The value of your subsequent laptop computer improve might have much less to do with change charges and extra to do with a hyperscale knowledge centre in Texas.
South African IT distributor Esquire Technologies says the worldwide scarcity of reminiscence and storage elements is pushing up native tech costs, with will increase already filtering by means of throughout PCs, notebooks and enterprise techniques.
“A major contributor to the current memory shortage is the rapid expansion of AI-focused data centres, particularly in the United States,” says Mahomed Cassim, CEO of Esquire Technologies. “These facilities are consuming enormous volumes of DRAM, SSDs, and high-capacity hard disk drives, with stock being purchased and deployed at scale. This has significantly reduced availability for traditional commercial and consumer markets.”
In different phrases, the identical chips that energy a cloud-based AI mannequin are those that sit inside a mid-range pocket book in Sandton or a small enterprise server in Polokwane. And the previous is getting precedence.
Prices shifting upstream
Esquire says it absorbed some will increase in December and early January, however new inventory arriving from late January onwards displays increased landed prices.
The will increase start at part degree. DRAM and NAND flash pricing has risen at producer degree, allocations have tightened, and lead instances have stretched. By the time these components are assembled into completed units and shipped to South Africa, distributors face a price base that’s materially increased than it was a couple of months in the past.
Kabir Ismail, normal supervisor at Esquire, says the impression is most seen in merchandise that rely closely on reminiscence and storage.
“We’ve seen the most significant impact in PC components such as RAM modules and SSDs, followed closely by notebooks, desktops, and enterprise servers,” says Ismail. “High-performance and higher-capacity configurations are particularly affected, as these are the same components being prioritised for AI and hyperscale data centre deployments.”
Esquire estimates common value will increase of:
- 25% to 40% on reminiscence elements reminiscent of RAM, SSDs and arduous drives
- 15% to 25% on notebooks and desktops
- 20% to 40% on servers and enterprise techniques
Entry-level units have seen smaller jumps, whereas premium and performance-focused configurations have borne the brunt.
For a shopper, that will imply a couple of thousand rand extra for a well-specced pocket book. For a enterprise rolling out a whole bunch of PCs or refreshing server infrastructure, the numbers scale quick.
A transition, not a collapse
International knowledge centre analysis agency DC Byte argues that the present RAM scarcity displays a structural transition relatively than a breakdown in provide.
In a latest evaluation, DC Byte says: “The RAM shortage is a transition, not a breakdown,” pointing to a shift in manufacturing priorities in the direction of high-bandwidth and AI-optimised reminiscence, relatively than the collapse of manufacturing capability.
The agency notes that demand from AI and hyperscale operators has surged at a tempo that conventional provide chains weren’t configured to deal with. Manufacturers have redirected capability in the direction of higher-margin, AI-oriented merchandise, which has tightened provide for mainstream purposes.
DC Byte additionally highlights that enormous cloud and AI operators are securing provide by means of long-term agreements and bulk procurement, successfully ring-fencing stock earlier than it reaches the broader market. The result’s that availability for typical enterprise and shopper segments tightens, and pricing follows.
This aligns with what native distributors are seeing: constrained allocations and restricted room to barter.
The foreign money cushion – however solely simply
A comparatively weaker US greenback has supplied some offset in opposition to component-level will increase, however the aid has been partial and inconsistent. Exchange price actions can trim the sting off a value rise, but they can not neutralise a worldwide supply-demand imbalance.
Cassim says pricing stress is prone to proceed by means of no less than the primary half of 2026. Expanded manufacturing capability and provide chain changes might ease circumstances later within the yr, however a return to pre-shortage pricing ranges is unlikely within the close to time period.
“Even as supply improves, we expect prices to settle at a new normal rather than reverting to historic lows,” says Cassim.
That phrase – new regular – is overused in enterprise commentary. Here, it carries weight. AI infrastructure funding is reshaping how semiconductor capability is allotted. Memory is now not only a commodity enter for PCs and servers; it’s a strategic enabler for AI coaching and inference at international scale.
What it means for patrons
For shoppers, delaying a purchase order within the hope of a fast correction might not ship the anticipated aid. While short-term fluctuations will happen, the structural shift in the direction of AI-driven demand is unlikely to reverse.
For companies, notably small and medium enterprises working on tight IT budgets, the timing of refresh cycles turns into essential. Buying earlier in a rising market can restrict publicity to additional will increase, however holding off might permit provide to stabilise if manufacturing catches up sooner than anticipated.
The scarcity additionally underscores how deeply native pricing is tied to international infrastructure choices. A procurement technique in California can affect the sticker value in Cape Town inside weeks.
South Africa’s tech market has weathered part shortages earlier than, from arduous drive provide shocks to pandemic-era logistics snarls. What makes this cycle completely different is that it’s pushed by growth relatively than disruption: a race to construct AI capability that’s absorbing reminiscence at scale.
For now, that race is being run in knowledge centres removed from South Africa’s retail flooring. The invoice, nonetheless, is exhibiting up right here.
* AGGIE Z GATEMAND is an AI bot that makes use of platforms like ChatGPT, Google Gemini, Microsoft Copilot and Anthropic Claude to put in writing her articles.