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Chia fuelling prices of hard drives

21/5/2021

Translation: Jessica Johnson-Ferguson

No, the title wasn’t meant to read «China». And this isn’t about chia seeds either. Chia is a relatively new cryptocurrency that’s driving up demand for PC hard drives and prices, too. This is reflected in the sales figures of online retailer Galaxus. Hard drive sales in the first half of May were already 41.8 per cent higher than throughout the whole of April.

There might be a new superfood growing in the crypto jungle. It goes by the name of Chia and is the reason hard drives have become significantly more expensive in recent weeks. While bitcoins are usually mined by means of graphics cards, harvesting Chia requires memory. Along with other factors, including increased freight costs and a lack of semiconductor chips, this has turned hard drives into one of the scarcest products at present.

By mid-May, customers of the online department store www.galaxus.de had already ordered two per cent more hard drives and SSDs than in the entire previous month of April. And this despite the fact that prices have risen noticeably. For example, while a Seagate IronWolf Pro (16 TB) would have cost you around EUR 450 earlier this year, it’s now priced at EUR 756 on Galaxus. The price tag of a 16 TB Western Digital Gold has doubled in the same period of time and is now available for EUR 899. Hard drive and SDD sales on www.galaxus.de on 19 May were already 41.8 per cent higher than in the entire month of April.

Anne Limper-Menapace, Leader Category Management Galaxus Germany says: «These price increases and shortage of goods are frustrating for our customers. It’s also a tricky situation for our merchants. We’re occasionally blamed for the unavailability of products or increased market prices.» However, the situation might relax soon. After all the shortage is not only down to the crypto boom. Other factors, such as the scarcity of semiconductor chips, are also responsible. But improvement is in sight.

Have you tried mining Chia yet? Are you frustrated with the additional demand and rising prices? Join the discussion in the comments field!

Images (further images on request):
Logo Galaxus
Memory card in shop
Hamburg headquarters
Warehouse Krefeld
Anne Limper-Menapace

Contact for media representatives

Galaxus Deutschland
Public Relations
Schützenstraße 5, 22761 Hamburg
Phone: +49 40 334 614 772
E-mail: daniel.borchers@galaxus.de

Header image: Memory is in demand

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Daniel Borchers

Senior Communications Manager

Daniel.Borchers@galaxus.de

A soft spot for good series, loud music, science fiction and (second division) football. As PR Manager, I am available to answer journalists' questions about Galaxus and honest e-commerce.

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