{"id":205354,"date":"2025-12-28T16:52:05","date_gmt":"2025-12-28T16:52:05","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/205354\/"},"modified":"2025-12-28T16:52:05","modified_gmt":"2025-12-28T16:52:05","slug":"samsungs-galaxy-s26-price-is-reportedly-stuck-in-limbo-thanks-to-rising-memory-costs","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/205354\/","title":{"rendered":"Samsung\u2019s Galaxy S26 price is reportedly stuck in limbo thanks to rising memory costs"},"content":{"rendered":"

What you need to knowSamsung reportedly still hasn\u2019t locked in Galaxy S26 pricing, even with launch just months away.Rising component prices are said to be the core problem, especially for camera modules, OLED panels, and memory.To cut costs, Samsung is leaning on Exynos chips for some Galaxy S26 and S26 Plus models, while pricier Snapdragon chips remain for key markets like the U.S.<\/p>\n

With only two months to go before the expected February 2026 launch, you might think Samsung has everything about the Galaxy S26<\/a> series sorted out. But reports from Korea say the company still hasn\u2019t decided on the price.<\/p>\n

A report from The Bell<\/a> says Samsung is having trouble setting prices for its new flagship phones \u2014 the Galaxy S26, S26 Plus, and S26 Ultra \u2014 because the numbers aren\u2019t working out (via SamMobile<\/a>).<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

The main issue is that making these phones has become much more expensive. Several key parts are getting pricier at the same time<\/a>, including camera modules, OLED screens, and especially mobile DRAM (memory).<\/p>\n

You may like<\/p>\n

Hardware costs are soaring<\/p>\n

IDC reports<\/a> that growing demand for AI data centers has made memory chips harder to get, which is raising prices for everyone. With higher costs, smaller profit margins, and global economic challenges, Samsung has to reconsider its pricing to avoid losing customers.<\/p>\n

Samsung President Roh Tae-Moon is said to be asking suppliers to lower their prices, but there\u2019s only so much they can do. The company is already selling the Galaxy Z TriFold<\/a> at a loss to show off its technology and gain market share. However, the Galaxy S series is Samsung\u2019s main source of profit, so it can\u2019t afford to lose money on millions of these phones just to keep prices low.<\/p>\n

To deal with these costs, Samsung is using different processors in different models. The standard Galaxy S26 and S26 Plus will likely use Samsung\u2019s own Exynos 2600 chip in some regions. This helps the company avoid paying extra for Qualcomm\u2019s Snapdragon chips.<\/p>\n

However, the Ultra model and, probably, the standard models in important markets like the U.S. will still use Qualcomm chips, and they don’t come cheap. Since Samsung can\u2019t stop using these pricier chips, it faces a tough decision: either accept lower profits or raise prices and risk selling fewer phones.<\/p>\n

Get the latest news from Android Central, your trusted companion in the world of Android<\/p>\n

The official reveal is expected in February 2026. Until then, if you\u2019re waiting for the S26, it\u2019s a good idea to start saving some extra money now. You might need it.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"What you need to knowSamsung reportedly still hasn\u2019t locked in Galaxy S26 pricing, even with launch just months…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":205355,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[16],"tags":[342,111,139,69,145],"class_list":{"0":"post-205354","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-mobile","8":"tag-mobile","9":"tag-new-zealand","10":"tag-newzealand","11":"tag-nz","12":"tag-technology"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/205354","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=205354"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/205354\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/205355"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=205354"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=205354"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=205354"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}