PC SALES SURGE AS BUYERS DODGE MEMORY PRICE HIKES

The surge brought shipments to 63.3 million units, with two factors fueling demand: fear of rising memory costs tied to AI-driven chip demand, and Microsoft's Windows 10 support ending last year. The phenomenon—colloquially called "RAMaggedon 2026"—reflects broader supply chain anxiety in the PC market. Artificial intelligence's massive appetite for RAM and storage has strained supply, prompting predictions of retail price increases. Microsoft's Windows 10 sunset also forced some users to upgrade systems to Windows 11, accelerating replacement cycles. The combination created a window where buyers felt compelled to purchase before costs rose. Whether the price increases materialize as predicted remains unclear, but the preemptive buying spree demonstrates how supply chain concerns and policy decisions can shift consumer purchasing patterns in tech hardware markets.