While Apple Inc.’s relationship with Hon Hai Precision Industry Co. gets a lot of attention, the Taiwanese company accounts for only a fraction of the cost of each device it assembles.

The Chinese factories of Hon Hai, also known as Foxconn, put together iPhones and iPads, but high-cost components like chips and screens come from a range of U.S., Taiwanese and South Korean companies.

 

Research firm IHS iSuppli provides the following cost breakdowns:

—Basic iPhone 4S

Price: $199 with two-year contract

—Cost of components

Memory chips: $28.20

Touch-sensitive display screen: $37

Wireless chips: $23.54

Camera: $17.60

Total cost of materials: $188

What it costs Apple to have the basic iPhone assembled in a Foxconn plant: $8

—Basic iPad

Price: $499

—Cost of components

Memory chips: $30.70

Touch-sensitive display screen: $117

Battery: $32

Total cost of materials: $306

What it costs Apple to have the basic iPad assembled in a Foxconn plant: $10 

AP: www.ap.org

Posted by Janine E. Mooney, Editor

April 03, 2012