Teardown analysis by market research firm IHS suggests the Motorola X costs $221 to build. According to AllThingsD, which relayed the IHS report, the components cost an estimated $209, with an extra $12 tacked onto the price for manufacturing. These manufacturing costs are slightly higher than most handsets because Motorola is paying a premium (about $5 per unit) to make the phone in the US.
IHS analyst Wayne Lam emphasized that Google and Motorola are moving beyond hardware for innovation with the Motorola X. “What Google and Motorola are trying to do is not play the game of ‘bigger is better’ that everyone else is playing. They are looking for ways to differentiate themselves from the pack and push the user experience in a new direction.”
As a result, the phone has a one-year-old S4 processor from Qualcomm that costs $28. There are also two chips from Texas Instruments that are responsible for voice and gesture input. Samsung makes the 4.65-inch display and the processor that drives it. This is a costly piece adding $62.50 to the price of the phone. Qualcomm is also the source of the hardware that powers WiFi, Bluetooth and the cellular connections. Overall, IHS estimates that Qualcomm hardware contributes to 20% of the phone’s final cost.
[Via AllThingsD]