Samsung’s Galaxy A27 Price Jump Traces Back to a Chip Shortage

Samsung’s newest budget phone, the Galaxy A27, went on sale in the US on July 14 for $349.99, the same week the Galaxy A37 sold for $20 less. That gap wasn’t a rounding error. Samsung had marked the A37, a phone with a faster chipset and a brighter screen, down from its $449.99 list price to $329.99, briefly undercutting the newer model it’s meant to sit above.

That collision has a cause deeper than a scheduling slip. A global memory chip shortage is pushing up the cost of RAM inside affordable phones, the same pressure now showing up on Apple’s price sheets for MacBooks and iPads.

A $120 Discount Collided With a $50 Price Hike

Samsung announced the Galaxy A27 in June and put it on sale in the US on July 14 at $349.99 for the base 6GB/128GB configuration, a $50 jump over the $300 the Galaxy A26 cost at launch in 2025 for a phone occupying the same shelf spot a year earlier.

The Galaxy A37 had already been on sale since March, with a base price of $449.99 for the same 6GB/128GB tier. By the time the A27 reached US stores, Samsung had cut the A37 to $329.99 without a trade-in, a $120 discount that put the pricier phone $20 below the one meant to replace it on the entry shelf.

Samsung corrected the A37 back to its $449.99 list price shortly after, restoring the intended gap, according to GSMArena’s testing team. The fix hasn’t reached every market. GSMArena’s reviewers found certain Galaxy A27 colors selling for around €300 on Amazon Germany, roughly what the A37 costs there too.

The phone’s existence had leaked well before any of this. Samsung’s own Brazil site listed as a Samsung Wallet-compatible device months before an official announcement, tipping off the launch everyone already expected.

A Korea Economic Times leak had also pointed to a London date for Samsung’s next big event weeks before the company made anything official, Android Central reported back in May. Samsung has since confirmed it, and it lands just eight days after the A27’s US debut.

A Memory Chip Shortage Is Setting the Price

Samsung kept the A27’s headline hardware close to the A26 it replaces: the same 6.7-inch 120Hz panel, the same 5,000mAh battery, the same 6GB base RAM tier. The chipset and display glass improved. Neither explains a $50 increase on its own.

Android Police attributed most of that price pressure to a RAM shortage, calling the A27 one of the first clear victims of a squeeze reshaping what budget phones can offer, according to reporting picked up by Gadget Hacks. SamMobile’s review reached a similar conclusion from a different angle, describing the phone as a possible early casualty of what it called the “AI tax,” the rising cost of consumer electronics tied to demand for AI infrastructure.

Apple Is Paying the Same Supply Bill

The pattern isn’t unique to Samsung. Apple raised prices on MacBooks and iPads this year, citing the same supply cost pressure. Apple’s chief executive, Tim Cook, told the Wall Street Journal that “the situation has become unsustainable,” according to Android Police’s reporting.

Samsung’s own semiconductor arm is feeling the squeeze from the other direction. Its workers are currently voting on bonus pay tied to AI chip profits, even as that same AI-driven demand for memory chips limits what Samsung can put inside a $350 phone.

The Spec Gaps Behind the Price Tag

Set the pricing drama aside and the spec sheets tell a consistent story: the A37 leads the A27 in almost every column that shapes daily use.

Samsung’s own figures explain part of the performance gap. The company says the A27’s Snapdragon 6 Gen 3 delivers 7% higher CPU performance and 8% faster GPU throughput than the A26’s Exynos 1380, paired with LPDDR5X memory Samsung claims runs 50% faster than the outgoing chip.

What Got Cut Since the Galaxy A26

The comparison that stings more is against the phone the A27 actually replaces.

• Water resistance: IP67, rated for a meter of submersion, dropped to IP64, splash only
• Ultrawide camera: 8MP cut down to 5MP
• Selfie camera: 13MP cut down to 12MP
• Bluetooth: version 5.3 stepped back to version 5.1

GSMArena’s review called the water resistance rollback “a notable step down.” IntoMobile put it more bluntly, describing Samsung as “appearing to break the traditional formula of offering more value for money with each new generation.”

