Report: Google’s Nexus One has component costs of US$174

Google’s high-profile Nexus One device has component costs of about US$174 according to iSuppli, with the research firm declaring the smartphone “both cutting edge and cost competitive.” The Nexus One, sold under the Google brand but manufactured by Taiwanese vendor HTC, carries a ‘Bill of Materials’ (BOM) of US$174.15 (comprising hardware and components costs but not including manufacturing, software, royalties and other costs).

“Items like the durable unibody construction, the blazingly fast Snapdragon baseband processor and the bright and sharp Active-Matrix Organic Light Emitting Diode (AM-OLED) display all have been seen in previous phones, but never before combined into a single design,” noted Kevin Keller, senior analyst at iSuppli. “This gives the Nexus One the most advanced features of any smartphone ever dissected by iSuppli’s Teardown Analysis Service, a remarkable feat given the product’s BOM is similar to comparable products introduced during the past year.” Google is selling unlocked versions of the device at an unsubsidised price of US$529, or at US$179 with a two-year contract from T-Mobile USA. According to iSuppli’s analysis, Qualcomm’s Snapdragon chip is the most expensive part in the device, costing US$30.50 and accounting for 18 percent of the total.
In comparison, iSuppli said that Motorola’s Droid phone, which also operates on Google’s Android software, has components costing about US$185. Last June it was reported that the entry-level version of Apple’s iPhone 3G S carried a BOM cost of US$172.46, whilst earlier research from the firm found that Palm’s Pre had a BOM cost of between US$140 and US$160. In January last year iSuppli found that the BlackBerry Storm 9530 carried a combined materials and manufacturing cost of US$202.89.


source: GSMA MBB