RISING COST OF RAM
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Customer demand This rise in prices is affecting customer demand too. Ian says that while he hasn’t seen the situation affect refresh in terms of customers delaying their purchasing decisions, it has changed what they buy. “This is not an issue where the decision is ‘buy now or wait’ but rather ‘what’s essential’” he explains. “Because of that we’re seeing refresh transformed as a process, with the focus on securing supply
for what matters most. “This form of ‘intelligent
refresh’ sees the customer identify where the shortages will hit most, with procurement then shifted to accommodate those critical projects. They’re prioritising based on users and workloads, so that they can protect high memory configurations for roles and systems where performance is business critical. That refresh strategy can be shared to show timelines, supply risks and budget triggers and a runbook started to help drive decisions on what to accelerate, what to delay and what to standardise.” James has also not seen any slow- down in demand. “Indeed, the strong performance we saw in in the second half of last year has continued into 2026,” he adds. “While some of that is due to businesses catching up and upgrading to Windows 11, we’ve also seen a steady rise demand for AI PCs, which are now seen as a good long-term investment. There are also signs that more businesses are now committing investment to infrastructure. Rather than putting off decisions, many businesses may be bringing investment forward.” However, Ruth has found a differing picture. “Many clients have put a hold on IT refreshes, and we have lost orders because people do not have the money to spend to replace systems,” she says. “We have clients that desperately need to refresh their PCs but simply can’t afford
to do so. “Those clients that purchase systems regularly now have to budget more and are reutilising older or refurb equipment rather than replacing. It has an indirect effect on recruitment too, pushing up the total onboarding costs of new employees.” Reseller conversations The situation with RAM is something customers might not be aware of, so resellers need to approach conversations about it with caution. “It is important for clients to realise that there is no such thing as low-end IT for business anymore,” says Ruth. “You need to be serious about organising IT budgets, looking at how your business is evolving and how IT will be required in that evolution process. “Plan refreshes over a period to spread cost or look at finance options. With the way technology is evolving so rapidly and the integration of AI, customers need to be purchasing IT that is fit for their
“
It is a commodity that every business and most individuals need to operate and carry out their day to day lives, therefore there will always
be demand regardless of cost.
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