- The RAM crisis may worsen from 2026 based on a new TrendForce estimate
- The report suggests we may see more 8GB configurations
- This will ultimately affect the performance of the gaming laptop whose system RAM and VRAM are 8GB
The PC market is in a shaky state due to rising RAM prices, and while rumors suggest that SSDs are next to be affected, a new report suggests that the RAM crisis will only worsen.
As reported by Wccftech, a new report from TrendForce estimates that wider adoption of 8GB RAM specifications for laptops will make higher-end 16GB (or more) RAM configurations unaffordable starting in 2026.
While this appears to be an estimate solely on system RAM, it could very likely mean the same fate for VRAM in gaming laptop GPUs. The prices of RAM kits already exceed the prices of entry-level gaming PCs, ultimately leading to price increases on the latter.
Prices for DRAM have risen for manufacturers, so aiming to provide the cheapest specification (8GB) will help with damage control by keeping consumer prices as low as possible. That might explain exactly why Valve has decided to go with 8GB of RAM for the upcoming Steam Machine, to ensure that consumers don’t end up paying obscene prices.
For gaming laptops, the move to multiple 8GB configurations will be a big problem for game performance. 8GB of VRAM is already a dealbreaker for most gamers as it is not future proofed and can struggle in modern games that are VRAM hungry (which is a lot of them), but with a push down to 8GB of system RAM, gaming performance will be severely hamstrung.
It could feel like a big step back if a switch back to less RAM for most systems becomes a reality, especially since there are plenty of triple-A games that launch with the system requirement of 32GB of RAM for higher graphics settings and 16GB as a minimum for medium to low graphics settings.
RAM bottlenecks could easily become a bigger problem now; Usually, GPU or CPU bottlenecks were more common, but the tables can turn, especially for newcomers to PC gaming.
Analysis: Whatever you do, don’t drop your RAM sets
At this rate, the AI boom won’t slow down, and that means RAM prices will only get worse. To put it simply, if you still have some extra sets of RAM lying around, whether it’s 8GB or not, it would be in your best interest to keep them, because this crisis could become normal if it goes on long enough.
It could be months or years before we see any stability return to this region of the PC market, and the last thing you want to deal with is paying more than you would for a new GPU on a new set of RAM.
Games aren’t getting any cheaper, and while RAM is the main PC component affected, the same could soon be true of SSDs and GPUs, the latter of which has already seen its fair share of price increases over the past year.
If you are unlucky enough not to have acquired a RAM kit before the crisis, it would be ideal to keep your eyes open for any winter discounts and act quickly before the stock disappears.
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