Monday, January 11, 2010, 09:55 am

Google Nexus One components estimated to have $174.15 cost

By Sam Oliver

Internal components of Google's new Nexus One smartphone are estimated to cost about the same as the iPhone 3GS when it launched last year, a new analysis has concluded.

After conducting a teardown of the Nexus One, iSuppli has estimated taht the cost of parts in the handset is $174.15. The dollar amount includes hardware and component costs, but does not take into consideration expenses like manufacturing, software, box contents, accessories and royalties.

"Items like the durable unibody construction, the blazingly fast Snapdragon baseband processor and the bright and sharp Active-Matrix Organic Light Emitting Diode (AM-OLED) display all have been seen in previous phones, but never before combined into a single design," said Kevin Keller, senior analyst of competitive analysis for iSuppli.

"This gives the Nexus One the most advanced features of any smart phone ever dissected by iSuppli’s Teardown Analysis Service—a remarkable feat given the product’s BOM is similar to comparable products introduced during the past year."

The estimate is about on par with the costs associated with the iPhone 3GS from a similar review last year. iSuppli estimated that the 16GB iPhone 3GS cost $178.96, slightly higher than the $174.33 in parts found in the 8GB iPhone 3G.

The Nexus One's Snapdragon processor, which allows 720p video playback, is estimated to cost $30.50, making it the most expensive component of the phone. The 3.7-inch AM-OLED display is estimated at $23.70. The phone also has 512MB of DDR DRAM and 512MB of NAND flash memory, along with a 4GB MicroSD card. The memory, supplied by Samsung, is said to cost $20.40.


Google's handset, built by HTC, can be purchased direct from the company unlocked and contract-free for $529. It can be bought subsidized by T-Mobile for new customers with a two-year contract for $179. A CDMA version of the handset will also be available for Verizon this spring.

Last week, a teardown of the Nexus One found the 0.45-inch-thick device was easy to disassemble. It has a removable battery, features 802.11n Wi-Fi, and was shown to be "colorful" on the inside.

Following its launch last week, Google faced some criticism from customers. Support is not available by phone, only via e-mail. In addition, some have complained that they can't find answers for support issues from Google, and that they have been passed back and forth between the search giant, HTC and T-Mobile for assistance.

For more on the Nexus One and how it stacks up against Apple's iPhone 3GS, see an in-depth comparison from AppleInsider.