TSMC is raising wafer prices and the iPhone will be affected
Tariff uncertainty has made the smartphone industry very volatile.
TSMC (Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company) is raising the pricing of its wafers by 10 percent this year. This will have a massive impact on many companies that rely on TSMC’s chip manufacturing including but not limited to Apple which is TSMC’s biggest customer for its iPhone.
Apple is already in hot water due to the Trump administration’s application of tariffs on imported goods. The company rushed inventory into the U.S. before the tariffs went into effect and is now looking to shift production from China: the country being hit hardest by the tariffs. However Apple’s plans to move iPhone production to India were also affected a few days ago when President Trump told CEO Tim Cook to not do so.
TSMC has been debating raising the prices of its wafers in 2025 for months and seems to have finally made a decision. The 10 percent increase (translated source) will mean that future iPhone models and other Apple products will almost assuredly see a price hike. Apple has already been considering making the iPhone 17 lineup more expensive and this news likely sealed the deal.
Upcoming iPhone 17 models are already being criticized online for their redesign and a price hike will only make things more difficult for Apple’s newest flagships. While the company is aware that tariffs are probably to blame for the price hike, it reportedly plans on not admitting that publicly. Doing so might have further consequences during this already turbulent time.
Apple’s largest competitor Samsung doesn’t have nearly as much to worry about as the company moved its production out of China years ago. However Samsung had to use Qualcomm’s Snapdragon 8 Elite for the entire Galaxy S25 lineup due to troubles manufacturing its Exynos alternatives. If Samsung’s 2 nm Exynos 2600 is not ready on time then TSMC’s price increase will affect the Galaxy S26 phones as well.
Apple’s spectacular M series chips — which revolutionized its MacBook laptops — will also see price hikes due to TSMC’s decision. This will in turn make the company’s computers and various iPad models more expensive too.
Apple is already in hot water due to the Trump administration’s application of tariffs on imported goods. The company rushed inventory into the U.S. before the tariffs went into effect and is now looking to shift production from China: the country being hit hardest by the tariffs. However Apple’s plans to move iPhone production to India were also affected a few days ago when President Trump told CEO Tim Cook to not do so.
Upcoming iPhone 17 models are already being criticized online for their redesign and a price hike will only make things more difficult for Apple’s newest flagships. While the company is aware that tariffs are probably to blame for the price hike, it reportedly plans on not admitting that publicly. Doing so might have further consequences during this already turbulent time.
Apple’s largest competitor Samsung doesn’t have nearly as much to worry about as the company moved its production out of China years ago. However Samsung had to use Qualcomm’s Snapdragon 8 Elite for the entire Galaxy S25 lineup due to troubles manufacturing its Exynos alternatives. If Samsung’s 2 nm Exynos 2600 is not ready on time then TSMC’s price increase will affect the Galaxy S26 phones as well.
Apple’s spectacular M series chips — which revolutionized its MacBook laptops — will also see price hikes due to TSMC’s decision. This will in turn make the company’s computers and various iPad models more expensive too.
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