- The RAM crisis has forced Microsoft to put price tags on Surface laptops
- These increases are across the board, with increases of up to $500 in the US
- Samsung Galaxy phones and tablets also saw some steep price hikes
A fresh round of hardware price hikes, namely Microsoft’s Surface devices along with Samsung’s Galaxy smartphones and tablets, is the latest blow to consumers from the RAM crisis.
Windows Central noted that prices for Surface laptops have been raised across the board in the Microsoft Store. Some of the worst price increases here mean that baseline units have been increased by an eye-watering $500 in the US.
For example, the Surface Laptop 13.8-inch started at $999 when the device first appeared in 2024, but it’s now $1,499 (with 16GB of RAM — the same configuration as all of these entry-level models).
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If you want the 15-inch model of this notebook, you’ll pay $300 more than at launch, with an outlay of $1,599 (which isn’t that much of a jump, but still a nasty increase).
As for the Surface Pro 13-inch, it has been raised by $500. The Surface Pro 12-inch and Surface Laptop 13-inch haven’t been hit quite as hard, but are still $250 and $300 more expensive, respectively, for the entry-level configuration.
A top-spec Surface Pro 13-inch with 64GB of RAM and a 1TB SSD will lighten your wallet to the tune of $3,649.
No doubt expect similar increases in other regions, and these new prices will come to other retailers that sell Surface products, as you’d expect.
Microsoft told Windows Central: “Due to recent increases in memory and component costs, Surface is updating the pricing on Microsoft.com for its current generation hardware portfolio. We remain committed to delivering value to customers and partners while maintaining our standards of quality and innovation.”
Meanwhile, Phone Arena is reporting some price hikes on certain models of Samsung’s Galaxy smartphones and tablets that have just quietly rolled out in the US.
The Galaxy Z Flip 7 variant with 512GB storage has been increased in price from $1,219.99 to $1,299.99, with the Galaxy S25 Edge (512GB) also being increased from $1,219.99 to $1,299.99. Also, the Galaxy S25 FE has seen a price increase from $709.99 to $749.9 (in this case for the 256GB model).
As for Samsung’s tablets, price increases have been implemented for the Galaxy Tab S11, Tab S10 and Tab A11 models in the US. That includes increases of $100 to $200, or even close to $300 in some cases (the Tab S11 Ultra with 1TB has increased from $1,619.99 to $1,899.99).
Analysis: Samsung concerns and Apple value
At least the price increases are relatively small with the Samsung phones, although $80 is still a bit of a sting (the S25 FE at $40 is much more palatable). Compared to what’s happened to Samsung’s tablets, and especially the Surface line, it’s relatively insignificant. Also, Microsoft’s hikes are all over the place, whereas Samsung has only hiked a few phones here (and not entry-level products, either, crucially).
Still, this comes off the back of other Samsung phones and tablets getting more expensive earlier this month (including the Galaxy Z Fold 7). Unfortunately, all of this points to further possible price increases from Samsung down the line.
As for Microsoft, the current generation of the Surface lineup is great in many ways — the Surface Laptop 13-inch still ranks as the best Windows 11 device in our best laptop roundup — but these new prices really put a dent in the range’s appeal. Microsoft’s devices are now one lot more expensive overall, and they hardly had greater affordability before, either (especially not with more powerful RAM and SSD configurations).
This is particularly bad news for Microsoft right now because it makes Apple’s MacBooks look much more tempting in terms of value compared to a Surface purchase. Apple seems to be weathering this PC component storm more gracefully so far, and with the affordable MacBook Neo already threatening the dominance of Windows laptops, it could be a dangerous time for Satya Nadella’s company, both on the hardware and software fronts.
As one Redditor observed in a thread where several people are considering or have already made a macOS rejection: “Perfect timing for Microslop, a month after Apple announced Neo. What could they have been thinking? Apple is now the value brand, lol…”
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