Apple is set to announce its next-generation iPhones this week, and reports suggest the new models will come with price increases. The hike reflects a broader industry challenge: memory component costs have risen significantly and show no sign of declining soon.

Industry observers are calling this phenomenon 'chipflation'—the combination of chip shortages and inflation driving up hardware costs. When a major supply-chain player like Apple raises prices, it signals that companies can no longer absorb these cost pressures internally.