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Earlier today, Microsoft raised the price of its Xbox consoles by up to $150 in the U.S. Just a few hours before that, Apple announced a similar move for its Mac and iPad portfolio, while also raising the sticker price of its Vision Pro headset and several other products except the iPhone. But it seems these two giants are not done with price hikes yet.

Neither company has explicitly said that more price hikes are coming, but their statements suggest otherwise. Take, for example, this statement that Apple shared with The Washington Post earlier today.

“We have now reached a point where we need to begin raising prices on a number of products, including today’s increases for iPad and Mac.”

Apple’s wording points to more price hikes

The important phrase here is “begin raising prices.” Apple’s wording clearly suggests that the company is also looking at similar price adjustments for the rest of its portfolio. A price hike for the iPhone would not be surprising.

Across the industry, smartphone makers have raised the purchase ceiling, and even non-foldable phones from Chinese brands are now regularly reaching the $1,500 to $1,600 range. A recent estimate by JPMorgan mentions that the price of memory and storage chips has essentially quadrupled, leaving Apple with little choice but to make a $100 to $200 price adjustment for the upcoming iPhone 18 Pro, which is slated for a fall debut.

Separately, Microsoft also mentioned in its announcement earlier today that the cost of memory and storage chips has gone up by a factor of 2.5, forcing it to raise the price of Xbox consoles multiple times in the past year. More importantly, the announcement notes that the company expects another doubling in the price of these components by the end of 2027. That directly means the price of Xbox Series X and Series S consoles could climb further in the coming months.

The memory crunch is hitting everyone

The cost pressure is not surprising. Valve, for example, has priced its Steam Machine console at over $1,000, and the bundle does not even include a controller. PC brands like ASUS have also publicly stated that they do not see any immediate relief when it comes to the cost of memory and storage chips. As a result, the price of laptops and PCs continues to climb.

The situation in the smartphone industry is no different. According to analyst estimates, it is only going to get worse, and the memory crisis does not seem to be going away in the face of voracious AI data center demand.

When Apple finally caved to the memory crisis and increased prices across Mac and iPad on June 25, 2026, most people reacted with disbelief, frustration, or resigned acceptance. Mine was a quiet, slightly wicked smile, and in about two to three minutes, you’ll understand exactly why.

My M1 MacBook Air (8GB, 256GB) has been showing its age since last year. It was starting to crack under pressure. Whenever I opened more than 10 or 15 Chrome tabs, it would protest quietly before crashing, forcing me to ration them. Video exports, even casual ones, started taking noticeably longer. I did everything I was supposed to do, but none of it made a meaningful difference.

My M1 MacBook Air gave up after four years

Even though the constant lagging and slowdowns were pushing me to get a new one, I held off the purchase for as long as I could. But then one day, my MacBook simply won’t turn on. That was the tipping point for me. I started comparing all the available options in my budget, and one device made perfect sense to me: the M4 MacBook Air.

The smart play, on paper, was to grab the M4 MacBook Air (13-inch) at a discounted price. But when I actually ran the numbers, the M4 model with 16GB of RAM and 256GB of storage was only $70 to $80 cheaper than the already-discounted M5 equivalent, here in India. That’s not savings; that’s a rounding error.

The M5 MacBook Air, for a slightly higher price, offered twice the storage at 512GB, meaningfully better immediate performance, and enough headroom to use it for at least three to four years, or maybe even five. That made the decision for me.

The M5 vs. M4 math didn’t add up

You see, Apple launched the 13-inch M5 MacBook Air in the US at $1,099. In India, the launch price translated to INR 119,900, or around $1,270 at current rates. And thanks to prevalent discounts and offers, I saved around $200 on the purchase, which mattered since it was an unplanned purchase. 

On June 15, 2026, I got the M5 MacBook Air in India for INR 101,824, or roughly $1,078, from a third-party online retailer. Even then, I wasn’t entirely convinced I’d made the right decision. Part of me kept wondering whether I should have repaired my old MacBook instead.

