Several manufacturers of budget smartphones have been accused of installing used RAM chips in new devices without warning buyers, according to a ChannelNews report cited by infohub.kz.
The practice stems from a sharp rise in component prices driven by the artificial intelligence boom. Major suppliers, including Samsung Electronics and SK hynix, have shifted production capacity toward expensive chips for servers and data centers. According to Counterpoint Research, memory's share of the cost of ultra-budget smartphones rose from 20% in the third quarter of 2025 to 54%.
To keep prices down on inexpensive 4G smartphones, some brands are buying used 4-gigabyte RAM modules on the gray market. Technicians desolder the chips from old boards, clean them and apply new solder balls — a process known as rebelling. Research firm TrendForce forecasts that such refurbished components could account for up to 9% of the memory market in new phone models by 2027.
Semiconductor reliability engineers warn that the heat used to remove chips from old boards can cause microcracks, leading to freezes, failures or data loss. The specific brands using the practice have not been named, and there is no evidence that major global manufacturers are using second-hand parts.