$1 billion of iPhone 18 Pro chips 'on the shelves awaiting packaging' due to DRAM shortages — memory shortages reportedly put a wrinkle in Apple's launch plans
Apple has the wafers ready to go. It's just waiting on DRAM like everyone else.
Apple reportedly has around $1 billion in "processor wafers on the shelves awaiting packaging" amid ongoing memory shortages, putting pressure on the firm as it nears the launch of the iPhone 18. Tim Culpan of Culpium says Apple is "scrambling" for memory supply ahead of release, working with suppliers to get memory ready so it can finish packaging the A20 Pro and C2 chips that are reportedly inside the iPhone 18 lineup.
It's an interesting peek behind the curtain of the current supply chain limitations, which reach beyond simply DRAM chips. With fully-integrated SoCs across both desktop and mobile, Apple is uniquely vulnerable to supply chain limitations, not only in DRAM supply, but also in packaging capacity to bring together DRAM chips with processor wafers.
According to Culpan, Apple primarily sources DRAM from Micron, with smaller engagements from SK Hynix and Samsung. Micron (along with the other major memory players) has reportedly sold capacity for DRAM and HBM through 2027. A flurry of long-term agreements (LTAs) have cropped up over the past several months, guaranteeing supply to certain companies for several years.
The A20 Pro is the first chip to use TSMC's N2 process, and it has been progressing well, with TSMC reportedly sitting on around $1 billion worth of Apple wafers awaiting packaging with DRAM. Packaging happens with TSMC's new Wafer-Level Multi-Chip Module (WMCM) process, according to Culpan, which is similar to the CoWoS packaging but for mobile parts.
Culpan reports that "Apple and its assemblers remain confident that they can meet initial demand," but DRAM shortages could put pressure on shipments past the initial launch. Apple reportedly plans to ship around 200 million iPhone 18 units across the lineup throughout the device's lifespan. The iPhone 17 range saw record shipments last year, surpassing 245 million devices shipped in 2025.
Apple is one of several companies reportedly looking to alternative suppliers for DRAM, namely China's CXMT. The Chinese memory supplier has become a hot topic in the halls of the U.S. government over the past several weeks, with Apple reportedly lobbying for clearance as the government weighs the option to ban CXMT.
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Jake Roach is the Senior CPU Analyst at Tom’s Hardware, writing reviews, news, and features about the latest consumer and workstation processors.
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usertests Entry-level iPhone 18 is expected to move from 8 GB to 9 GB, providing the crucial memory upgrade Nvidiwon't.Reply -
Alastor01 Apologies if stupid question, but I fail to understand why do DRAM shortages affect phones in the first place? Don't they use SoCs where memory is on the chip already among other components? Does that not use a different process of manufacturing?Reply -
usertests Reply
There are AI products using the same LPDDR5X chips as phones, sometimes in a different form factor like SOCAMM. For example, Nvidia's Vera Rubin comes with up to 1.5 terabytes of LPDDR5X. Intel's Crescent Island AI PCIe card comes with 160 GB, possibly up to 480 GB of LPDDR5X. AMD's Strix Halo is surrounded with eight LPDDR5X chips, initially up to 128 GB, soon increasing to 192 GB for Gorgon Halo.Alastor01 said:Apologies if stupid question, but I fail to understand why do DRAM shortages affect phones in the first place? Don't they use SoCs where memory is on the chip already among other components? Does that not use a different process of manufacturing?
Some (most?) phones are using package on package (PoP) memory, but it doesn't mean the memory is made on the same silicon (like most SRAM), and it doesn't affect the economics of the memory chips. They still have to be manufactured separately at memory fabs before the packaging step. -
Alastor01 Reply
Thanks for explanation!usertests said:There are AI products using the same LPDDR5X chips as phones, sometimes in a different form factor like SOCAMM. For example, Nvidia's Vera Rubin comes with up to 1.5 terabytes of LPDDR5X. Intel's Crescent Island AI PCIe card comes with 160 GB, possibly up to 480 GB of LPDDR5X. AMD's Strix Halo is surrounded with eight LPDDR5X chips, initially up to 128 GB, soon increasing to 192 GB for Gorgon Halo.
Some (most?) phones are using package on package (PoP) memory, but it doesn't mean the memory is made on the same silicon (like most SRAM), and it doesn't affect the economics of the memory chips. They still have to be manufactured separately at memory fabs before the packaging step. -
CrazyCarrot911 Reply
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