Kingston ValueRAM 1GB DDR400 DC Kit is $225, about two weeks ago it was under $180. I guess I'm better off buying the high end stuff now.
glad i got mine last month . . .SDRAM prices on both the contract and spot markets will rise this month by up to 20 per cent, market watcher DRAMeXchange reported today.
DRAMX is forecasting price rises across the board, both for regular SDRAM and for DDR memory. On the contract market, where prices are typically applied across a half-month period, 266, 333 and 400MHz 256Mb DDR chip prices are set to jump 10.5 per cent, from and average of $4.75 to $5.25, DRAMX forecasts.
128Mb 133MHz SDRAM will rise 9.6 per cent, from $3.65 to $4, while 256Mb chip prices will increase from $5.20 to $5.95, a jump of 14.4 per cent.
In the spot arena, those two SDRAM densities will experience price rises of 7.6 per cent and 20 per cent, respectively, this week. The 128Mb price will increase from $4.60 to $4.96; 256Mb from $5 to $6.
The spot 256Mb 400MHz DDR price will go from $6.52 to $7.05, a rise of 8.1 per cent, DRAMX predicts. The same density at 333MHz will increase 7.3 per cent, going from $6.48 to $6.95. A 256Mb 266MHz DDR chip will cost $6.80 at the end of the week, up from $6.45, a jump of 5.4 per cent. The 128Mb 266MHz DDR chip will see a 12.8 per cent increase, from $2.35 to $2.65.
DRAMX puts the increases down to strong demand from PC OEMs, which is encouraging DIMM makers to grab as much DDR memory as they can, in order to build up inventory and - it believes - in anticipation of tighter supply down the line. Buyers reckon supply on the spot market will remain tight and that contract prices will rise to maintain the high prices being commanded on the spot market, DRAMX said.
On the spot market, for example, DDR prices have gone up by over $1 since 30 March, from $5.29 (266MHz and 333MHz) and $5.25 (400MHz) to $6.54 (266MHz), $6.47 (333MHz) and $6.43 (400MHz).
"As of 5 April, the prices shot up ten per cent within two hours of the Asian market opening," said DRAMX. "The upward momentum is mainly driven by the pulling-up strength in Chinese market as well as USA market."
It added: "We reiterate our bullish outlook for the DRAM market for the year. The semiconductor recovery is clearly seen and the corporate replacement demand is likely to jump for the second half of the year. Even the supply is also expected to increase by more capacity ramp up in 300mm and better yield rate on 110nm [going into] Q3 and Q4. However, the growth of the demand is estimated to be stronger than the increase of the supply."
Contract prices for 256MB DDR DIMMs during the first half of April were up 12 per cent on the second half of March, with prices ranging from $38 to $41. According to DRAMX, most memory makers believe PC suppliers will honour their commitments to buy, even at the higher price. That, they say, will push spot and contract prices higher in Q2 since "they can't fulfil the demand".
DRAMX reckons the second half of April will see contract prices rise beyond $40-42
Well, I am glad i finshed my rig EXCEPT for the video card.Originally posted by: MichaelD
I've noticed the skyrocketing prices as well. What a crock of crap! :disgust: I sure am glad that I'm not building a new rig (that needs PC3200) anytime soon.
This is why Smart Shoppers like us look out for each other and post stuff in HD. It's also why when the stuff is on-sale, we hoard up on it. Someday, hopefully, memory will fall in line w/the rest of the PC Hardware. I.E. new stuff is expensive, but gradually and steadily drops in price, never to go back up. I.E. the $200 9800 Pros littering the internet these days.
Originally posted by: apoppin
Well, I am glad i finshed my rig EXCEPT for the video card.Originally posted by: MichaelD
I've noticed the skyrocketing prices as well. What a crock of crap! :disgust: I sure am glad that I'm not building a new rig (that needs PC3200) anytime soon.
This is why Smart Shoppers like us look out for each other and post stuff in HD. It's also why when the stuff is on-sale, we hoard up on it. Someday, hopefully, memory will fall in line w/the rest of the PC Hardware. I.E. new stuff is expensive, but gradually and steadily drops in price, never to go back up. I.E. the $200 9800 Pros littering the internet these days.
Speaking of 9800Pros . . . Hot Deals had some for $155 shipped yesterday (refurb i think). It's gonna be a very good time to get a video card soon.
Naw . . . if you waited this long, wait a bit longer . . . the 9800pros (new, not refurb) should be ~$150 next month or so .. .. or you can drop $499 on that new GeForce 6800.Originally posted by: Markfw900
Yea, I passed on the $155 9800 pro refurb(was debating, should have), and now they are $200 ! And I did get a $146 1 gig Mushkin level I refurb into my cart, but when I hit checkout, it said out of stock ! Bad day for me. I did get a Hyperx PC3500 CAS2 refurb for $84 shipped at least......
And MichaelD, I got my money back on that bad Adaptec controller finally (was using that money for the memory)
Well, I already have a 9800 pro, and a 9700 pro, but I wanted another for the 3rd game computer, and the memory. Keeping 8 computers anywhere close to current (3 gaming) is tough unless you don;t care about money. I am still short 1 gig to get all three at 1 gig to play Far Cry.Originally posted by: apoppin
Naw . . . if you waited this long, wait a bit longer . . . the 9800pros (new, not refurb) should be ~$150 next month or so .. .. or you can drop $499 on that new GeForce 6800.Originally posted by: Markfw900
Yea, I passed on the $155 9800 pro refurb(was debating, should have), and now they are $200 ! And I did get a $146 1 gig Mushkin level I refurb into my cart, but when I hit checkout, it said out of stock ! Bad day for me. I did get a Hyperx PC3500 CAS2 refurb for $84 shipped at least......
And MichaelD, I got my money back on that bad Adaptec controller finally (was using that money for the memory)
one thing for sure, RAM prices are a lot less controlled than oil prices . . . oil NEVER seems to drop whereas we can ALways look forward to cheap RAM sooner-or-later (barring extreme unforseen circumstances) . . .
Originally posted by: Shoobie
The RAM I was looking at when I built my system (Mushkin Basic, 2x512) was $80 the day I wanted it. The next day it was $84. Now it's $104. Didn't memory prices bottom out about 6 months ago?
Well, at least video cards are coming down. $210 for a Sapphire 9800Pro feels like a steal. I remember being prepared to buy a 9600Pro for $185.
Originally posted by: Tokar
prices always hit rock bottom in june-july...
so wait till then.