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Google G1 phone cheaper to build than Apple’s iPhone

tgdaily.com — El Segundo (CA) – HTC is able to build the G1 phone for a much lower bill of materials (BOM) than what Apple has to shell out for the iPhone 3G,. According to iSuppli, the hardware cost difference between the two devices is about 17%.

Who dugg this? Made popular Nov 12, 2008

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  • inactive, on 11/11/2008, -13/+107This just in: larger, less sophisticated hardware easier to fab than smaller, more sophisticated hardware.
  • MarkusX, on 11/11/2008, -12/+76Was that surprising to anybody?
    The G1 also looks a lot cheaper than the iPhone.
  • bemaniac, on 11/12/2008, -12/+51Well duh. Look at the G1. It's hideous!
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  • Linguo, on 11/11/2008, -7/+30i.e. more profitable?
  • apastafarian, on 11/11/2008, -10/+27I've owned 2 different HTC phones, neither was what I would call high quality. Their mini USB port design is weak and breaks easily, which is more of an issue because they tend to leave out headphone jacks as a cost saving. Their keyboards are prone to failure and at least one model (6800/Mogul) suffers from a major screen defect (white spots) that appears to affect a majority of the units sold and that HTC refuses to fix. I'm not a iPhone user, but the iPhone build quality blows away any HTC product I've ever touched, including the G1.
  • carbonetc, on 11/12/2008, -2/+15There's a difference between designing something and merely assembling something.
  • inactive, on 11/11/2008, -2/+14They sell them for less too though, so perhaps not.

    edit: and the 3G just surpassed the RAZR in sales numbers recently?
  • FierceGrape, on 11/12/2008, -3/+15The first time I played with my iPhone was the first time I actually felt like we were living in the promised "future" times that we saw growing up in movies. That was a year and a half ago and it still is the best thing that I own.
  • Finde, on 11/12/2008, -10/+21Then why couldn't they put in a 3.5mm headphone jack?
  • arekkusu, on 11/12/2008, -3/+14No *****.
  • Asrrin29, on 11/12/2008, -6/+16Oh give it a rest with the internal storage. you fill up an 8GB or 16GB iPhone and you are ***** outa luck, no way to get more storage. with most HTC phones, including the G1, you can put storage cards in their, up to 32GB and more as manufacturers make higher density SD cards. and you can keep multiple storage cards. I'd much rather have a swappable storage then a set internal.
  • convergent, on 11/12/2008, -3/+12So you had bad luck. I have the HTC Touch Pro, and have had the HTC Diamond and have played with the Mogul on more than several occasions. Nothing was wrong with the Mogul, my friend has had it for a year and a half and the keyboard is just perfect. The Diamond was amazing but I switched to Pro for the keyboard, and I haven't had a single problem with it yet.
  • rolf, on 11/12/2008, -2/+10The multitouch screen is missing for one on the G1 (Apple bought a company called Fingerworks and has that implementation patented).

    So the lower cost partially comes from that as well.
  • J3553, on 11/12/2008, -11/+19no *****... the G1 looks like a fisher-price toy with a fancy screen.
  • inactive, on 11/12/2008, -0/+7that would make it cost 17% more
  • LordEcthelion, on 11/12/2008, -1/+7Of course its cheaper, its a piece of junk (relatively). I have a G1 and my brother has an iPhone, side by side there is no comparison, the iPhone is a much nicer piece of hardware.
  • inactive, on 11/12/2008, -1/+7Doesn't feel or look cheap at all. I own one, and a 1st gen iphone. The G1 does things the iphone can't do and vice versa.
  • Asrrin29, on 11/12/2008, -0/+6Agreed with convergent. I own an AT&T tilt (HTC Kaiser) and it's one of the most solidly built phones I've owned. The iPhone may be made of sturdier material, but HTC is by no means a maker of shoddy phones.
  • OrangeCrush, on 11/12/2008, -1/+6@iofthestorm; HTC got a deal on Android. Most of the heavy lifting was done by the open source community, and put together by Google at no cost to HTC. While I'm sure HTC had to foot the bill for some of the development, they got much more for free than Apple did.
  • Twenty5, on 11/12/2008, -6/+11Wow... do we really need a full written article to figure that out....?

    Im not bragging about having an iPhone is just that its pretty obvious.....

    The G1 is mostly.... plastic....

    I know the iphone 3G is also made out of plastic, but the feel of it is wayyyyyy different..... the iPhone also has a glass touchscreen (that is heat sensitive).... other things that may add up to the high price tag? Apple.

    Lets not forget that the G1 is an HTC phone. And unlike the iPhone they don't receive the "well known" apple tax to it.

