Prices for Galaxy phones, laptops and even fridges climbing this year as memory costs jump

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Prices for Galaxy phones, laptops and even fridges climbing this year as memory costs jump

Published: 01 Feb. 2026, 07:00 Updated: 01 Feb. 2026, 16:31

Audio report: written by reporters, read by AI

A store worker examines a laptop displayed at an electronics store in Seoul on Jan. 25. [YONHAP]

Rising memory chip prices and a weak won are pushing up the cost of consumer electronics in Korea, most noticeably in laptops and smartphones. As AI features become standard in home appliances and cars, analysts warn that higher memory costs could spread to prices of other domestic brands.

Samsung Electronics is weighing a price increase for its upcoming Galaxy S26 series, industry insiders said Wednesday, as rising component costs make it increasingly difficult to hold the line on prices.

Industry sources said Samsung’s Mobile eXperience division plans to raise prices for the Galaxy S26 when it launches next month, but is exploring options to soften the blow for consumers. The company has kept Galaxy S-series prices unchanged for three consecutive years since 2023, but executives reportedly now view an increase as unavoidable.

The primary driver is a sharp rise in memory chip prices.

Market tracker Counterpoint Research estimates that prices for smartphone memory will climb an additional 40 percent through the second quarter of this year, raising overall manufacturing costs for finished devices by 8 to 10 percent.

TrendForce said memory’s share of smartphone production costs has risen from about 10 to 15 percent in the past to more than 20 percent in recent years, reflecting structural changes tied to the expansion of AI functions.

Roh Tae-moon, president of Samsung Electronics and head of its Device eXperience business, acknowledged the pressure earlier this month at CES 2026, saying “there will be some form of price impact from rising memory prices.”

Samsung Electronics President Roh Tae-moon holds up Galaxy S25 Series phones during the Galaxy Unpacked 2025 event at SAP Center in San Jose, California on Jan. 23, 2025. [SAMSUNG ELECTRONICS]

Price increases have already appeared in other product categories. Samsung’s 2026 Galaxy Book 6 laptop series costs roughly 20 to 48 percent more than the previous Galaxy Book 5 Pro line. LG Electronics’ new LG Gram Pro AI 2026 laptop also carries a higher price tag, with the 16-inch model priced at 3.14 million won ($2,200), about 500,000 won more than its predecessor.

Exchange rates have added another layer of pressure. In markets where companies both procure components and sell finished products in dollars, currency fluctuations have limited impact. In Korea, however, manufacturers typically purchase components in dollars while selling products in won, leaving them exposed to the weak local currency.

Costs tied to the dollar — including components, logistics and overseas labor — have risen broadly. Samsung sources a large portion of its mobile application processors (AP), the core chips that power smartphones, from U.S.-based Qualcomm. The company’s cumulative spending on mobile APs reached a record 10.93 trillion won through the third quarter of last year.

Against that backdrop, Samsung has cautiously discussed applying its in-house Exynos chips to domestic Galaxy models for the first time in about five years, since the Galaxy S21. The company remains concerned, however, that using different processors by country or raising prices more sharply in the domestic market could spark criticism over discrimination against Korean consumers.

An AI gaming laptop is on display at the Las Vegas Convention Center in Nevada on Jan. 7, the second day of CES 2026. [YONHAP]

Cost pressures from memory chips are also spreading beyond personal electronics. AI capabilities are increasingly built into refrigerators, washing machines and automobiles, raising the risk that higher chip prices could feed into a broader range of consumer goods.

In the auto industry, the shift toward software-defined vehicles and more advanced autonomous driving systems has significantly increased the number of semiconductors used per vehicle.

Hyundai Motor’s all-new Palisade, released in 2025, rose in price by 6 to 7 million won depending on the trim, far exceeding the 3 to 4 million won increase seen in the previous model change from 2022 to 2024.

The 2025 Palisade included a wide range of AI-enabled features, including an AI assistant, a next-generation infotainment system and a rear camera cleaning function.

An auto industry official said manufacturers are trying to stabilize semiconductor costs through long-term contracts, but added that “as cost pressures grow, companies are responding by reflecting them gradually in prices in line with model change cycles.”

Home appliance makers face similar challenges. The addition of AI features in electronics like televisions and washing machines has increased memory requirements and procurement costs.

“The memory used in home appliances is relatively low-spec and makes up a small share of total production costs [than smartphones or laptops], but given weak market conditions, it is still a burden,” an industry official said.

Sohn In-joon, an analyst at Heungkuk Securities, said cost pressures are intensifying across manufacturers of finished goods, including smartphones, personal computers and appliances.

“For Samsung Electronics, the profitability gap between its memory business and its device businesses could widen further,” Sohn added.

This article was originally written in Korean and translated by a bilingual reporter with the help of generative AI tools. It was then edited by a native English-speaking editor. All AI-assisted translations are reviewed and refined by our newsroom.
BY KIM SU-MIN [[email protected]]