As Storage Costs Bite, Apple Hikes Prices Of iPads & MacBooks In India

Apple has drastically increased prices for many of its key products – including iPad, MacBook, Mac mini, and HomePod – in India, with some models seeing a staggering jump of up to Rs 1 lakh, or approximately 42% for some models. This abrupt move, effective immediately and already reflected on Apple India website, comes directly after CEO Tim Cook recent warnings that escalating global memory and storage costs have made such price revisions 'unavoidable'. The unprecedented price surge, which has spared iPhone for now, is a direct fallout of an 'AI-driven demand' for critical components like DRAM and NAND flash memory chips. Analysts report that conventional DRAM contract prices rocketed by 93-98% in Q1 2026 and are projected to rise another 58-63% in Q2, while NAND flash contract prices jumped 33-38% in Q1 and are expected to soar an additional 70-75% in Q2 2026. This 'memflation' stems from a structural supply crunch as major manufacturers like Samsung and SK Hynix prioritize higher-margin High-Bandwidth Memory (HBM) and enterprise SSD for AI data centers, leaving consumer device makers scrambling for limited supply. With industry experts, including AMD, cautioning that memory prices may not normalize until 2028, and forecasts predicting further quarterly increases of 30-50% through 2027, this isn't a temporary blip. Consumers in India, who import the vast majority of premium laptops and tablets, will continue to face elevated costs, potentially impacting purchasing decisions and market growth for these devices. The price hike also triggered a 6.15% drop in Apple stock, its worst single-day fall since April 2025, highlighting investor unease over the impact of these cost pressures on profitability and demand.