Nothing Phone 4A's Memory Cost Quadrupled in Single Cycle

Nothing CEO Carl Pei disclosed that DRAM pricing for the Phone 4A doubled between design and launch, then doubled again—a 4× increase in one product cycle. Memory is now the smartphone's most expensive component. Manufacturers face pressure to absorb losses, reprice mid-cycle, or cut specs, a problem sharpened by AI infrastructure competing for the same chip-making capacity.