Memory shortage could spike PC prices PCs could cost more in the months ahead because memory will be in short supply. The iSuppli trackers reckon that DRAM supply could undershoot demand because some manufacturers won't be able to get the semiconductor lithography tools they need. They note that ASML Holdings NV, the main supplier, should be able to supply 33 …
... when I was buying the 4M RAM for my 386 (to upgrade it from 1M) there was going to be a spike in memory prices (taking it to £30/meg from £25), blamed on a fire in a factory in Hong Kong that made the glue used to glue the tops on the chip packages. Turned out to be bunkum then as are most of the "manufactured shortages" do - simply a mechanism to hike the prices against the long-term falling trend.
Some years ago there was an earthquake in Taiwan that was supposed to cause global chaos with memory prices... it never really happened. Instead, prices go up for the new stuff when you move to new technology, and the old prices drop. Eventually, you run out of the old stuff, and the prices skyrocket. Same ol', same ol'.
"slashing the projected annualised growth rate from 49 per cent to as low as 45 per cent"
I'd hardly call a reduction from 49% to 45% growth "slashing".
I reckon someone is scare mongering, trying to talk up the price of memory. I'm sure this type of thing has a name. Oh yes "Pump and dump" And, um, isn't it illegal ?
... isn't it about time for another price fixing scheme? It's been so long, I can't recall...
http://spectrum.ieee.org/semiconductors/memory/price-fixing-in-the-memory-market
"In September, Infineon Technologies AG, headquartered in Munich, Germany, agreed to plead guilty ... agreed to pay US $160 million in fines"
Isn't it time for the pirates in silk ties and suits to start paying their debts back to society?
Maybe instead of rising the price of PCs they should just put less RAM in them. I for one have 512MB in most of my systems and 1GB in the rest. This is ample for Ubuntu and for gentoo. If I'm running some large jobs I do go into the swap (I have 1 or 1.5GB swap so the systems have 2GB total virtual memory), but it seems to page out gently rather than thrashing and slowing me down any. Just ditch bloaty systems like Windows and you don't need 3GB, 4GB, or more in a system.
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