Apple is one of the most profitable enterprises out there

Sep 17, 2015 13:16 GMT  ·  By

As announced by Apple in its press release, the iPhone 6s and 6s Plus were made available for pre-order on its website starting on September 12, at 12:01 a.m. PDT. And like all Apple products, they don’t come cheap.

The iPhone 6s is available for pre-order from Apple's online store in four different color finishes, with prices starting at $649 / €573, and the iPhone 6s Plus is available in the same coloring options, with rates starting at $749 / €661.

But some of us have been wondering how much the iPhone 6s’ raw components really cost. Well, investment banking enterprise Merrill Lynch has tasked its analysts to come up with the answer to this very question (as reported by Business Insider).

And as you can see in the image attached to this article, the costs are higher than for the usual “S” models. That’s because Apple has incorporated a bunch of new things under the hood of the device, like a new camera sensor, pressure-sensitive screen layer, and haptic motor for the 3D Touch feedback tech.

The iPhone 6s is more expensive to assemble than the iPhone 5s

The analysts have looked at the 64GB iPhone 6s and have concluded that it costs Apple roughly $234 / €207 to produce it. Out of this price, $25 / €22 is spent on the 14nm A9 processor, $20 / €18 on the 64GB of flash memory piece, and $36 / €32 go for the radios including Qualcomm’s LTE modem.

The fingerprint sensor takes another $22 / €19 out of Apple’s pocket, and it’s interesting to note that a hefty $74 / €65 chunk goes to the “component” category where the screen is also included. “Other” elements, like the aluminum chassis and cabling, are offered for $33 / €29.

On top of the components cost, Apple also has to spend some cash on R&D and distribution, but in the case of the Cupertino tech giant, that’s not a mighty big percentage. All in all, the phone retails for $749 / €661, so as you can see, Apple gets to suck in quite a lot of profit. That’s why the device maker is one of the most profitable in the whole wide world.