SAN FRANCISCO, June 25 (Xinhua) -- Apple has raised prices for some Mac computers and iPad tablets due to higher memory and storage chip costs, U.S. media reported Thursday.
In a statement cited by media reports, Apple said it had never seen a component price increase of such magnitude in such a short period of time. The company said it had so far absorbed the higher costs to shield customers but had now reached a point where it needed to begin raising prices on a number of products, including Macs and iPads.
Updated prices on Apple's U.S. website show that the starting price of the MacBook Neo has risen from 599 U.S. dollars to 699 dollars. The 13-inch MacBook Air with 512GB of storage now starts at 1,299 dollars, up from 1,099 dollars.
For iPads, the starting price of the 11-inch iPad Air Wi-Fi model with 128GB of storage has increased from 599 dollars to 749 dollars. The 11-inch iPad Pro Wi-Fi model with 256GB of storage now starts at 1,199 dollars, up from 999 dollars.
The latest price adjustments do not affect the iPhone.
The rapid expansion of artificial intelligence data centers in recent years has fueled demand for high-bandwidth memory and other chips, squeezing supplies of memory and storage components used in consumer electronics.
Apple Chief Executive Officer Tim Cook said in April the company expected significantly higher memory costs in its fiscal third quarter ending June 27, adding that memory costs would have an increasing impact on its business beyond the June quarter. ■