ASUS issues price hike warning to partners

ASUS confirms plans to implement price hikes on January 5th

According to a letter to its partners, ASUS has confirmed plans to implement pricing adjustments for some of its products on January 5th. In their letter, via Digitimes, ASUS cited higher DRAM and NAND/SSD costs as the reason for upcoming price adjustments. Since prices of these products have increased dramatically over recent months, this means that the prices for many of ASUS’ products will soon increase.

Sadly, ASUS did not list any specific products or product categories. ASUS stated that pricing adjustments were coming for “some product portfolios”. If we had to guess, affected products will likely include laptops, desktop PCs, GPUs, and other devices with SSD/NAND storage and DRAM.

In their letter, ASUS has cited “demand driven by AI” as a reason for price fluctuations for “key components”. While most consumers are uninterested in AI, they are being forced to pay higher prices due to its impact on the industry.

(ASUS Letter – from Digitimes)

Translated Letter

Explanation of Product Price Adjustment in 2026

Dear ASUS partners and customers,

Thank you for your continued support and trust in ASUS. In the new era of AI-driven computing, enterprises are facing more opportunities and challenges in their operational planning. ASUS always values ​​its partnership with you, is committed to providing the most advanced and reliable IT solutions, and grows and creates value together with your team.

As we approach the end of 2025, the global PC and IT infrastructure market is showing strong demand driven by AI applications. However, due to structural fluctuations in the global supply chain, many key components are facing severe cost increases, particularly memory (DRAM) and storage devices (NAND/SSD). This change stems from adjustments in global manufacturer capacity allocation, increased investment costs in advanced manufacturing processes, and structural gaps in the industry caused by AI computing power demands. These impacts are gradually being reflected in overall system planning and costs, becoming a common challenge for the entire industry.

After careful evaluation of the market environment, supply stability, and product quality commitments, and in line with ASUS’s top priority of providing customers with industry-leading technological R&D capabilities, ASUS plans to strategically adjust the prices of some product portfolios starting January 5, 2026. This adjustment is a necessary decision made after absorbing and responding to long-term cost pressures, aiming to ensure stable supply, maintain quality and service levels, and continue to support your long-term plans for key IT investments.

We understand the importance of this adjustment to your business operations. Your ASUS sales representative will proactively contact you to provide detailed explanations and assist in planning the most appropriate response or configuration recommendations to minimize the impact. ASUS will continue to leverage its global manufacturing and supply chain management capabilities, working closely with partners to serve as your trusted and strongest business support.

Thank you again for your trust and support of ASUS. We look forward to working closely with you during this critical period to address market changes and create a win-win future.

Best wishes

ASUS United Technologies Co., Ltd.

Liao Yixiang, General Manager of Systems Business

Regular consumers are paying for the AI revolution, even if they don’t want it

The insane rate of AI datacenter buildouts has dramatically increased the cost of DRAM and NAND memory. This is having a knock-on effect on consumer products. This has inflated prices and will decrease the value proposition of all PCs and laptops as we head into 2026. This will disincentivise hardware upgrades and make 2026 a bad year for PC gamers and the entire PC industry.

Nobody asked these AI companies to build this many datacenters, but everyone will pay the price with higher hardware costs. As a PC enthusiast, this is sickening. Unfortunately, ASUS has to adjust its pricing. They aren’t the ones increasing wholesale memory prices; they are just the messenger.

You can join the discussion on ASUS’ planned price increases on the OC3D Forums.