We already have a $385 Raspberry Pi on the market: the lack of 16 GB DRAM forces prices to rise again
Starting today, the Raspberry Pi 5 with 16 GB of memory costs $38580 more than until now. This was announced by Eben Upton, CEO of Raspberry Pi, who extends the adjustment to the 16 GB variants of the Compute Module 5the module format version designed to be integrated into third-party products. In your case, the increase is $40, and the new prices are already listed on the product sheet.
The reason is the lack of alternative suppliers of 16 GB DRAM, a problem compounded by the enormous component crisis in which we are immersed. As the company explains, it has tried to contain the impact by approving parts from other manufacturers to have more margin when purchasing, but even so it has been forced to raise prices. Of course, the increase does not affect the entire range. The Raspberry Pi 500+the computer integrated into a mechanical keyboard that also has 16 GB of RAM, maintains its price. For the moment, of course.
Bad times for lovers of small electronics
It is not the first time this year that we report a movement of this kind. Without going any further, in April, Raspberry Pi already made a good part of its catalog more expensive, with 25 dollars more in the 4 GB models, 50 in the 8 GB models and 100 in the Pi 5 and the 16 GB Compute Module 5, while the Pi 500+ went up by 150 dollars.
So the justification was that the LPDDR4 memory included in the Pi 4 and Pi 5 had multiplied its price by seven in a year. In order not to push everyone towards the more expensive models, the company also released a 3 GB Raspberry Pi 4 for $83.75 and frozen the 1 and 2 GB versions.
That freeze lasted until October, when the 2GB variants rose by $12.50, so the Pi 4 went to $67.50 and the Pi 5 to $77.50. With today’s announcement, the 16 GB Raspberry Pi 5 adds 180 dollars rise between April and November, and the Compute Module 5 with that same memory, 140.
Tips to avoid paying more memory
Just like previous announcements, Raspberry Pi has gone out of its way to do a bit of pedagogy. The idea is that no one buys more memory than necessary. The alternatives it proposes include choosing variants with less RAM or previous generations of the board. Also for optimizing the memory consumption of applications.
The company also warns that some sellers are taking advantage of the situation to resell their plates at inflated prices or to sell products that are not what they seem. That’s why remember that their authorized distributors sell at official prices all over the world. So, if you were thinking of buying a new Raspberry, it is best to go through them only.
Another key point is that Raspberry Pi insists that this whole situation is temporary. So, as soon as possible, it will reverse the increases when the cost of memory drops, the same commitment it already made in April. Of course, that will be if Sam Altman doesn’t get all the RAM first.
