BlackBerry's new Z10 smart phone may cost you an arm and a leg to acquire, but a recent teardown reveals that BlackBerry isn't spending nearly as much on actually bolting the thing together.
The analysis was conducted by the intrepid chaps at TechInsights, who pulled a 16GB model of BlackBerry's new blower apart and tallied the cost of each individual component. The prices are given in dollars, but I've stuck a rough sterling conversion in brackets beside each figure.
The phone's 4.2-inch display costs $19 (£12), while the touchscreen that covers the display sets BlackBerry back $7.50 (£4.80). The camera costs $15 (£9.70), while the dual-core processor inside the phone cost $23.50 (£15).
One of the cheaper components was the battery, which set the Z10-maker back a mere $3 (£1.90), it's estimated. Uninspiring battery life was a criticism levelled at the Z10 in our review, so perhaps BlackBerry should have splashed out a little more.
In total, the Z10's components are estimated to cost $154, or £99.40. The cost is reckoned to be about $14.80 (£9.60) more than it costs Apple to build the 16GB iPhone 5.
In case you're feeling outraged that BlackBerry is charging so much when its phone costs relatively little to build (perhaps you're thinking you'll just build your own BlackBerry Z10 out of wood and skateboard wheels), bear in mind that £99 doesn't include the cost of building, shipping and marketing the phone, or paying Alicia Keys' Global Creative Director salary.
I was fond of the BlackBerry Z10's design and built-in picture editing, but found that a high price, coupled with software quirks and a lack of apps, make it hard to recommend over Android or iOS rivals. Check out the video review below to learn more.
Are you sweet on BlackBerry? Let me know in the comments, or on our Facebook wall.
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Comments 13
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anonymous 19 February, 2013 11:48
Yes intrinsically the components may add up to not a much, but we have to remember there are manufacturing economies of scale in effect. What about research and design, patents and licensing in addition to "...the cost of building, shipping and marketing the phone". The expense of all these has to spread over the cost of each unit.
I find these articles misinform at best and goad peoples cynicism at worst about supposed corporate greed.
anonymous 19 February, 2013 11:49
Yes intrinsically the components may add up to not a much, but we have to remember there are manufacturing economies of scale in effect. What about research and design, patents and licensing in addition to "...the cost of building, shipping and marketing the phone". The expense of all these has to spread over the cost of each unit.
I find these articles misinform at best and goad peoples cynicism at worst about supposed corporate greed.
anonymous 19 February, 2013 11:49
Yes intrinsically the components may add up to not a much, but we have to remember there are manufacturing economies of scale in effect. What about research and design, patents and licensing in addition to "...the cost of building, shipping and marketing the phone". The expense of all these has to spread over the cost of each unit.
I find these articles misinform at best and goad peoples cynicism at worst about supposed corporate greed.
anonymous 19 February, 2013 11:49
Yes intrinsically the components may add up to not a much, but we have to remember there are manufacturing economies of scale in effect. What about research and design, patents and licensing in addition to "...the cost of building, shipping and marketing the phone". The expense of all these has to spread over the cost of each unit.
I find these articles misinform at best and goad peoples cynicism at worst about supposed corporate greed.
anonymous 19 February, 2013 11:49
Yes intrinsically the components may add up to not a much, but we have to remember there are manufacturing economies of scale in effect. What about research and design, patents and licensing in addition to "...the cost of building, shipping and marketing the phone". The expense of all these has to spread over the cost of each unit.
I find these articles misinform at best and goad peoples cynicism at worst about supposed corporate greed.
anonymous 19 February, 2013 11:52
@anonymous:
I heard you the first time.
anonymous 19 February, 2013 12:36
That cost does not involve the cost to built a new os software for blackberry with the amount of time and also the number of people working on it. That add up the price to built a new os..... At least the material cost more expensive than Apple...haha
anonymous 19 February, 2013 12:43
Bet the I- phone 5 costs 20p to make, probably using 2nd hand old parts from other phones....
anonymous 19 February, 2013 12:47
Fascinating. Perhaps next you'll tell us the cost of the paint and canvas in some of Picasso's work, or the Mona Lisa, or maybe a breakdown of the Mars robot?
anonymous 19 February, 2013 14:42
anonymous 19 February, 2013 11:49
I think you are forgetting an important part here and that is the ecosystem. At the end of the day, this is where the money is really made. The phone could cost £500 to manufacture and it could still be profitable for the company as an ecosystem creates a sustained stream of revenue over a long term basis, instead of through a one off purchase of the phone. So technically, they are ripping us off by making us pay so much for the phone and then locking us in with the ecosystem afterwards. There not the only company to do so of course. Apple is arguably the king of this business model, while others, such as Sony, Google, Amazon and Rim are playing catch up. Interestingly my major gripe with this is these companies are drastically improving their revenues while they pay so little tax. We are seeing more and more companies fall to the weight of them. More importantly, these companies are all situated outside of the UK so the vast majority of revenue they earn will never be circulated back into the economy.
anonymous 19 February, 2013 15:50
The real cost is in the BB10 operating system which thousands of engineering and programers at BlackBerry have been developing over the last 2 years.
davefromwales 19 February, 2013 17:21
for balance, the iphone5 is about £6 ($10) less in parts.
but who`d expect balance from cnet lol
Matthew Russell 20 February, 2013 18:27
Seriously theres nothing wrong with the battery!! its probably just a software issue, some days i can go like 20 hours plus listening to music non stop and other days 10 hours low usage. the battery is fine!