rumored to announce a new edition of its budget smartphone as the “iPhone 17e,” which could give a hint about where things are going.The RAM shortage is going to affect much more than just smartphones as big AI companies like Microsoft, Amazon, OpenAI, and Google continue to buy up most of the available memory chips for use in AI datacenters.We’re already seeing the immediate impact of the shortage with price hikes coming for devices from Raspberry Pi, Framework, and even Samsung, but reports suggest that the crunch may push back the launch of certain products, like the PlayStation 6 and Meta’s next headset.RelatedThe RAM crunch could kill products and even entire companies, memory exec admitsThe RAM shortage is coming for everything you care aboutThe memory shortage is expected to impact budget-friendly Android smartphones the most, as the rising costs of components leave them with “no choice but to pass the costs on to end users,” Francisco Jeronimo, the vice president for IDC’s Worldwide Client Devices, says in the report.That could result in smaller brands exiting the industry, while allowing Apple and Samsung to grab more market share, according to Popal.Follow topics and authors from this story to see more like this in your personalized homepage feed and to receive email updates.Emma RothCloseEmma RothNews WriterPosts from this author will be added to your daily email digest and your homepage feed.FollowFollowSee All by Emma RothGadgetsCloseGadgetsPosts from this topic will be added to your daily email digest and your homepage feed.FollowFollowSee All GadgetsNewsCloseNewsPosts from this topic will be added to your daily email digest and your homepage feed.FollowFollowSee All NewsPhonesClosePhonesPosts from this topic will be added to your daily email digest and your homepage feed.FollowFollowSee All PhonesTechCloseTechPosts from this topic will be added to your daily email digest and your homepage feed.FollowFollowSee All TechMore in: RAM price hikes: the latest on the global memory shortageHP says RAM accounts for a third of its PC costs now.Dominic PrestonFeb 25RAMageddon is hereSean HollisterFeb 19The RAM crunch could kill products and even entire companies, memory exec admitsSean HollisterFeb 19Most PopularMost PopularBurger King will use AI to check if employees say ‘please’ and ‘thank you’Hands on: I’m super impressed with the Galaxy S26 Ultra’s new Privacy DisplayGoogle and Samsung just launched the AI features Apple couldn’t with SiriCorsair is halting Drop sales after March 25thHere’s how the new Samsung Galaxy S26 compares with last year’s S25The Verge DailyA free daily digest of the news that matters most.Email (required)Sign UpBy submitting your email, you agree to our Terms and Privacy Notice. 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Andrii Bidochko
CTO UBOS
Andrii Bidochko is an AI entrepreneur and researcher focused on AI agents, reinforcement learning, and autonomous systems. He writes about the technologies shaping the future of machine intelligence, from frontier models and agent architectures to real-world AI applications.