(C) BoingBoing
This story was originally published by BoingBoing and is unaltered.
 . . . . . . . . . .



PC and console prices still going up [1]

['Rob Beschizza']

Date: 2026-08-02  

The computer component price crisis, driven by AI datacenters snapping it all up for the slop trade, has crushed few so hard as the gamers. The laptop I bought my son for $600 last year is currently $955 at the same shop. The Verge today reminds its readers that Xbox prices are going up 30% this month. Microsoft has decided that 8GB is "great for everday use" and is rushing to trim its bloated operating system so that that might remotely be true.

This initiative also lines up with a much bigger problem outside of Microsoft's control. DRAM prices have surged dramatically through 2026, and RAM pricing in general shows no sign of cooling off before 2028. With 16GB kits costing significantly more than they did a year ago, 8GB is looking more like the ceiling a lot of buyers are stuck with, whether they want to be or not.

As Microsoft hoists the Xbox Series X to a startling $800 in the U.S., Sony has raised PlayStation 5 prices likewise. Nintendo and handheld makers were forced to make hikes of their own; Ayaneo completely withdrew preorders on one system rather than sock customers with the revised tag. The raster mace is in similarly grim shape: Nvidia has raised the price of memory bundles sold to board partners by 20% to 30%, writes PC Gamer's James Bentley, the third increase this year. The cheapest RTX 5090 I search up is $4,000 at Walmart. The Steam Deck? A price bump of $200, and that seems modest.

At this point in a console generation, deep discounts are usually setting in and enthusiasm building for next-gen models. Not this time: IGN just declared the mainstream console dead. Micron's CEO expects the RAM shortage to last for years. Even if the AI bubble bursts, it won't mean a quick return to normal, because the tech is packaged differently for datacenters and slotting it into consumer devices is not on the cards (alelec shows how to get a datacenter GPU rolling in a regular PC; good for local AI, but don't expect to play Star Citizen on Ultra!)

GeekWire's Thomas Wilde sees the makings of another 1983-style crash.

The component crunch also harmed the debut of Valve's new Steam Machine, which officially launched late last month with a starting MSRP of $1,049. Valve, based in Bellevue, Wash., was forced to offer the new hardware at a significantly higher price than planned due to the difficulty in getting components.

The silver lining might be a renewed focus on artwork, storytelling and the richness of narrative worlds instead of cutting-edge graphics. Makers of cheap retrogaming handhelds seem to be doing great, and it isn't a coincidence that some recent big hits like Balatro and Vampire Survivors run on anything. It would be wonderful if all this blew wind in the Playdate's sails, and Shigeru Miyamoto told Famitsu last week that "customers are no longer just looking for specs." Who cares if Link and Mario are ray-traced?

Previously: Reviving old PCs with Linux now that new ones cost an arm and a leg

[END]
---
[1] Url: https://boingboing.net/2026/08/02/pc-and-console-prices-still-going-up.html

Published and (C) by BoingBoing
Content appears here under this condition or license: Creative Commons BY-NC-SA 3.0.

via Magical.Fish Gopher News Feeds:
gopher://magical.fish/1/feeds/news/boingboing/