Then, all of a sudden, Apple itself made me feel a whole lot better about that purchase.

The plot twist came 10 days after my MacBook Air arrived at my door, when Apple raised the retail prices for a bunch of its products, including the M5 MacBook Air.

Then Apple changed everything

The company briefly took its entire online store down, and when it came back up, the US price for the baseline M5 MacBook Air had jumped by $200, taking it to $1,299. In India, the price moved from around $1,270 to $1,587 (over $300). The effective price, even via third-party retailers, now stands around Apple’s previous MSRP in the region.

I genuinely couldn’t believe it when I saw the numbers change. If I had hummed and hawed for a few more days, bought the device from the same seller, and had it shipped from the same warehouse, it would have cost me another $200. 

The discount I got is gone now, and there’s no way Apple is reducing the prices anytime soon. 

I dodged the Macflation bullet by just 10 days

Given how long I plan to use this device, that’s quite a small margin. The memory crisis finally caught up to Apple, and I’m just glad that I got my MacBook before it did.

What I’m keen to know now is whether Apple will increase the iPhone 18 Pro’s price later this year, since recent reports haven’t painted the launch price in the best light.

Earlier today, Microsoft raised the price of its Xbox consoles by up to $150 in the US. Following the price hike, the asking price for the Xbox Series X 2TB edition has climbed all the way up to $800. The 1TB model now costs $650, while the Xbox Series S with 512 GB storage will now cost $400 in the US market. 

What’s the game plan?

To retain gaming enthusiasts, Microsoft has introduced a new installment-based payment scheme for its consoles that is now live through its official storefronts. The Buy Now Pay Later system is currently available for the Xbox Series S and the Xbox Series X consoles — for both new and refurbished units. 

According to Microsoft’s website, the Buy Now, Pay Later system works in collaboration with PayPal and allows you to pay the full cost of a device in four installments (paid bi-weekly) with zero interest, or you can opt for monthly installments and pay them across installments.

If you opt to pay monthly for an Xbox console, you can break the installments across 24 months. There are no late fees or sign-up charges involved. “Flexible payment options help you pay how you want, at Microsoft Store,” says the company on its online storefront.

The caveat, and alternative

But in order to avail the buy now, pay later benefit on Microsoft Store, which is essentially an extension of the PayPal Pay Later system, your purchase must first be approved before you can decide the duration over which you want to pay the full cost of the Xbox console. 

In case your purchase is not approved by PayPal or you don’t have a PayPal account, you can head over to Amazon and purchase an eligible Xbox console via a financing scheme with zero interest, spread across 12 months. 

Microsoft won’t be the only player reeling under the stress of rising memory and storage chip prices, ultimately forcing it to raise the hardware prices. Earlier today, Apple also raised the sticker price of Mac and iPad hardware significantly. Elsewhere, the cost of PCs and laptops has gone up, and even Valve had to price its Steam machine at over $1,000 in the U.S. market.

Samsung just unveiled its newest budget phone, Galaxy A27 5G, starting at $349, which is $50 pricier than last year’s Galaxy A26, yet it actually takes a step back in a few areas that matter for everyday use.

What you actually get for the higher price

Samsung swapped the A26’s Exynos chip for a Snapdragon 6 Gen 3, which delivers a 10 to 20% speed boost, plus a GPU upgrade for smoother gaming and graphics work. The display still rocks a 6.7-inch Super AMOLED panel with a 120Hz refresh rate. It now has a punch hole camera cutout instead of last year’s teardrop notch, with slimmer bezels around the screen.

You get three memory configurations to choose from too, 6GB plus 128GB, 8GB plus 128GB, and 8GB plus 256GB. AI features get a small boost too, including multi-object recognition in Circle to Search, sharper Object Eraser results, and real-time translation in the Voice Recorder app across 22 languages. Samsung is sticking with six years of OS upgrades and security updates, just like before. However, most of this feels like a minor refresh rather than a real leap forward.

Galaxy A27 5G vs A26: what’s downgraded?

