Apple hikes iPad and MacBook prices by at least 20% in Australia, citing AI costs
Apple has increased iPad and MacBook prices in Australia by at least 20%, blaming an AI-driven cost crunch for computer parts. Microsoft also raised Xbox console prices overnight.
Australians woke up on Friday to more expensive MacBooks and iPads after Apple hiked prices worldwide, citing an AI-driven cost crunch for computer components. The iPhone range was unaffected, but experts predict Apple will raise prices for its flagship product later this year. Microsoft also lifted its Xbox prices overnight amid a wave of increases for phones and devices.
Apple’s MacBook Air with a 13-inch display now starts at A$2,099, up from A$1,799, while the MacBook Pro 14-inch starts at A$3,199 on Apple's site. As of Friday afternoon, other retailers still offered lower prices. No MacBooks are available from Apple for less than A$1,000. The MacBook Neo, which arrived in Australia in March at A$899, now starts at A$1,049 from Apple. The company had called it its "most affordable laptop ever."
The iPad starts at A$749, up from A$599; the mini model at A$949, up from A$799; the Air at A$1,249, up from A$999; and the Pro at A$1,999, up from A$1,699. The iMac desktop now starts at A$2,399 and the Mac Studio at A$4,299.
Australian retailers have yet to pass on the price increase. An Officeworks spokesperson said the company regularly reviews pricing and is working through Apple's changes. JB Hi-Fi promoted Apple deals on Friday, with the MacBook Air 13-inch at A$1,597, the MacBook Pro 14-inch at A$2,797, and the iPad at A$495. The tech retailer warned that rising demand for computer chips, driven by AI, has pushed up device costs. Its CEO, Nick Wells, told analysts in February that the cost crunch was resulting in 20% price rises for PCs, and phones were vulnerable to similar hikes.
The iPhone 17 Pro still starts at A$1,999 and the Pro Max at A$2,199 on Apple's website. In February, Wells said iPhones could be hit from September when iPhone 18 models are released.
Apple said it has been absorbing rising component costs but reached a point where it had to raise prices. Its share price fell 6.15% on Thursday, wiping US$250bn from its market value to close at US$4tn. "We have never seen a component price increase this much, this quickly," Apple said in a statement.
Microsoft on Thursday also announced it would lift Xbox console prices by US$100 for 512GB models and US$150 for 1TB models, and cease selling the 2TB model. The company said storage and memory prices had nearly tripled and were set to double again by late 2027. Datacentres' heavy use of memory chips has led to a shortage dubbed "RAMageddon."
An International Data Corporation analyst, Soo Kyoum Kim, warned in a note on Monday that the shortage is permanently rewriting the economics of consumer device production. "The real question is whether the product economics of affordable devices can be rebuilt around structurally higher memory costs, or whether product mix and prices shift permanently upward," Kim said.
