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Smartphone makers increasingly use recycled memory amid shortages

By PulseAugur Editorial · [1 sources] ·

Smartphone manufacturers are increasingly turning to recycled memory chips, a practice known as 'reballing,' to combat memory shortages and keep budget device prices low. This method involves salvaging used memory from older electronics and re-soldering it onto new products. TrendForce projects that the adoption of reballed memory in smartphones will nearly double by 2027, potentially expanding beyond entry-level models as DRAM prices continue to rise. AI

IMPACT This practice addresses supply chain challenges for AI-adjacent hardware, potentially impacting the cost and availability of devices used for AI applications.

RANK_REASON The article discusses a manufacturing and repair technique (reballing) used by smartphone makers to address component shortages and cost issues, rather than a new product release or core AI research.

Read on Tom's Hardware →

AI-generated summary · Google Gemini · from 1 sources. How we write summaries →

Smartphone makers increasingly use recycled memory amid shortages

How we ranked this

Signal score
1 / 100
Composite score across the factors below. Higher = stronger signal that this story matters right now.
Newsworthiness bucket
Tool
The article discusses a manufacturing and repair technique (reballing) used by smartphone makers to address component shortages and cost issues, rather than a new product release or core AI research.
Source corroboration
Single-source cluster
Only one publisher covered this so far. Single-source stories can still rank when the publisher is high-authority, but they lack cross-source corroboration.
Topics
product, infra
Editorial topic classification. Feeds into how the story surfaces on /topic/<slug> hub pages and into the per-entity coverage mix.
AI-industry relevance
High
Clearly on-topic for AI-industry coverage.
Story freshness
1 days old
Coverage has settled into its steady-state source set.

Full methodology in our editorial standards.

COVERAGE [1]

  1. Tom's Hardware TIER_1 English(EN) · Kunal Khullar ·

    Memory shortage spurs smartphone makers to melt used memory off old devices, then re-solder it onto new products

    Reballed memory currently accounts for a small share of smartphone components, but adoption could nearly double by 2027 as manufacturers look for alternatives to increasingly expensive DRAM.

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