The tech product dilemma: buy now or wait for lower prices?

In 2026, as tech product prices rise, we're having deja vu all over again. A year ago, President Donald Trump's ever-changing tariffs had tech product prices skyrocketing. Consumers found themselves asking the question: Should I buy that laptop or smartphone, or should I wait? Now, thanks to the AI boom, we're experiencing a shortage of computer memory known as RAMageddon, we're asking that question once again. Our recommendation: If you need it, buy it now. Why? Because there's no telling when prices will drop — or even if they will. When we posed this question to consumer experts last year, they recommended buying products like laptops, smartphones, and gaming consoles sooner rather than later as price hikes were on the way. Lo and behold, that prediction turned out to be accurate. And prices are still rising. Apple just announced price hikes across all of its products, except the iPhone, just this week. MacBook Pros will now be $300 to $500 more expensive than they were just days ago. Last month, Nintendo raised the price of its Switch 2 console by $50. And Apple's CEO has warned of steeper prices on the iPhone 18 when it launches in September. In short, a future "deal" on these