A Desktop Feature Appeared on a Leaked Page, Then Vanished

Two weeks before Samsung’s official launch, the company’s Czech Republic website briefly published a Galaxy A27 product page listing support for Samsung DeX, the desktop mode that turns a phone into a windowed, mouse-and-keyboard workspace on an external monitor. The page came down, and DeX hasn’t appeared in any confirmed A27 launch materials since.

What we know:

• Samsung’s Czech site listed DeX support on a since-deleted A27 product page, spotted by SamMobile
• DeX has never shipped on a Galaxy A-series phone, per Samsung’s own support documentation, which limits it to select S-series phones and Tab S tablets
• Android Authority called the leaked listing “a huge software inclusion” for a phone at this price

What’s unconfirmed:

• Whether the listing was a data-entry error, a feature cut late in development, or a capability scoped to specific regional units
• Whether any Galaxy A27 configuration will gain DeX later through a software update

No version of the Galaxy A27 has shipped with DeX support as of this writing.

Which Galaxy A Phone Should You Buy Right Now?

Buy the Galaxy A37 if you can find it anywhere close to $349.99: it wins on brightness, charging speed, water resistance and camera detail. Buy the Galaxy A27 only if microSD storage matters more than those upgrades, or if the A37 has climbed back to its full $449.99 price in your market.

The microSD slot is the A27’s clearest advantage. It supports cards up to 2TB, a feature Samsung left off the A37 entirely, which matters if you keep offline music or large photo libraries and don’t want to pay for cloud storage.

Check local pricing before choosing either phone. Samsung’s regional discounting has swung enough this year that the gap between these two devices can flip within the same week, sometimes in the same store.

Galaxy Unpacked Moves the Spotlight to London

Samsung has confirmed its next Galaxy Unpacked for July 22 in London under the tagline “A New Shape Unfolds”, promising devices that “deliver more personal and adaptive experiences.” Samsung has not named any devices, confirming only that the show will feature new foldable form factors and expanded intelligent features.

The build-up has been unusually theatrical. Samsung wiped its own social media accounts and replaced them with cryptic teasers in the days before confirming the date, TechRadar reported.

None of that touches the A-series directly. Summer Unpacked events are foldable and wearable shows, and nothing in Samsung’s invitation mentions the A27 or A37. Samsung’s next chance to reset the pricing story starts July 22, when the spotlight shifts to foldables in London.

Frequently Asked Questions

Is the Galaxy A27 a good phone on its own?

Yes, largely. GSMArena’s review praises the phone’s six-year software promise, expandable storage and capable everyday cameras, even while ranking it behind the A37 overall. The complaints only surface when it’s measured against Samsung’s own lineup, where the A27 gave up water resistance, ultrawide resolution and a newer Bluetooth version compared with the Galaxy A26 it replaces.

Does the Galaxy A27 have a headphone jack?

No. GSMArena’s lab testing confirmed the Galaxy A27 ships without a 3.5mm audio jack, an FM radio receiver or an infrared blaster, the same omissions found on the Galaxy A37. Wired headphone users need a USB-C adapter or Bluetooth accessories for either phone.

Can the Galaxy A27 use a microSD card and a second SIM at the same time?

No. GSMArena’s testing found the Galaxy A27’s second Nano-SIM slot is a hybrid tray, meaning it holds either a second SIM card or a microSD card, not both at once. Buyers who need dual SIM and expandable storage simultaneously will run into that limit.

Where does the Galaxy A27 fit in Samsung’s 2026 lineup?

The Galaxy A27 sits below the Galaxy A37 and above the entry-level Galaxy A17, making it the cheapest of a three-phone mid-range set that also includes the Galaxy A57. Samsung positions it as the direct successor to last year’s Galaxy A26.

What’s expected at Samsung’s Galaxy Unpacked on July 22?

Samsung has confirmed only that Galaxy Unpacked in London will feature new foldable form factors, without naming devices. Tom’s Guide reports Samsung may unveil three foldables this year instead of the usual two, likely a redesigned Galaxy Z Fold 8, a wider Fold variant and the Galaxy Z Flip 8.

Will Samsung eventually discount the Galaxy A27 the way it did the A37?

It looks likely, based on this year’s pattern. Samsung had already discounted the Galaxy A57 and Galaxy A37 by early July, according to GSMArena’s deal tracking, before the A27 had even reached shelves. Shoppers who wait a few weeks after any Samsung phone’s debut have generally been rewarded this year.