The Raspberry Pi is a computer that can be used to control devices like a TV or a camera. The price of the computer has gone up due to the shortage of chips.
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Eben Upton posted on the official Raspberry Pi blog regarding the price increase, and while it’s rather unfortunate for buyers, it sounds necessary. The post cited, “the upsurge of demand for electronic products for home working and entertainment during the pandemic has descended into panic buying, as companies try to secure the components that they need to build their products.”
The company says it’s “expecting our supply chain challenges to continue through much of 2022.” Because of this, the price of some Raspberry Pi models is going to increase. Specifically, the older ones built on 40nm silicon will see a price increase.
The 2GB Raspberry Pi 4 will move to $45, which Raspberry Pi says happened because “cost increases caused by the current shortage mean that this product is not currently economically viable at this reduced price point. We are therefore moving it back to $45 on a temporary basis.”
To help combat this price bump, Raspberry Pi is bringing back the 1GB Raspberry Pi 4 and selling it for $35. This will let buyers choose between a bit less memory at the price they’re used to or a $10 price bump for the same amount of memory they’re used to.
The company is confident that it won’t need to increase the prices of the Raspberry Pi 4 and Compute Module 4 as it has enough 28nm silicon over the next twelve months to meet the demand for those devices.
Upton wrapped up the post by pointing out that these increases are temporary. “These changes in pricing are not here to stay. As global supply chain issues moderate, we’ll keep revisiting this issue, and we want to get pricing back to where it was as fast as we can.”
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