OnePlus Nord 6 price jumps again as smartphone costs continue rising

Smartphone prices are rising even after launch, with the OnePlus Nord 6 getting its second price hike in a week amid growing memory costs and AI-driven hardware demand

The OnePlus Nord 6 has received another price hike in India, marking the second increase in price for the smartphone within a week. With the latest revision, the base variant of the smartphone costs Rs 4000 more than what it originally launched for in April this year, while the top-end variant costs Rs 6000 more. 

 

This trend is not limited to just OnePlus. Several smartphone brands, including Samsung, Vivo, and Nothing, have also revised prices upwards for existing devices in recent months. Alongside post-launch price hikes, newer smartphones are now debuting at noticeably higher starting prices than their predecessors, driven largely by rising memory costs, AI-focused hardware demand, supply constraints, and increasing component costs across the industry.

 

 

OnePlus Nord 6 gets another price increase

 

The OnePlus Nord 6 was officially launched in India with the following pricing:

• 8GB RAM + 256GB storage: Rs 38,999
• 12GB RAM + 256GB storage: Rs 41,999

First round of price hike

• 8GB RAM + 256GB storage: Rs 38,999 to Rs 41,999
• 12GB RAM + 256GB storage: Rs 41,999 to Rs 46,999

Second round of price hike

• 8GB RAM + 256GB storage: Rs 42,999
• 12GB RAM + 256GB storage: Rs 47,999

With the new pricing, the OnePlus Nord 6 is now competing with higher-tier devices, without any change in core functionality. The higher pricing also changes the value-for-money positioning that initially helped the device stand out after launch.

 

Smartphone prices are increasing post-launch

 

Traditionally, smartphone prices dropped a few months after launch. However, the market is now witnessing the opposite trend. Several smartphones are becoming more expensive after launch, with price hikes ranging between Rs 2,000 and Rs 5,000 depending on the model and storage variant.

 

Some recent examples include:

• The OnePlus 15R launched at Rs 47,999 and is now listed at Rs 54,999
• The OnePlus Pad Go 2 increased from Rs 26,999 to Rs 28,499
• The Nothing Phone 3a Lite, launched at Rs 20,999, is now listed at Rs 27,999 on Reliance Digital
• The Vivo V70, launched in February 2026 at Rs 45,999, is now selling at Rs 49,999
• The Samsung Galaxy M36 5G launched at Rs 17,499 and later increased to Rs 21,999

Other Samsung smartphones, including the Galaxy M06, Galaxy F06, and Galaxy M17 5G, have also seen pricing revisions.

 

New smartphones are launching at much higher prices

 

The price hikes are not limited to older devices. New smartphone launches are also becoming more expensive compared to previous generations.

 

For example:

• The Samsung Galaxy A56 launched at Rs 41,999
• Its successor, the Samsung Galaxy A57, launched at the starting price of Rs 56,999

Similarly:

• The Samsung Galaxy A36 launched at Rs 32,999
• The newer Samsung Galaxy A37, launched at the starting price of  Rs 41,999

Interestingly, these price hikes are not always accompanied by major hardware upgrades. In many cases, brands are introducing newer AI-powered features and updated processors while keeping the overall hardware largely similar.

 

Why are smartphones more expensive now?

 

One of the biggest reasons behind rising smartphone prices is the sharp increase in memory costs. As previously reported, memory manufacturers are now prioritising high-bandwidth memory (HBM), which is heavily used in artificial intelligence infrastructure and AI servers. Since AI-focused memory offers higher profit margins, manufacturers are allocating more production resources towards it instead of traditional smartphone and PC memory.

 

This shift is creating supply shortages in the broader consumer electronics market. Even though new semiconductor manufacturing plants are being built, meaningful supply increases are only expected from 2027 onwards.

 

The rapid rise of AI features across smartphones is also increasing pressure on hardware pricing. As more brands push AI-powered editing tools, on-device assistants, generative AI features, and advanced image processing, smartphones are increasingly relying on larger memory capacities and more expensive components.

 

According to a previous report by Nikkei Asia, memory costs in early 2026 have risen nearly 90 per cent quarter-on-quarter. Memory now reportedly accounts for up to 20 per cent of the total cost of an entry-level smartphone and could rise to nearly 40 per cent by mid-2026.

 

This means smartphone prices may continue increasing across categories over the next few years, especially for devices offering AI-focused features and higher storage variants.