The biggest letdown is IP ratings. Samsung Galaxy A26 was the first in its tier to score an IP67 rating, meaning it could survive a brief dunk, and Samsung loved bragging about that flagship-grade feature trickling down to a budget phone. Sadly, the A27 drops to IP64, which only shrugs off splashes and dust, not a dip in water.

Meanwhile, the cameras took a hit too. The ultrawide lens falls from 8MP to 5MP, and the selfie camera drops from 13MP to 12MP, though the 50MP main camera with OIS stays the same. Additionally, the phone is even slightly thicker now, going from 7.7mm to 7.8mm, which is a negligible difference, but a regression nonetheless.

If you are still looking forward to picking one up, the Galaxy A27 5G lands July 3 internationally and July 14 in the US. And if the price hike has you eyeing other options, here are four terrific Galaxy A37 alternatives worth checking out too.

Prime Day is typically the prime moment to refresh a gaming rig, with price cuts covering everything from GPUs and accessories to screens. For many players, swapping out a monitor can deliver the most noticeable boost, influencing immersion and responsiveness alike.

This year Sceptre is rolling out reductions on a selection of gaming monitors from June 23‑26, featuring as much as $100 off its flagship C415B‑UUS360. Built to provide both sweeping ultrawide gaming and esports‑grade performance in a single panel, it easily becomes the centerpiece of Sceptre’s Prime Day offerings. The brand also includes more budget‑friendly options, giving shoppers a range of price points to choose from.

The Deal to Watch: Sceptre C415B‑UUS360

The headline bargain in Sceptre’s Prime Day slate is the C415B‑UUS360, a 39.7‑inch curved ultrawide gaming monitor aimed at users who refuse to compromise between visual fidelity and competitive speed.

A standout feature is its dual‑mode capability, allowing users to switch between 5K resolution at up to 180 Hz and Full HD at up to 360 Hz. Paired with the immersive ultrawide aspect ratio and curved screen, the monitor caters to a broad spectrum of gaming styles—whether you’re roaming massive open worlds, tackling racing simulators, or diving into fast‑paced multiplayer battles.

The mix of a massive 39.7‑inch display, ultrawide ratio, and flexible dual‑mode settings sets the C415B‑UUS360 apart from conventional gaming screens, making it an attractive pick for gamers who want a single monitor that can handle both cinematic experiences and high‑performance play.

During the Prime Day event the unit is offered with a $100 discount, representing the deepest cut in Sceptre’s gaming monitor lineup.

Prime Day Savings: Save $100

For Bigger‑Screen Gaming: Sceptre C325B‑FW250D

Players seeking a larger panel without venturing into ultrawide territory may find the Sceptre C325B‑FW250D compelling. This 32‑inch curved gaming monitor delivers a more expansive view, making it well suited for story‑driven adventures, racing titles, and multiplayer sessions alike.

The curvature pulls users deeper into the action, while the increased screen real‑estate provides extra room to appreciate in‑game environments and details. Throughout Sceptre’s Prime Day promotion the monitor is discounted by up to $50, presenting an appealing option for gamers who want a bigger display without entering premium‑price territory.

Prime Day Savings: Up to $50 Off

For Budget‑Conscious Upgraders: Sceptre E225W‑FW144G

The E225W‑FW144G is the most affordable screen in this Prime Day collection, making it a solid choice for first‑time PC gamers, students, or anyone needing a secondary monitor. Its 22‑inch curved design fits comfortably on smaller desks while still offering the gaming‑focused features expected from a modern display.

The added Prime Day markdown makes the deal even sweeter for shoppers aiming to refresh their setup without stretching their budget, proving that a gaming monitor upgrade doesn’t have to carry a premium price tag.

Prime Day Savings: Save up to $13

Which Sceptre Deal Fits Your Needs?

