All this is happening because memory manufacturers have reallocated production capacity toward high-bandwidth memory , the specialized memory stacked inside AI accelerators from Nvidia and others. HBM consumes roughly three times the wafer capacity of conventional DDR5, so every wafer diverted to AI accelerators removes three bits' worth of standard DRAM from the market. TrendForce does not expect meaningful relief before 2027 or 2028, when new fab capacity comes online.
Apple has generally fared better than most OEMs struggling with the memory shortage. The company is understood to have secured long-term DRAM supply agreements extending through Q1 2026, giving it more allocation certainty than Android manufacturers or PC vendors working on shorter procurement cycles, but CEO Tim Cook has acknowledged that the shortage will have a greater impact on Apple’s Q2 earnings.
The fact that the 512GB tier has disappeared regardless of this suggests that ultra-high-density memory is facing particular scarcity even for major buyers like Apple. MacRumors also noted that demand for high-memory Mac Studio configurations has increased as users look for machines capable of running large language models locally, which could be a contributing factor to the extended May shipping estimates on 256GB builds.
The timing of this also compounds an already awkward situation for Mac Studio buyers. The current lineup pairs the M4 Max with the older M3 Ultra, a cross-generation mismatch that came about because Apple skipped the M4 Ultra entirely, as the M4 Max lacks the UltraFusion connector needed to fuse two dies. Anyone configuring the top-end M3 Ultra model right now is paying a $4,000 premium for a chip Apple has already moved past.
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Key considerations
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Reference reading
- https://www.tomshardware.com/tech-industry/SPONSORED_LINK_URL
- https://www.tomshardware.com/tech-industry/apple-pulls-512-mac-studio-upgrade-option#main
- https://www.tomshardware.com
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