IHS iSuppli has released its estimate of the component costs involved in building the iPhone 5, performing a virtual teardown based on information revealed by Apple and industry knowledge. The estimate, which does not include numerous other costs involved in product development, manufacturing, and sales, such as research and development, software, patent licenses, marketing, and distribution expenditures, pegs the component cost of the entry-level 16 GB iPhone 5 at $199.
The new iPhone 5 carries a bill of materials (BOM) of $199.00 for the low-end model with 16Gbytes of NAND flash memory, according to a preliminary virtual teardown conducted by the IHS iSuppli Teardown Analysis Service. When the $8.00 manufacturing cost is added in, the cost to produce the iPhone 5 rises to $207.00. For the 32Gbyte version of the iPhone 5, the BOM cost increases to $209.00, while 64Gbyte version is estimated at $230.00, as presented in the table below.
The estimated $199 bill of materials (BOM) for the 16 GB model is slightly higher than the firm's $188 estimate for the iPhone 4S at that device's launch last year, but a halving of flash storage prices over the past year means that Apple's margins improve as capacity increases. While the 32 GB and 64 GB models of the iPhone 4S carried BOMs of $207 and $245 respectively, those estimates move to $209 and $230 for the iPhone 5.
While the price of some components, such as NAND flash, has fallen during the past year, the iPhone 5’s overall BOM has increased mainly because its display and wireless subsystems are more expensive compared to the iPhone 4S.”
Compared to the iPhone 4S, flash storage pricing declined by roughly $10 on the entry-level iPhone 5, but that decrease was more than offset by a $7 increase in display costs to $44 due to the adoption of in-cell touch sensors and a $10 increase in wireless costs with the move to Qualcomm's latest LTE-compatible chips. At the 64 GB level, a $37 decrease in flash memory compared to the iPhone 4S is able to overcome the other increases to lower Apple's overall estimated costs for the device.
While the iPhone 17 Pro and iPhone 17 Pro Max are not expected to launch until September, there are already plenty of rumors about the devices.
Below, we recap key changes rumored for the iPhone 17 Pro models as of March 2025:
Aluminum frame: iPhone 17 Pro models are rumored to have an aluminum frame, whereas the iPhone 15 Pro and iPhone 16 Pro models have a titanium frame, and the iPhone ...
Saturday March 29, 2025 10:15 am PDT by Joe Rossignol
Apple is reportedly working on a new Magic Mouse. Below, we recap what to expect.
The two key rumors for the Magic Mouse 3 so far include a relocated charging port, along with a more ergonomic design.
It was briefly rumored that the Magic Mouse 3 would also feature voice control, but that was misinterpreted information.
Relocated Charging Port
While the Magic Mouse switched from...
Apple today released iOS 18.4 and iPadOS 18.4, the fourth major updates to the iOS 18 and iPadOS 18 operating system updates that came out last year. iOS 18.4 and iPadOS 18.4 come two months after Apple released iOS 18.3 and iPadOS 18.3.
Subscribe to the MacRumors YouTube channel for more videos.
The new software can be downloaded on eligible iPhones and iPads over-the-air by going to...
Apple's big developer event is a little over two months away, and rumors about what we can expect to see in Apple's next major operating system updates are becoming increasingly frequent.
A public release of iOS 18.4 is also imminent with a number of updates and improvements, although we won't be getting the major Apple Intelligence Siri upgrades that had reportedly been planned for this...
With the second release candidate of iOS 18.4 that Apple seeded out today, the company finally provided us with release notes that give a full rundown on what to expect.
There's an Apple Vision Pro app, new Apple Intelligence features for notifications and additional language support, plus an Apple News Food feature for Apple News+ subscribers, and several updates that should improve the...
We've been hearing rumors about a foldable iPhone for almost a decade now, but it looks like we might finally see the device come to fruition in 2026. We're going to be waiting many more months for the foldable iPhone, but so far we're hearing good things.
Apple wants to make it creaseless. It's taken Apple multiple years to design a foldable iPhone that it's satisfied with because Apple ...
Multiple sources have claimed that iOS 19 will introduce a new design with more translucent buttons, menus, notification banners, and more, and there is now another clue that points towards this glass-like appearance.
Bloomberg's Mark Gurman today said the new design project is codenamed "Solarium" internally. A solarium is a room with glass walls that allow in plenty of sunlight, so this...
Apple's next-generation iPad Pro models with the M5 chip will "launch this year," according to Bloomberg's Mark Gurman.
In his Power On newsletter today, Gurman said the new iPad Pro models have progressed to an "advanced testing" stage, and he expects mass production of the devices to begin in the second half of this year. If that timeframe is met, the new iPad Pro models could launch...
Apple today released macOS Sequoia 15.4, the fourth major update to the macOS Sequoia operating system that launched in September. macOS Sequoia 15.4 comes two months after the launch of macOS Sequoia 15.3.
Mac users can download the macOS Sequoia update through the Software Update section of System Settings. It is available for free on all Macs able to run macOS 15.
With...
I know it's been said a million times already (but I'll say it again) but man, it really bites that Apple charges an extra 200 bucks for additional memory that costs them 30 bucks.
If you're hiring someone to build and install a fence on your property, and they quote you 5 days time at $3,000.... then you point out that the wood and nails only cost $400, are they ripping you off?
Cost of materials is not the complete cost of anything. Maybe Apple should sell a do-it-yourself iPhone kit for $200, and see if any of you can put it together?
As a shareholder pricing means great profit and great return on my investment.
As a customer for only $10 difference between 16gb and 32gb, Apple should have just made the 32gb iPhone the entry $199 price and discontinue the 16gb phone. And make 64gb $299.