Prime Day often presents one of the best chances to upgrade gaming hardware without paying full price, and Sceptre’s current offers span a variety of gaming requirements. The flagship C415B‑UUS360 leads the pack with its dual‑mode ultrawide design, the C325B‑FW250D supplies a larger curved‑screen experience for those looking to step up their rig, and the E225W‑FW144G rounds out the lineup as a wallet‑friendly option. With discounts running through June 26, Sceptre’s Prime Day specials provide something for gamers at multiple price levels.

If you own a Switch 2 and have been waiting for a great hack-and-slash game to justify the purchase, today is a good day. 

Devil May Cry 5: Devil Hunter Edition lands on the eShop on June 23, 2026, at limited-time discounted pricing. Given that it’s a game from a franchise that has sold over 38 million copies, that is a deal worth paying attention to.

So what exactly is in the Devil Hunter Edition?

This is the first time any Devil May Cry game has come to a portable Nintendo device, courtesy of Capcom. 

All four playable characters are available from the start: Nero, Dante, V, and Vergil, Dante’s twin brother, whose concentration-based combat style is available across all the main missions in the game. 

DMC5 alone has surpassed 11 million units sold. This Switch 2 port includes the EX Color Pack for alternate costumes, along with additional mechanical arms for Nero (including the classic Mega Buster and the Gerbera GP01). 

The file size clocks in at a manageable 28GB (via Notebookcheck).

Does the port actually hold up on Switch 2?

Capcom’s stated priority was a locked 60 frames per second. The game delivers it in both docked and handheld modes, ensuring smooth gameplay on the handheld console.  

A few things didn’t make the cut, though: hardware ray tracing, Turbo Mode, and the enemy-dense Legendary Dark Knight difficulty. They’re all absent, and might disappoint some Switch owners. 

For most players, however, those are acceptable trade-offs for a game that runs this smoothly in your hands. The eShop version is available from June 23 at $30. The $30 price applies until July 7, after which it moves to $40. A physical edition follows on August 28.

Meta has broadened Instagram for TV to include Samsung Smart TVs across the United States, introducing a suite of new features aimed at group viewing. With Samsung now supporting the app, Instagram for TV is present on the three largest connected‑TV ecosystems in the country.

**What’s new on Samsung**

The Samsung rollout supports models from 2020 onward, joining Amazon Fire TV – where Instagram for TV first launched in December 2025 – and Google TV, added in February 2026. Meta is also piloting interest‑based channels that cluster Reels by themes such as comedy, sports, or favorite creators, letting users skip the usual scrolling to decide what to watch. Users can cast Reels directly from their phones to the TV, including content saved in the Saved tab, a capability already live on Fire TV and Google TV. Additionally, Instagram is testing a dedicated home for horizontal video, recognizing that vertical phone footage doesn’t always translate well to a living‑room display.

**The real game changer: episodic series and live TV**

The most exciting development is Meta’s exploration of longer‑form creator content, multi‑part episodic series, and Live on TV, which would deliver real‑time creator broadcasts to televisions for the first time. This long‑form offering builds on the Series feature that Meta began testing on mobile in early June, allowing creators to bundle Reels into sequential episodes with a dedicated hub. No launch dates have been set for these formats, and Meta says it is still collaborating with creators to determine what works best on a TV screen versus a phone. If everything aligns, your next binge‑worthy show could start out as an Instagram Reel.

The embargo on Valve’s Steam Machine reviews has finally lifted, and after scanning the impressions from the major outlets, one thing is obvious: the feedback isn’t as divided as social media suggests. In fact, there’s a notable consensus about what Valve nailed and where it may have slipped.

How the big reviewers scored the Steam Machine

• Digital Foundry: Described it as “beautifully designed” and “virtually silent,” while pointing out that the premium cost is hard to ignore.
• Rock Paper Shotgun: Called it a “quiet triumph of hardware design” and lauded its distinct appeal despite the steep price tag.
• IGN: Highlighted the compact form factor and capable internals, but labeled the $1,049 starting price a “hard pill to swallow.”
• Gizmodo: Praised it as an excellent couch‑gaming device, arguing that inflated component costs push it into uncomfortable territory.
• Aftermath: Said it’s intuitive and a joy to use, yet ultimately blamed current PC component pricing for making recommendation difficult.
• PC Gamer: Noted the console is “the biggest victim of the RAMpocalypse to date,” leaving it feeling like “an expensive curio rather than a mass‑market gaming device.”
• Linus Tech Tips: bluntly titled the review “Even Valve is Disappointed,” summarising how the poor price‑to‑performance ratio spoils an otherwise brilliant machine.
• The Verge: Commended the polished SteamOS experience and premium build, while questioning whether the overall package justifies its price.

