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The $1,000 iPhone X could have been even more expensive

Published Sep 18th, 2017 11:39AM EDT
iPhone X Price
Image: Apple

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Apple’s hottest new iPhone has an entry price of $999, just as we all expected, and it goes all the way up to $1,149. You can’t buy it yet, since the iPhone X doesn’t get released until November 3rd. But while you figure out how you’re going to pay for it, you should know it could easily have been even more expensive than that.

The iPhone X components cost Apple an estimated $581, the Susquehanna International Group told The Wall Street Journal. That’s more than double the $248 bill of materials for the iPhone 7, with the Journal saying that Apple’s iPhone X profit margins seem to be slimmer than on existing lines. That suggests the iPhone X may have been even more expensive, if Apple had wanted to keep its profit margins unharmed.

There’s no way to verify the accuracy of these numbers, however, and a similar estimate from Chinese-language ichunt offers a lower estimate. According to that report, Apple pays $412.75 to make the $1,149 iPhone X version.

Regardless of which estimate is closer to the truth, it’s very likely that making an iPhone X is more expensive than manufacturing an iPhone 7 or iPhone 8. The flagship iPhone comes with a few premium features, including an OLED screen, stainless steel instead of aluminum, and a 3D facial recognition system.

The Chinese report also offers prices for the various components used in the iPhone X. The OLED screen is the most expensive, at $80. The iPhone X stainless steel frame and glass covers cost $53, while the flash memory is priced at $45 (that’s for 256GB of storage). The Face ID sensors cost $25 while the A11 Bionic chip is priced similarly at $26.

Chris Smith Senior Writer

Chris Smith has been covering consumer electronics ever since the iPhone revolutionized the industry in 2008. When he’s not writing about the most recent tech news for BGR, he brings his entertainment expertise to Marvel’s Cinematic Universe and other blockbuster franchises.

Outside of work, you’ll catch him streaming almost every new movie and TV show release as soon as it's available.