    I know that the G1 is a pretty amazing phone, but I have absolutely no regrets of having an iPhone. Best phone I have ever had. And the stats have shown that a lot of people would agree with me....

    http://www.macrumors.com/2008/11/10/apple-iphone-1 ...
  • clockdist, on 11/12/2008, -6/+10looks cheaper? Wait until you use the thing. It feels cheap as hell.
  • deadbaby, on 11/12/2008, -10/+14The G1 has 1/8th the storage of the lowest end iPhone so it's not too surprising it would be cheaper. The SD slot is just a cop out to offer less storage. They should either being putting 8/16GB+ on plus SD or just include a 8/16GB SD card standard.
  • cin0s3, on 11/12/2008, -0/+4I have the G1 and while I would not call it a "Piece of Junk", I would definately say that the Iphone is a better phone. But the G1 does have some pretty decent features that make it a close 2nd. I would give it a couple revs from Google and then maybee re-asses(sp?) it.
  • oblique63, on 11/12/2008, -2/+6it actually looks a lot better in person (i.e. Not a fat brick of *****); I was kinda shocked...
  • oblique63, on 11/12/2008, -0/+4it actually looks a lot better in person, I just got one this week, and everyone that I have showed it to agrees that it's just not a very photogenic product, and it definitely feels a lot more solid than it looks...
  • iofthestorm, on 11/12/2008, -0/+3Yeah, flash is cheap and over time it will get even cheaper. Here's 16GB to match the iPhone for $30
    http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N8 ...

    And when 32 or 64GB reaches the same price (in probably a year if not sooner) you can just buy another one and stick it in there, instead of having to swap out more files or buy a new phone.
  • Mjeacoma, on 11/12/2008, -0/+3I left my wallet in El Segundo!
  • inactive, on 11/12/2008, -0/+3so G1 + 30 + 5 (for a USB to 3.5mm headphone adapter) is STILL LESS than a 16GB iPhone.
  • smoger, on 11/12/2008, -0/+3..but can you stream internet radio, text with friends, and surf, all at the same time on an iphone? because you can on the g1.. and if the sacrifice for that is having the second best mobile browser, it's something i can deal with.

    (oh yeah,.. and copy/cut and paste)
  • salmonfish, on 11/12/2008, -0/+3That is one big complaint I have. Having to use the ginormous USB headphones all the time sucks.
  • iofthestorm, on 11/12/2008, -2/+5Umm, and the cost of the G1 includes the development needed to make Android and the its Marketplace, etc. too. What's your point?
  • hwy9nightkid, on 11/12/2008, -0/+3what does name have to do with the cost of materials going into making the product?? does Apple Aluminum cost more??
  • inactive, on 11/12/2008, -1/+3The iPhone has a SDK for development.

    G1 apps cost money too.
  • paksman, on 11/12/2008, -1/+3Android is a software and should'nt be compared to the iphone. but then if an Android lands on a nokia phone, im sold.
  • reuvypoo, on 11/12/2008, -1/+3This article is full of untruths. The G1 has a capacitive screen, it's just not multitouch. And last time I checked, you can't download music from the iTunes store on HSDPA, you need to be on WiFi. And iPhone email ain't the greatest thing in the world.
    I wonder if I'll be low-ranked for ragging on the Jesus phone...
  • deadbaby, on 11/12/2008, -0/+2Nothing is ever probably going to beat the build quality of the original iPhone. The 3G has always felt kinda cheap to me.
  • salmonfish, on 11/12/2008, -0/+2The G1 phone is a solid piece of hardware as far as I can tell (although I haven't used an iPhone). It's only been a couple weeks though.
  • theOster, on 11/12/2008, -1/+3"does Apple Aluminum cost more?"

    you bet your ass it does.
  • jedicor, on 11/12/2008, -2/+4Note the part where he said 'very strong' and consider how 'very strong competitor' and 'competitor' differ.
  • CraigB12, on 11/12/2008, -3/+5Is this really a surprise? Hardware that Apple produces always costs more to build, and the markup is always way higher because they have the following to pull it off.

    Also, I'm not sure if any of you have ever held the thing, but the G1 handset is a flimsy piece of *****. I really wish I had the mental fortitude to port Android to the iPhone because that would be the ULTIMATE handheld.
  • Shugii, on 11/12/2008, -0/+2Cheaper to build? Is that supposed to make it sound better? Cheaper to build means it uses cheaper parts which amounts for a cheaper build quality, the thing is flimsy as. The screen is practically indestructible on the iPhone.
  • sarcasm, on 11/12/2008, -2/+4"I predict that within 100 years, computers will be twice as powerful, 10,000 times larger, and so expensive that only the five richest kings of Europe will own them!" - John Frink
  • theOster, on 11/12/2008, -0/+2the only motorola phone i'd ever buy would be the good old Star-Tac. god i loved that thing.
  • salmonfish, on 11/12/2008, -0/+1No they don't. They will, but they don't yet.
  • OrangeCrush, on 11/12/2008, -0/+1It might be doable in software down the road, we'll see, but I'm not holding my breath.
  • Tenoq, on 11/12/2008, -2/+3My Diamond was amazing too until about 3pm, when the battery ran out. Once I got tired of the phone dying on me 6-8 hours after charging, I went back to the iPhone. :p
  • OrangeCrush, on 11/12/2008, -1/+2G1's screen is glass as well. Is the iPhone's screen really heat sensitive? I haven't heard that before.
  • viciouspictures, on 11/12/2008, -2/+3Everyone i know who owns an iPhone/iPod Touch (myself included) has some kind of cover, slip, case, protective shield covering the thing- most of them are fugly, and just about all of them take away from the slimness (save for the spray on ones). i love the feel of the iPhone, but am paranoid about ***** it up. the G1 looks like something i could throw in my laptop bag without worry - and without having to spend an extra $20-50 for a decent looking/functioning enclosure.
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