Eye Current

Iphones pricey

Perhaps they will make it up in volume but one company is claiming the the Bill of Materials for the new Apple IPhone is running about $220 even though it is selling for less than other phones that have cheaper parts. EEtimes explains:

Apple's iPhone could be one of the most expensive and densely packed smart phones on the market. The iPhone's hardware components alone are estimated to cost the company $220, about $40 more than the next most costly smart phone, according to analysts at Portelligent (Austin) who tore apart a system over the weekend.

"It's a pricey piece of hardware. The $220 bill of materials is definitely at the high end of smart phones today," said David Carey, president of Portelligent, a teardown service focused on mobile phones and other consumer products.

While the iPhone's costs are high, its profits will apparently not be as great as those of some of its competitors. Portelligent estimates typical smart phones component costs range from $130-180 and some of the handsets sell at or even above the iPhone's $500-600 price tags.

The article further explains how the Iphone components are not only expensive but the unit is expensive to build. Repair of these things could be expensive also, the batteries are not consumer replaceable. Like any system the complete cost isn't just in the parts, but the total coast over its expected lifetime.
Update: Even changing the batteries can be expensive on these things

posted by Ray L. @ 12:05 PM