Galaxy Book6 Pro Price Hike Proves AI PCs Won’t Be Cheap

Samsung has chosen to launch the Galaxy Book6 Pro at a significantly higher cost in South Korea than anywhere else due to the timing of the launch and current market conditions. As global memory prices continue to increase rapidly and Intel prepares for the release of its next-generation Panther Lake CPUs priced at a premium, Samsung is sending a very clear message as to where the evolution of high-end Windows notebooks will take place going forward into 2026 with its newest flagship laptop: The Galaxy Book6 Pro will be approximately 25 percent more expensive than the last model, representing one of the first real-world examples of how the global RAM shortage is having a direct impact on the price structures of laptops.

How much more does the Galaxy Book6 Pro cost?

Samsung's official Korean pricing leaves no doubt the Galaxy Book6 Pro is right at home in the premium bracket.

• 14-inch Galaxy Book6 Pro: That'll set you back KRW 3,410,000

• 16-inch Galaxy Book6 Pro: Expect to pay KRW 3,510,000 for the bigger model, which puts it at USD 2,400 or so at the moment.

To put it into perspective, the Galaxy Book5 Pro debuted at KRW 2,808,000: a jump of about 25% to the new one. And if you're interested in the Galaxy Book6 Ultra, be ready to pay from KRW 4,630,000 all the way up to KRW 4,930,000, depending on how much of a GPU you're after. All these models are set to hit Korean shelves on January 27, 2026.

What's driving up the price of the Galaxy Book6 Pro?

The main culprit behind the price hike is RAM. Every single Galaxy Book6 Pro comes with a whole 32 GB of LPDDR5X RAM. That might sound like a lot, and it is, especially when you consider how many laptops are sticking to lower memory amounts these days. The trouble is, the cost of DRAM has been rising industry-wide, and that's really felt by high-end laptop makers like Samsung.

Those types of laptops are hit particularly hard because:

• They need more memory to get the job done.

• They want to use the best, lowest-power RAM they can get; in this case, LPDDR5X.

When DRAM prices go up, it's those high-end laptops that feel the pain first. Storage prices are on the up too, which isn't helping the situation even if companies aren't always transparent about component costs.

Panther Lake adds performance and cost

Intel's Panther Lake processor is the latest factor driving up prices, and it's a bit of a doozy. As Intel's new mobile platform, it promises some efficiency gains, a little beefier integrated graphics, & some decent AI chops.

Samsung is talking up to 30 hours of battery life in ideal conditions. Yes, that's an improvement, but let's be real, the first batch of new silicon usually gets passed on to the customer in the form of higher prices, especially at launch.

What It Implies for Buyers Outside Korea

Korean prices don't always convert straight to other markets but often set the tone. 25 percent up at launch is a good indication that we'll see way higher prices than usual when the Galaxy Book 6 series goes international.

The Galaxy Book 6 Pro shows the trend pretty clearly, though:

Premium Windows laptops with AI-focused builds are getting pricier, not cheaper. For students & young professionals, that makes the upgrade decision a whole lot tougher. For manufacturers, it's going to be all about convincing buyers to pay a premium with some actual gains in battery life, performance, speed & longevity. One thing is clear: the RAM crisis is no longer just a number. It's now showing up on laptop price tags.

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