Samsung Cuts Galaxy S26 Ultra by $200 as Memory Chip Crisis Trims Promotions
Updated
Updated · Forbes · May 16
Samsung Cuts Galaxy S26 Ultra by $200 as Memory Chip Crisis Trims Promotions
4 articles · Updated · Forbes · May 16
$200 off now brings the Galaxy S26 Ultra down to $1,099.99 across storage tiers, giving Samsung a notable discount just two months after launch.
The offer is weaker than last year's comparable Galaxy S25 Ultra promotion, which cut $230 without trade-in and included Samsung Care Plus, software trials and app-based extra discounts.
Trade-in values have also slipped: a Galaxy S22 Ultra now gets $260 versus $300 for the equivalently aged S21 Ultra last May, while an iPhone 14 Pro gets $214 versus $250 for the iPhone 13 Pro.
Samsung's thinner incentives reflect pressure from the memory chip crisis and higher manufacturing costs, after earlier S26 price hikes and reduced preorder perks.
Analysts see little near-term relief, with IDC expecting memory prices to stabilize only in late 2027 and Gartner forecasting combined DRAM and SSD prices up 130% by end-2026.
As its chip division profits from the crisis, why is Samsung letting its own mobile division suffer?
Will the AI-driven memory crisis permanently end the era of affordable personal technology?