14 DAY TRIAL // iPhone XS Max is the most expensive iPhone in history, with the 512GB version selling in the United States for $1,449, but according to new research, Apple pays a lot less to build the device.
TechInsights has looked into the cost of each part on the iPhone XS Max 256GB, sold by Apple for $1,249, and the company discovered that the overall production cost of the device is just $443.
This means that Apple charges nearly three times more for the iPhone XS Max, though estimating the profit margin isn’t possible given that the final cost of a product also involves research and development and marketing.
Just like on the iPhone X, the display is one of the most expensive parts, as it costs $80.50. iPhone XS Max comes with a 6.5-inch OLED panel, the largest ever used on an iPhone and a major upgrade from the 5.8-inch OLED screen on the iPhone X and iPhone XS.
Cost-saving measures
The cited source, however, says that Apple found an affordable way to increase the display size, as the iPhone X screen was priced at just $77.27. So despite the obvious difference between the two, Apple pays only a little over $3 for the bigger screen.
The secret is the simpler nature of the display, as a number of 3D Touch parts have been removed from the screen, which in turn helped Apple keep the price down. All of these components cost nearly $10.
“All told, what they took out adds up to about $10, so this $80 estimate would have been about $90,” Al Cowsky, cost analysis expert at TechInsights, told Reuters. “They had a trade-off in cost.”
Needless to say, it’s no surprise that Apple makes a fortune out of every iPhone it sells, and although no specifics have been provided until now, estimates seem to indicate that the iPhone XS Max is already selling like hot cakes
The upcoming iPhone XR will probably become the best-selling 2018 iPhone, as it’ll hit the shelves next month starting at $749.