After parsing those critiques, the amusing part is that almost nobody dislikes the Steam Machine itself. Quite the opposite.

SteamOS shines, hardware holds its own

Reviewers consistently applaud the industrial design, whisper‑quiet acoustics, and—perhaps most importantly—SteamOS. Valve’s operating system has matured into arguably the smoothest console‑style interface on a PC today, offering effortless controller navigation, seamless UI transitions, and a level of polish that makes Windows‑based rigs feel clunky by comparison. It delivers console convenience while preserving the openness of the PC ecosystem, and several critics cite it as the hardware’s biggest strength.

The praise isn’t limited to software. The compact chassis, premium build quality, and near‑silent cooling receive high marks, with many reviewers noting how the unit practically vanishes into a living‑room setup. The revamped Steam Controller also garners positive remarks for improved ergonomics and tight integration with SteamOS, helping the whole package feel less like a mini‑PC and more like a purpose‑built console.

Performance, contrary to expectations, isn’t a major sore spot. Most outlets agree the Steam Machine delivers exactly what its specs promise and offers a solid gaming experience for its target audience. To Valve’s credit, the eye‑watering price isn’t solely its fault; the ongoing AI boom has driven up memory and component costs across the industry, making compact PCs considerably pricier than they were a few years ago.

The real debate: the price tag

At $1,049, reviewers stop comparing the Steam Machine to a PlayStation 5 or Xbox Series X and start measuring it against gaming laptops and compact desktops. Yes, new PC hardware has become more expensive due to soaring component prices and the AI‑driven memory crunch, but that’s only half the story. For shoppers today, many previous‑generation gaming laptops and pre‑built PCs are available at deep discounts, often outperforming the Steam Machine while costing the same or less. Suddenly, the competition looks a lot tougher.

In the end, most critics agree Valve has crafted a beautifully engineered gaming machine with a fantastic software experience and arguably the best couch‑friendly PC interface around. That said, the Steam Machine makes more sense when viewed as a premium, luxury gaming appliance rather than a mainstream console replacement. The hardware isn’t dividing reviewers—the four‑figure price tag is.

I’ve spent years messing with in-game brightness sliders, GPU filters, HDR modes, and monitor presets to tinker with my experience on my favorite games. Of course, I’d always go with the original artists’ intent first, but replaying these titles with new filters does freshen up the atmosphere.

This is why I was particularly impressed by BenQ’s new MOBIUZ gaming monitors. During a recent visit to BenQ’s Taiwan HQ, I got a hands-on look at the company’s latest AI-powered game filter tech, and it immediately made more sense than I expected. The company isn’t just slapping on the “AI” sticker onto a gaming display. What you are getting here is custom touches to change up your experience by pulling from BenQ’s game art database that automatically tunes brightness, contrast, and color balance to match the game’s visual style. The fun part is that your performance doesn’t take a hit.

The filter lives in the monitor

When you use GPU-side filters, such as Nvidia’s Game Filters, your graphics card is still involved in the post-processing pipeline. Those tools can make a game look sharper, moodier, or more vivid, but they can also come with a performance cost depending on the setup. BenQ takes a different route by moving this job to the display itself. Its Smart Color system works through the Color Shuttle software and uses an AI chipset with BenQ’s MOBIUZ Game Color Database.

So rather than applying a GPU-level filter to the rendered frame, it adjusts the monitor’s own output using game-specific visual profiles. In practice, you can make a game look richer or more balanced without worrying that the filter itself is quietly eating into your frame rate. Considering how precious those extra fps can be for a lot of PC gamers, the visual filter makes sure you don’t lose any of it.

