A lot of you panic-bought PCs to avoid RAMaggedon 2026

Source: Engadget

AI‑driven Memory Demand Spurs Pre‑emptive PC Purchases

The specter of price hikes caused by the current AI‑driven demand for memory and storage appears to have convinced a fair share of people to buy a new computer. According to data analyzed by Counterpoint Research, global PC shipments grew around 3.2 % year‑over‑year in Q1 2026, “driven by pre‑emptive buying before memory‑led price increases hit the retail level” and Microsoft forcing some customers to upgrade by ending support for Windows 10 last year.

Q1 2026 Shipment Numbers

• 63.3 million units shipped in the first quarter.
• Growth was concentrated among five high‑end PC makers: Lenovo, ASUS, Apple, HP, and Dell.
• Lenovo held the largest market share at 26 %.
• All companies saw sales increases except HP, whose year‑over‑year sales declined by 5 %.
• Apple posted an 11 % rise, driven by the M5 updates to the MacBook Pro and MacBook Air, as well as the introduction of the affordable $600 MacBook Neo (details). Counterpoint suggests these updates could drive further growth next quarter.

Outlook and Pricing Pressure

Even with positive sales, the PC industry remains vulnerable. Counterpoint Senior Analyst Minsoo Kang warned:

“The aggressive expansion in AI infrastructure investment is driving up overall component costs, which will likely impact the pricing of CPUs and other key components in PCs. Ultimately, the sustained upward pressure on costs and the resulting hike in retail prices are expected to have a significant negative impact on the PC market’s growth in 2026.”

Analyst Forecasts

• IDC (Dec 2025) predicted PC shipments could drop up to 8.9 % in 2026 due to RAM price pressure.
• In March 2026, IDC revised its outlook to a 11.6 % decline.

These forecasts align with a broader sense that the worst is yet to come. New price‑increase announcements continue to appear regularly; for example, this week Meta raised the price of its Quest headsets. Even if consumers aren’t feeling the full impact now, price hikes are expected to become more pronounced in the near future.