Apple expands its Mac lineup this year, offering a new $599 MacBook Neo and a rumored high‑end MacBook “Ultra” slated for later in 2026. The price spread will stretch from entry‑level to premium, giving consumers a broader range of options than ever before for users.

TrendForce’s latest model predicts mainstream laptop retail prices could climb nearly 40% in 2026, driven by surging DRAM and SSD costs that now consume over 30% of a device’s bill of materials. The study shows memory and CPU together could account for 58% of component costs, up from roughly 45%.

Apple’s in‑house silicon shields it from Intel’s CPU hikes, but the company still feels the memory squeeze. The Neo ships with a fixed 8 GB of RAM, while the Mac Studio’s 512‑GB upgrade was dropped, pushing the 256‑GB option to $2,000—up from $1,600 for the M3 Ultra.

Tier‑one brands with deep supplier ties are best positioned to absorb the squeeze, giving Apple a relative advantage. Yet the removal of the Studio upgrade shows the company is not immune to broader market pressures, and the overall laptop segment may face steep price hikes in the coming year.