📈 Surging RAM and SSD component costs could push the PS6’s price above $1,000
💰 Memory prices alone (RAM + NAND) are estimated to reach over $680 per console
😲 The cost of GDDR7 memory has spiked roughly six- to seven-fold from original projections
✋ Sony may need to delay the console or rethink its traditional pricing strategy for mass market appeal
The PS5 and PS5 Pro have ballooned in price as memory and storage costs continue to surge, and the ongoing component crisis appears to be greatly affecting the PS6, too.
The PS6 is rumored for a 2027 release, but the latest predictions suggest that Sony’s next console will exceed $1,000 as the price of RAM and SSD is already close to exceeding $700 – the launch price of the PS5 Pro.
Known leaker KeplerL2 posted on NeoGAF that “RAM + NAND alone is over $680”, likely pushing the PS6’s bill of materials towards the $1,000 threshold.
The PS5 launched for $499.99 in 2020, but has since risen to $649.99. The PS5 Pro was $699.99, but is now $899.99 – if you can find it in stock – and both consoles could go up in price again if the situation continues.
To put the memory price increase into perspective, Kepler2 said that when Sony and Microsoft started designing the next-generation of consoles, the price of GDDR7 memory was “projected to hit $3 per GB”. As of today, GDDR7 costs around $20 to $23 per GB. That’s a six to seven-fold spike in cost.
With the PS6 and Xbox Project Helix sporting faster and an increased amount of memory – with many believing the PlayStation 6 will have at least 24GB of RAM and a 1TB SSD – it’s shaping up to be an expensive console, even before you account for any other costs.
A delay to 2028 could help keep the PS6 price down, but that’s only if the memory crisis subsides. Right now, it’s only predicted to get worse, and it could require a complete rethink of the traditional console strategy, which used to offer a relatively affordable alternative to PC gaming, aimed for mass market appeal.
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Adam Vjestica is The Shortcut’s Senior Editor. Formerly TechRadar’s Gaming Hardware Editor, Adam has also worked at Nintendo of Europe as a Content Marketing Editor, where he helped launch the Nintendo Switch. He also runs a retro gaming YouTube channel called Game on, boy! Follow him on X @ItsMrProducts.