At the end of 2024, you only needed to spend a few hundred dollars to upgrade your memory, but now, at the beginning of 2026, that number has doubled.
Something strange is happening in the computer hardware market. At the end of 2024, you only needed to spend a few hundred dollars to upgrade your memory, but now, at the beginning of 2026, that number has doubled.
This affects not only the price of computer memory, but also the devices connected to it, such as laptops, smartphones, game consoles, etc.
Amidst these skyrocketing prices, some hardware components have seen significant price increases, and CPUs in particular are experiencing massive price hikes as computer users revert to older generations of hardware.
Its price has increased to the point that, at the time of writing, this AMD CPU is retailing in some places for more than double its list price – even though it was launched almost 4 years ago.
People are flocking back to AM4.
This article is discussing the AMD Ryzen 7 5800x3D CPU, released in 2022. This is the first AMD CPU to feature 3D V-Cache, which stacks cache memory to provide a larger capacity, totaling 96MB.
At the time, it was revolutionary, changing the amount of cache that consumer CPUs could access, and raising our expectations. The 5800x3D is also considered the last major CPU release for AMD's AM4 socket, as although the company later released the 5700x3D and 5600x3D, these were merely successors to the more powerful chip.
We've also had two complete generations of CPUs on AMD's newer AM5 socket. The 7000 series CPUs (including the 7000x3D) launched in 2023, while 2025 saw the launch of the incredibly powerful 9000 series CPUs (also including the 9000x3D chip). In both cases, overall performance was superior to the older 5000 series chips. But the newer AM5 socket requires crucial hardware that will see price increases throughout 2025 and into 2026: DDR5 memory .
But the problem with the 5800x3D is this: AMD's CPU still delivers incredible performance, even when compared to the AMD Ryzen 7 9800x3D (November 2024), Ryzen 9 9950X (August 2024), and Ryzen 9 9950x3D (March 2025).
In some cases, AMD's newest and most powerful x3D chip only delivers a 30% performance boost with a minimal difference of 1%, which, frankly, is absurd considering the generation gap. While 30% sounds significant, if performance is still above 120 FPS and even reaches over 200 FPS, that's a sure sign that the older CPU is still performing well.
Therefore, for anyone with an AM4 motherboard, the 5800x3D is the perfect upgrade to boost system performance for years to come, especially if you already have a powerful graphics card.
The RAM shortage is affecting the price of everything.
The reality isn't that everyone suddenly wants to downgrade their hardware, although some may be doing so. The pressure is suddenly mounting from those still using AM4-based PCs who want to maximize their performance, as the price of RAM and other PC hardware shows no sign of decreasing anytime soon.
However, prices remain sky-high.
The Ryzen 7 5800x3D processor launched at $450, then dropped to around $320-$350 in the following months. Currently, eBay is flooded with items being resold for hundreds of dollars more than the initial asking price, with many exceeding $600-$800. You can find numerous social media posts expressing satisfaction with upgrading to this chip years ago, as it will allow them to use it for many more years (with the right RAM and GPU combination ).
The problem is, DDR4 RAM isn't cheap either. It's not as expensive as DDR5, the latest generation, but its price has still gone up; the saying goes, "when the tide rises, the boat rises." The price of DDR4 RAM gradually decreased as DDR5 replaced it, but in the past few months, the price of most types of DDR4 RAM has steadily increased.
For example, the price of CORSAIR Vengeance DDR4 32GB RAM increased from approximately $90 in October 2025 to approximately $170 in January 2026, while CORSAIR Vengeance RGB PRO DDR4 32GB RAM (RGB version) increased from approximately $90 to $280 during the same period.
The RAM shortage is affecting all markets, not just the high-end segment.
Scammers are also well aware of this trick.
Too good to be true, or just ridiculous prices.
And as always, when prices rise sharply, scammers are always waiting for an opportunity to profit. This involves a combination of high but seemingly reasonable prices, unreasonable prices, or prices that are low compared to the market. but nothing is delivered.
When comparing DDR4 RAM prices on Amazon, you'll find a 64GB RAM kit for around $580. This proves the argument that DDR4 RAM prices increase along with DDR5. But upon closer inspection, this expensive RAM kit was only added to Amazon on January 4, 2026, and immediately sold at that insane price. To be fair, the Patriot Memory Viper Elite II DDR4 64GB kit costs $564, and although its price has more than doubled since October 2025, that's still a "new" price for this capacity.
Since the first product was added to Amazon only recently, it's unclear whether it will actually ship. But the price is only slightly higher than other memory modules in the same segment, so while competitive, it's not prohibitively expensive. In fact, it's well above current prices, but not by hundreds of dollars. However, it's clear that some sellers and companies are testing the upper limit of pricing in hopes of landing some super-bargain deals.
Of course, that has led people to take a closer look at listings for Ryzen 7 5800x3D on eBay for similar anomalies. So, think carefully about that.