On this week’s episode of The Woozad Show, we explain how the global memory shortage is forcing Apple to take control of several key products, killing configurations, delaying launches and prompting technical decisions that would have seemed improbable a year ago.
This pressure is beyond Apple’s control. JPMorgan analysis cited by Financial Times found that memory could account for up to 45% of an iPhone’s component costs by 2027, up from about 10% today. Companies like Nvidia are reportedly outbidding consumer electronics makers for a limited supply of DRAM from Samsung, SK Hynix and Micron, while cloud computing companies are locking in capacity with multibillion-dollar initial commitments. Apple, which buys memory for about 250 million iPhones a year, has gone from a position where it could dictate terms to one where it must compete for supply, leading to higher component prices.
The consequences are already visible in the Mac range. Apple removed the 256GB storage option from the Mac mini last week, dropping its starting price from $599 to $799. A few days later, it eliminated Mac mini models with 32GB and 64GB of RAM and reduced the M3 Ultra Mac Studio to a single 96GB configuration, with delivery estimates for the remaining Studio models at 9 to 10 weeks. The Mac Studio had already lost its 512GB memory option in March, and several configurations became completely unavailable in April. During Apple’s April 30 earnings conference call, CEO Tim Cook acknowledged that both machines would be “difficult to obtain in the coming months” and said that Apple expects “significantly higher memory costs” in the current quarter.
The MacBook Neo was sold out through April, and Cook described demand during the earnings call as “off the charts.” The MacBook Neo uses A18 Pro chips bundled together, adopting manufacturing rejects from the iPhone 16 line with a disabled GPU core, reused rather than scrapped to keep costs low enough to hit the $599 price point.
Apple’s initial production target is estimated at around five to six million units, but demand has since prompted the company to ask its suppliers to prepare for at least 10 million units. TSMC’s N3E production lines, where the A18 Pro was manufactured, are now operating at maximum capacity, with AI-related orders consuming much of the available production. Remanufacturing of the A18 Pro would produce fully functional chips rather than faulty ones, increasing the unit cost before an accelerated manufacturing bonus is applied.
Apple is now reportedly evaluating its options for the MacBook Neo. The company is reportedly considering shrinking the entry-level model by 256GB, which would increase the effective starting price by $100 without changing the price of an existing configuration, the same mechanism used with the Mac mini. Additionally, Apple could consider new color options to mitigate any price increase.
Upcoming products are apparently being remodeled as well. Weibo leaker “Fixed Focus Digital” claimed in a series of posts that the standard iPhone 18 is being downgraded as a cost-cutting measure, with screen and chip specifications affected. Most recently, the leaker claimed that some parts were interchangeable between the iPhone 18 and the cheaper iPhone 18e. For context, the iPhone 17 and iPhone 17e differ significantly: the standard model has a larger ProMotion display, Dynamic Island, Ultra Wide camera, five-core GPU, and significantly better battery life, but it looks like there might be fewer differences with the next generation.
A follow-up article presented the new split launch strategy, under which the iPhone 18 will ship in spring 2027 rather than alongside the Pro models in the fall, as a deliberate business mechanism aimed at smoothing out demand. By extending the flagship iPhone 17 line, Apple would also create conditions in which a less capable successor will be more acceptable. The split launch itself has been widely reported since last year, with Ming-Chi Kuo and Nikkei among those who corroborated it.
The launch of the all-new high-end MacBook Pro or “MacBook Ultra” with an OLED display and touchscreen has apparently also slipped. BloombergMark Gurman of , said that early 2027 now seems more likely than late 2026 due to Apple’s limited memory supply being cited as a factor.
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