Memory Crisis Reflected in Price Lists: Capacity Analysis of iPhone Price Increase
Dollar, Price, Capacity, Turkey, Price Increase
On the night Apple introduced the iPhone 18 Pro, it updated both the Turkish and US price lists. The increase, which was reflected in headlines as a “$100 increase,” is actually not a single percentage increase; the increase grows as the device’s storage capacity increases. This reveals a picture that perfectly matches the justification for the price increase: the global memory shortage triggered by artificial intelligence data centers.
How did the increase rates in Turkey change in relation to capacity?
| Model / capacity | Old price | New price | Increase | Rate |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| iPhone Air 1 TB | 135,999 TL | 173,999 TL | +38,000 TL | 27.9% |
| 72,999 TL | 85,999 TL | +13,000 TL | 17.8% |
The main discrepancy in the table is the iPhone Air 1 TB In the model. While the 256 GB version of the same device increased by 13.9%, the increase in the 1 TB version reached 27.9%, doubling the price. The difference paid for a single capacity upgrade was 14,000 TL before the increase, and now it is 34,000 TL.
The situation is the same on the US side as well.
This is not a currency calculation specific to Türkiye. In Apple’s US price list, the increase also grows with capacity: The entry-level model of the Pro Max increased by 8.3%, from the previous generation’s $1,199 price tag to $1,299, while the 2 TB version increased by 25%, from $1,999 to $2,499. The difference is exactly $500.
The current US price ranges for the iPhone 18 Pro also confirm this: 256 GB $1,199, 512 GB $1,399, 1 TB $1,799, 2 TB $2,399. That means each capacity step costs double the previous one: $200, $400, $600.
Why has storage become so valuable?
The answer lies outside the phone sector. The memory demand from AI data centers has driven DRAM and NAND flash prices to record levels throughout 2026. Apple first reflected this pressure on June 25th by raising Mac and iPad prices, while iPhones, Apple Watches, and AirPods were exempt from that increase. The September surge shows that the same cost surge has finally reached the phone sector.
The logic is simple: while the device’s processor, screen, and casing remain the same, the NAND capacity inside the box quadruples from 256 GB to 1 TB. Since this is the component where the cost increase is felt most acutely, the increase is proportional to the capacity.
How many times is the price in Turkey higher than in the US?
To make a realistic comparison, the tax burden in Türkiye needs to be taken into account. In Türkiye, a 50% Special Consumption Tax (SCT) and subsequently a 20% Value Added Tax (KDV) are applied to high-end phones; this increases the pre-tax price by approximately 1.8 times.
Calculated based on the exchange rate of 48.50 TL on September 9th, the iPhone 18 Pro’s $1,199 price tag corresponds to 58,152 TL, and with taxes, approximately 104,700 TL. The price in Turkey is 137,999 TL. Even after tax adjustments, the difference is around 32%, and this difference covers the share against currency fluctuations and distribution costs.
Interestingly, storage upgrades are the “fairest” item in this table: upgrading from 256GB to 512GB on the iPhone 18 Pro costs 17,000 TL in Turkey, while the taxed equivalent of the $200 difference in the US is approximately 17,500 TL. So the real difference in Türkiye lies in the base price of the device; Capacity increments are almost a one-to-one reflection of the dollar price.
The practical takeaway is this: upgrading to a higher-capacity model at this price point is a much more valuable choice than in previous years. The cost of getting 1TB instead of 256GB on the iPhone Air is 51,000 TL. That’s about two-thirds the price of the iPhone 17e. Cloud storage, external hard drives, or settling for a lower capacity are stronger alternatives than ever this year.
The memory crisis is expected to continue until 2027. This means that capacity differences may widen even further in the next generation.
Apple’s iPhone increase is in the entry-level model, at 1 TB. We analyzed the increase rates and reasons for all models in relation to their storage options.
