Google has officially confirmed what leaks had been hinting at for weeks. The Pixel 11 series will be more expensive than its predecessor, and the company’s own Vice President of Devices and Services has explained why in unusually direct terms.
Shakil Barkat, Google’s VP of Devices and Services, confirmed that the company has shielded its consumers from supply fluctuations for as long as possible, but that the economics have fundamentally shifted and Google is no longer immune to that reality.
The trigger is a RAM crisis that has sent memory chip prices to levels the industry has never seen before
According to data from Morgan Stanley, the price of 1GB of RAM jumped from $2.80 in 2025 to $12 in 2026. That is a 328 percent increase in a single year, and it is reshaping the price of nearly every smartphone and laptop being sold right now.
The root cause is AI. Data centres and AI companies have been aggressively locking up long-term supplies of memory chips to train and run large AI models, which has left consumer electronics manufacturers with less supply and much higher costs. Google, Apple, Samsung, and virtually every other major device maker are now being forced to pass those costs on to buyers.
Barkat said the entire Pixel family will see adjustments that will be rolled dynamically to match supply realities. The word “adjustments” is doing a lot of work there, but the direction is not in doubt.
Leaked pricing suggests the entry-level Pixel 11 could start at $899, a $100 increase over the Pixel 10. The Pixel 11 Pro and Pixel 11 Pro XL are expected to start at $1,099 and $1,299 respectively.
The Pixel 11 Pro Fold is rumoured to start at $1,899. None of these prices have been officially confirmed yet, but Google’s acknowledgement of price increases lends weight to the leaked figures
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The price increase is only half the problem. According to leaks, at least some variants of the Pixel 11 Pro are expected to offer only 12GB of RAM, whereas the Pixel 10 Pro always came with 16GB of RAM.
A prior leak also suggested that the base Pixel 11 could drop to 8GB of RAM. This creates a particularly awkward situation for Google, which has been more focused on on-device AI features than almost any other Android manufacturer. The rumoured 8GB base version would fall below Google’s own 12GB RAM minimum for Gemini Intelligence features.
In other words, Google’s flagship AI phone might ship with insufficient RAM to run Google’s own flagship AI features on the base model. Google has not confirmed final RAM configurations.
Rather than simply accepting higher prices and lower specs as permanent, Google says it is working on a technical fix. Barkat mentioned a dedicated effort to drive down memory requirements across Android and the app ecosystem to enable devices to have less RAM while maintaining a great user experience.
This effort is not limited to Pixel buyers. Because it operates at the Android level, it would benefit all Android users regardless of whether they can afford a flagship device or something more affordable. The goal is to make Android run better on less RAM across the board, which would reduce the impact of the memory crisis for the entire ecosystem.
Here is the part most people have missed. Google confirmed this disruption will also impact in-market Pixel phones, which is presumably a reference to the Pixel 10a, a device that is not even halfway through its lifecycle as the company’s mid-range entry. Google has not shared when existing prices will increase, but it is probably wise for prospective customers to purchase sooner rather than later.
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This means if you have been considering buying a Pixel 10a at its current price, waiting could cost you more money even before the Pixel 11 arrives.
Google has officially confirmed that the 2026 Made by Google hardware event will be held on August 12 in London. That is when official pricing, specs, and availability for the Pixel 11 lineup are expected to be confirmed.
Google Pixel phones are not officially sold through Nigerian retail channels, but they remain popular among tech enthusiasts who import them through grey market channels or third-party retailers. Any price increase in dollar terms gets amplified further in naira once exchange rates, shipping, and import duties are added on top.
If the Pixel 11 starts at $899 for the base model, Nigerian buyers importing it could be looking at prices well above what many paid for the Pixel 10 just a year ago. For anyone currently sitting on the fence about upgrading, the math increasingly favours acting before August 12 rather than after it.
What is happening to Google’s Pixel lineup is part of a much bigger pattern. The same RAM crisis has already pushed Apple to raise MacBook and iPad prices, forced Samsung to increase Galaxy S26 prices, and is now officially hitting Google’s phone lineup too. The AI infrastructure being built today is driving up the cost of the consumer devices everyone uses daily, and there is no sign that pressure is easing anytime soon.
