Google’s Nexus One carriers a bill of materials of $174.15, according to a preliminary estimate from iSuppli’s Teardown Analysis Team.
The total includes only hardware and component costs for the Nexus One itself and does not take into consideration other expenses such as manufacturing, software, box contents, accessories and royalties, the firm says.
Google is selling unlocked versions of the Nexus One at an unsubsidized price of $529 or a subsidized price of $179 with a two-year service contract from T-Mobile USA.
Items like the durable unibody construction, the Snapdragon baseband processor and the Active-Matrix Organic Light Emitting Diode (AMOLED) display all have been seen in previous phones, but never before combined into a single design, according to iSuppli. That gives the Nexus One the most advanced features of any smartphone ever dissected by iSuppli’s Teardown Analysis Service, which the firm calls a remarkable feat given the product’s bill of materials is similar to comparable products introduced during the past year.
iSuppli says it first noted Qualcomm’s Snapdragon baseband processor in a teardown of the Toshiba TGO1, which is based on Microsoft’s Windows Mobile operating system. However, the Android 2.1 operating system in the Nexus One better capitalizes on the Snapdragon’s fast performance, says iSuppli senior analyst Kevin Keller. The processing power gives the Nexus One some advanced capabilities, such as high-definition 720p video playback.
iSuppli estimates the cost of the Snapdragon at $30.50, making it the most expensive single component in the “super phone.” With the inclusion of the Snapdragon and the associated power management and RF transceiver chips, Qualcomm commands 20.4 percent of the Nexus One’s bill of materials, giving it the biggest dollar share of any component supplier in the design.
The AMOLED display is supplied by Samsung Mobile Display Co.
Aside from Apple’s iPhone, the unibody design of the Nexus One is the first of its type identified by the iSuppli teardown team, which makes it the most “Apple-like” product thus far seen from any competitor.
iSuppli says it will conduct a more detailed analysis later this month.
In other Nexus One news, DeviceAnywhere says the handset is the latest addition to its portfolio of devices accessible via the DeviceAnywhere Test Center, which offers developers access to real mobile devices over the Internet for testing purposes.
