Google Smartphone Components Cost About $174, ISuppli Estimates

Google's Nexus One phone has component costs of about $174, according to an estimate from ISuppli Corp. Qualcomm's Snapdragon chip, which runs the phone's software, probably costs $30.50, making it the most expensive part in the device and accounting for 18 percent of the total. The Nexus One, which uses Google's Android operating system, retails for $179 with a two-year T-Mobile USA contract and $529 without it. Google designed the device with HTC Corp. of Taiwan. It also has a compass, satellite navigation and a one-piece enclosure, known as unibody construction. Components including a unibody and Snapdragon chip have been used in other smartphones "but never before combined into a single design," said Kevin Keller, senior analyst at ISuppli. "This gives the Nexus One the most advanced features of any smartphone" broken down and analyzed by the firm, he said. The phone's 3.7-inch display screen is supplied by Samsung Mobile Display Co. and has an estimated cost of $23.70, ISuppli said. Samsung Semiconductor Inc. provided all the memory in the phone, contributing $20.40, or 11.7 percent, of the total component cost, ISuppli said.