More than just a bunch of presets

The part I liked during the demo was that BenQ is not treating this like an old-school FPS/RPG/Racing preset menu. Those have existed forever, and most of them are either too aggressive or too generic. Color Shuttle is built around a game art database with more than 120 profiles. BenQ says it uses deep learning to understand color grading, lighting, and artistic direction across different game styles. Once Smart Color is enabled, it can detect what you are playing and switch to a suitable profile automatically.

You can also tweak those settings yourself, including familiar BenQ tools like Color Vibrance and Light Tuner that let you shift the image toward your preference. Again, “better colors” has always been a subjective thing. One player may want a horror game to look darker and moodier, while another may prefer better shadow visibility. Someone else may want open-world games to look more cinematic. BenQ’s system gives you a starting point, then lets you tune from there.

Backed by a community

One of the best parts of Color Shuttle is cloud sharing. You can save custom presets, upload them, and share them with other players. Other users can then download those setups for their own compatible monitors. This gives the feature a social side. Imagine downloading a profile for a specific game because another player has already found a better balance for night scenes or other scenes.

But that also explains why the internet connection is part of the story. Color Shuttle connects to BenQ’s Game Color Database, and the cloud side is used for saving and sharing profiles. The AI tuning is not the same thing as cloud gaming or streaming, but the ecosystem still depends on BenQ’s online database and community layer.

Still, there are some limitations. Color Shuttle is currently a Windows 10/11 app, and console users need to save presets to the monitor’s Gamer modes through a PC before using them elsewhere. Regardless, I like where BenQ is going here. A lot of AI gaming features feel too heavy or too tied to expensive GPU upgrades. Smart Color is smaller, but also more practical.

Epic Games has spent years trying to make the Epic Games Store a serious rival to Steam. It has given away free games, signed exclusivity deals, and kept major PC releases such as Borderlands 3, Assassin’s Creed Mirage, and The Lord of the Rings: Return to Moria away from Valve’s storefront at launch. Those moves have helped Epic build an audience, but they have not been enough to seriously threaten Steam’s position as the default PC gaming platform.

One problem has been the launcher itself. Earlier this year, an Epic executive admitted to Eurogamer that the launcher “sucks,” and the company now appears to be working on a much bigger fix. According to slides from an Unreal Fest presentation shared by LuKaOnIndeed on X, Epic is developing Launcher V2, a ground-up rebuild of the Epic Games Store launcher that is supposed to be much faster and easier to use.

The company reportedly told developers that Launcher V2 will be five times faster during an average cold start and 6.5 times faster when restored from the system tray. That would be a major improvement for software that has long been criticized for feeling slow, clunky, and far behind Steam in everyday use.

A faster launcher is the main fix

The Epic Games Store launcher has built a reputation for feeling slow, heavy, and awkward compared with Steam, so the promised performance jump goes directly at one of its most obvious weaknesses. LuKaOnIndeed also said in the X thread that Epic has confirmed faster game download speeds are coming in the future, which would address another common complaint from PC players.

There may also be a major technical change under the hood. LuKaOnIndeed said the new Epic Games Store “won’t be built on Unreal Engine anymore,” adding that Epic “realized how bad of an idea it was.” If accurate, that would help explain why Epic is describing this as a deeper rebuild rather than a simple visual refresh.

Epic has not announced a public release date yet. The roadmap shown during the presentation points to a private beta first, followed by a wider release later.

The store is getting long-requested features

Epic is not only working on speed. The roadmap also mentions in-store patch notes, player reviews, quick-access categories, and a personalized home page. LuKaOnIndeed’s post also pointed to player profiles with banners, bios, achievements, favorite games, recently played games, and activity status.

Universal controller support also appears to be on the list, along with deeper ties to Fortnite. These additions may not close the gap with Steam overnight, but they could help the Epic Games Store feel more like a polished gaming hub instead of a basic storefront.