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Over the last two years, the price of computer parts has skyrocketed to the point where many now find it very difficult to swap PC parts or buy a new one. This is largely due to the massive computer chip shortage, which has greatly ramped down production of all computer parts manufacturers. As such, customers are now finding themselves in a ridiculous position.
If you’re a desktop owner or plan to buy one soon, you need to have a good understanding of why this chip shortage is occurring and how it affects you. You also need to know how to prepare for the rough times ahead when it comes to the fallout of this situation in the future. Here’s everything you need to know.
A Massive Computer Chip Shortage
The answer to the question of what’s causing the massive computer chip shortage is a bit complex and nuanced. During the beginning of the pandemic, the demand for laptops and desktops ramped up significantly as more and more people found themselves working from home. The demand was so great that desktop manufacturers were having a hard time keeping up with the demand.
Distributor Shortage
The problem was further compounded when China, the biggest supplier of semiconductor chips worldwide, shut down due to the pandemic. Along with many other industries, the chip manufacturing industry in China also scaled-down production over the last two years. This, coupled with the increased demand, has led to the current chip shortage situation.
Crypto Currency Involvement
The third culprit behind the current chip shortage is the crypto industry. Crypto farms require high-end desktops and laptops to carry out their operations, negatively impacting individual users.
How This Chip Shortage Impacts the Average Person and Businesses
The current chip shortage greatly impacts customers on both individual and industrial levels. Many are paying unreasonably high amounts that used to be a fraction of the current price on the customer’s side. While manufacturers have to deal with lengthy loading times and finding alternative means of supply for new tech equipment such as laptops and mobile devices.
The ongoing semiconductor chip shortage affects the automobile and appliance industry as well, with new vehicles and household smart devices seeing a production downturn. This impacts both businesses and customers as manufacturers fail to find a balance between increased production costs and minimum profit.
Adapting to a Shortage
Here are a couple of things you can do to adapt to the current semiconductor chip shortage if you’re having a hard time figuring out what to do.
Plan Ahead
Planning ahead for your next big purchase by breaking them into individual purchases can help you a lot if you have limited finances. You should anticipate the need for any new tech equipment, allowing six months even to a year in advance order lead time.
Manage Expectations
With the increased price hike, it makes more sense to be flexible with product choices, opting for what’s currently available. Maybe the particular brand you’re looking to buy is not available at the moment or has a higher than average price markup.
Checking other brands with similar specs can be just as effective for your PC build, even if they don’t have the exact same specs you want.
Also read: What Skills Do You Need For Computer Repairing?
Take Care of Your Equipment
Last but not least, learn to maintain and repair your device. Proper tech equipment maintenance is an absolute must if you want to lengthen their lifespan. Many operating system maintenance tasks like disk defragmentation and registry cleaning will keep the hardware you’re using in optimal health.
You can do minor repairs yourself if you are confident and know what you’re doing. But in case of serious repairs, Google ‘fix a computer near me’ to have a professional IT technician look at your device instead of trying to do it yourself and messing it up altogether.
Projections for Production Rebound
Running out of computer chips is a situation no one was prepared for both before and after the pandemic. As such, the current crunch might continue for a few years before things get back to normal. Until then, planning your purchases is the best way to go.
