501 dollars! Parts for the iPhone 14 are the most expensive in history
Oct 08, 2022| 501 dollars! Parts for the iPhone 14 are the most expensive in history
The cost of parts for Apple's latest flagship smartphone, the iPhone 14, is about 20% more expensive than its predecessor and has reached an all-time high, according to a news report on the dismantling of the device. Higher manufacturing costs mean Apple's profit margins are likely to fall.
Fomalhaut Techno Solutions, a Tokyo-based research firm that helped Nikkei dismantle the iPhone 14 series, estimated that parts for the iPhone 14 Pro Max cost $501, more than $60 more than last year's iPhone 13 Pro Max.
Although the parts cost of the high-order Max machine has been between $400 and $450 since it was first introduced in 2018, the sharp increase of $60 this time has made the total cost or increase of this machine the highest since 2018.
Fomalhaut said the cost increase was mainly due to the A16 Bionic chip used in the iPhone 14 Pro and Pro Max. The exclusive chip costs $110, more than 2.4 times as much as the A15 chip in last year's iPhone 13 Pro Max. TSMC and South Korea's Samsung Electronics are the only companies that can make the 4-nanometre chip.
The iPhone 14 also features new camera parts, including a CMOS image sensor made by Sony. These sensors are 30% larger than those used in the previous generation and cost about 50% more to $15.
