Teardown by ifixit
We all know that a phone costs a lot less to build compared to its retail price, but just how much is the difference between the cost and retail price of one of the most expensive consumer smartphones out there – the iPhone 6s and iPhone 6s Plus? According to a research firm, the hardware prices of both new iPhones are US$211.50 and US$236 respectively.
According to HIS Technology, the most expensive component in both new iPhones is the new 3D Touch display at US$52.50 for the larger iPhone 6s Plus. This is followed by the new A9 processor at US$22 a piece, and the 2GB RAM costs US$17, Qualcomm baseband chip at US$13 and front + rear camera modules at US$22.50 each.
Other components like the 16GB NAND flash chip, WLAN module, battery pack costs US$5.50, US$6 and US$4.50 respectively. Other components like audio, NFC, accelerometer, compass, circuit boards and such costs a total of US$60. The assembly fee works out to about US$4.50 for each iPhone.
Of course, this is only an estimate from the research firm. Back in April, Tim Cook slammed “guessimators”, saying that he has never seen an estimate for materials “that’s even close to accurate”. In addition to that, a lot of work goes to research and development, which hasn’t been accounted for in these cost price estimates.
Just to refresh your memory, the price of the iPhone 6s and iPhone 6s Plus in the U.S. starts from US$649 and US$749 respectively.
(Source: AppleInsider)
