Raspberry Pi has already hiked prices on its single board computers in December and this February in response to AI-related RAM price hikes, but now it’s trying something new: a configuration built with the memory crisis in mind. The company has introduced a Raspberry Pi 4 model with 3GB of RAM for just under $84. No, it’s not an April Fool’s joke.
CEO Eben Upton makes clear that the new model exists in response to a “seven-fold” increase in prices for the LPDDR4 RAM used in both the Raspberry Pi 4 and 5. While the company still has to share some of the costs with customers, this theoretically offsets the impact by providing more choices. “We want to make sure you don’t pay for more memory than you need,” Upton says.
More price increases for existing Raspberry Pi models
In addition to the new board, Raspberry Pi has announced another round of price hikes for its devices. The steepest increases are for the Raspberry Pi 500+ keyboard and computer hybrid, which now costs $150 more whether you buy the unit alone or a full kit. The base Pi 500 costs $50 more.
Other devices see more modest increases depending on the configuration. Raspberry Pi 4 and 5 models with 4GB of RAM now cost $25 more, while 8GB variants are $50 extra. The 16GB Pi 5 carries a $100 premium. Compute Modules now cost between $11 to $100 more depending on the memory. Compute Module 5 Devleopment Kits are $25 more, while you’ll need to pay $50 extra for the Raspberry Pi AI HAT+ 2.
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Upton notes that he doesn’t expect higher prices for “classic” Raspberry Pi hardware that still uses LPDDR2 RAM, such as the 3 series and Pi Zero. There’s still “significant inventory” for that memory, and the devices are both in production and receiving updates.
Will there be Raspberry Pi price drops?
Upton doesn’t believe the elevated memory prices will last. Raspberry Pi “will reverse” the increases if and when RAM prices drop, he claims. If you want the extra memory but can’t justify the price, it may be worth waiting.
However, the executive also suggests that buyers consider “right-sizing” memory for their tasks, rather than buying more space as a precaution. That includes both existing models and “lower-density” versions of newer products, according to Upton. Effectively, the CEO is warning customers that the higher prices may persist, and to temper their expectations.
Modern AI’s heavy dependence on memory has sparked shortages and price surges as companies purchase as much RAM as possible. The crisis has led to higher product prices across the electronics industry, and even led Micron to shut down the Crucial brand as it pivoted toward high-bandwidth RAM for data centers.
The Raspberry Pi 4 3GB is available now through resellers worldwide.
