凉透的内存卡 杀回来了

The recent price hike of upstream NAND flash memory has driven up price premiums for large-storage variants of smartphones and other electronics, pushing more consumers back to memory card expansion for additional storage. This article summarizes core buying tips and the latest industry trends.

1. Buying guide by usage scenario: For handheld gaming consoles, the upcoming Switch 2 only supports high-speed MicroSD Express cards, but users with modest download needs can hold off on purchasing one; the original Switch does not require this high-speed standard. For action cameras and drones, a minimum V30 speed rating is recommended, and users should prioritize high-end branded cards with TLC NAND chips. For surveillance cameras, a V10 speed rating is sufficient, with a focus on cost-effectiveness and longevity; high-usage users can opt for high-endurance models.

2. Industry trends: Driven by the flash memory price increase, memory card slots are set to return to smartphones, most likely first on entry-level 100-1000 yuan models. Expanding storage via high-speed memory cards costs roughly the same as buying a device with built-in large storage, offering little cost advantage. In the long run, storage anxiety will most likely be resolved through AI cloud-edge collaboration and AI home storage hubs.

The entire memory industry is facing an industry-wide price increase driven by upstream production cuts to support prices, which has led to recovering demand for memory cards and a growing trend of memory card slots returning to smartphones. Below are key takeaways for brands.

1. Consumer trends and user behavior: Consumers are unwilling to pay steep premiums for built-in large storage on smartphones, and are turning back to memory card expansion. Memory card demand has risen notably, with sharply diverging user needs across different usage scenarios.

2. Product R&D directions: Entry-level smartphones can benefit from bringing back memory card slots to lower production costs, while high-end smartphones have no need to adopt this feature, as high-speed memory card expansion offers little cost advantage. Brands should also develop segmented products for different use cases: the surveillance market needs low-cost, long-lifespan models, while new handheld consoles and professional imaging devices require high-speed cards, and action cameras need a balance between speed and durability.

3. Marketing directions: Most consumers have limited understanding of memory card technical specifications. Brands should create scenario-focused educational content to help users quickly select the right product, building user trust and brand recognition.

The current memory price hike has brought renewed growth opportunities to the memory card market. Below is a summary of relevant opportunities, risks, and actionable steps for sellers.

1. Market opportunities: The launch of Switch 2 is driving growing demand for MicroSD Express high-speed cards. Both existing and new demand from consumer surveillance, action cameras, and handheld gaming consoles is rising. Meanwhile, the return of memory card slots to entry-level smartphones will bring a new wave of incremental demand, creating sales opportunities for products across all price points.

2. Risk warnings: Memory card core NAND chips share the same supply chain as built-in flash memory, so costs have already risen alongside upstream price increases. Sellers need to adjust pricing in a timely manner. The market is also crowded with unqualified products, and consumers fear purchasing non-compliant items. Sellers should guarantee product authenticity, sort inventory by use case, and avoid mis-selling that damages reputation.

3. Actionable steps: Sellers can offer bundled sales by usage scenario, for example pairing surveillance cameras with cost-effective memory cards and action cameras with V30-rated cards, to boost average order value.

The ongoing memory price increase has driven a recovery in the memory card market, bringing new business opportunities. Below are key takeaways for manufacturing stakeholders.

1. Product design and production requirements: Market demand is clearly segmented, so factories need to develop products tailored to different scenarios: develop low-cost, long-lifespan V10-spec cards for consumer surveillance, durable V30+ speed cards with TLC NAND for action cameras, and pre-position production capacity for MicroSD Express high-speed cards for new handheld consoles like the Switch 2.

2. Business opportunities: The first batch of smartphones to bring back memory card slots are expected to be entry-level models priced between 100 and 1000 yuan, which will bring a new wave of incremental demand for memory cards. Factories should pre-cover mainstream specifications, including widely compatible TF cards and Huawei-exclusive NM cards, to capture this market opportunity.

3. Restructuring insights: Upstream price increases have pushed up costs across the entire supply chain. Factories can lock in costs by signing long-term cooperation agreements with upstream original chip manufacturers, while flexibly adjusting capacity structure to match shifting market demand and capture growth from emerging incremental markets.

The memory industry is currently facing a widespread price hike, which has pushed memory cards—once a marginalized product—back to the mainstream as a storage expansion solution, giving rise to new industry trends. Below is a summary of key takeaways for service providers.

1. Industry development trends: Upstream chip manufacturers' production cuts to support prices have raised storage costs across the industry, leading to recovering demand for memory cards. New handheld gaming consoles are driving growth in demand for high-speed memory cards, and entry-level smartphones are set to bring back memory card slots. In the long run, AI technology will reshape the demand structure of the storage industry, with cloud collaboration and AI home storage emerging as new growth directions.

2. Customer pain points: Ordinary consumers struggle to understand memory cards' complex technical specifications, and often cannot select products that match their usage scenarios, leaving them vulnerable to bad purchases. Brands and sellers also need scenario-focused educational content to inform consumers and reduce communication costs.

3. Solutions: Service providers can launch scenario-based product selection consulting services to recommend appropriate specifications for different user devices. They can also offer consumer education content services for brands and sellers, while pre-positioning supporting installation and maintenance services for AI home storage to capture opportunities from new industry trends.

The memory card market is recovering, with notable shifts in demand. Below are key takeaways for platform operation and merchant recruitment for marketplace platforms.

1. Shifts in market demand: The memory price increase has driven notable growth in search volume and transaction volume for memory cards, with clear demand segmentation. High-speed cards and high-endurance surveillance cards are both seeing rising incremental demand, and the upcoming return of memory card slots to entry-level smartphones will bring even larger demand growth going forward.

2. Operation and management adjustments: Platforms can optimize memory card categorization by adding navigation entries sorted by usage scenario, to help users quickly find products matching their needs. They can also publish educational content on avoiding common memory card purchasing pitfalls to help users make informed choices, while cracking down on counterfeit and low-quality memory cards to maintain market order.

3. Merchant recruitment and risk mitigation: Platforms should proactively onboard brands and merchants that have laid out MicroSD Express high-speed cards and scenario-segmented memory cards to prepare inventory for the demand growth brought by the return of memory card slots to smartphones. They should also regulate excessive price gouging to avoid eroding consumer trust and mitigate reputation risks stemming from the industry-wide price increase.

The memory industry is currently undergoing a new round of restructuring, and the once nearly obsolete memory card industry has recovered, giving rise to many noteworthy new industry trends and research questions.

1. New industry trends: Upstream NAND manufacturers have successfully pushed up prices for all storage products across the industry via production cuts to support prices, driving a recovery in the once marginalized memory card sector. Under cost pressure, the smartphone industry is set to bring back memory card slot design, with the first wave of models most likely being entry-level 100-1000 yuan devices. AI technology is reshaping industry logic and driving the transition of storage from local-only to cloud-edge collaborative architecture.

2. Unresolved industry issues: Physical memory card expansion only alleviates storage anxiety in the short term. High-speed memory cards cost roughly the same as built-in flash memory for smartphones, offering little cost advantage. Physical expansion also creates a fragmented user experience on smartphones, and cannot fundamentally resolve the industry pressure brought by rising storage prices.

3. New research directions: AI-powered collaborative cloud storage and AI-enabled home storage hubs are promising paths to resolve storage anxiety. These solutions have the potential to restructure the business model of the personal storage industry, and offer high research value.