Why iPhone 14 Pro Max costs 3.7% more to make than iPhone 13 Pro Max

NEW DELHI: The blended bill of materials (BoM) cost for the iPhone 14 Pro Max with 128GB Nand flash is now about $464, a 3.7 per cent increase from that of the iPhone 13 Pro Max, a report showed on Monday.

In the iPhone 14 Pro Max, Apple's self-designed chips accounted for over 22 per cent of the total BoM cost. Apart from the A16 bionic processor, Apple's self-designed chips include PMIC, audio, connectivity and touch control, according to Counterpoint Research.

The upgrade to the A16 Bionic chipset from the A15 Bionic resulted in an $11 cost increase, driving the processing group's cost share to 20 per cent in BoM.

The new main camera with a 48MP image sensor and the screen with an always-on display feature drive the cost increase.

"The application processor, display and camera are the main categories where cost has increased. These components now also command a larger share in the BoM," said Shenghao Bai, senior analyst at Counterpoint.

Apple's new-generation mobile processor, the A16 bionic, contains a whopping 16 billion transistors, a 6.7 per cent increase from the A15's 15 billion transistors.

Due to its more advanced 4nm process, the application processor alone is estimated to introduce a cost increase of $11, driving the processing category's share to 20 per cent in BoM cost.

The iPhone 14 Pro Max has a 48MP main camera with a quad-pixel image sensor with a sensor area that is 65 per cent larger than that in the iPhone 13 Pro Max.

"The front camera has been improved with the addition of the auto-focus feature while its lens has been upgraded to 6P from the 5P present in the iPhone 13 Pro Max. GSEO and Sunny Optical are the main suppliers of the front camera lens. These upgrades together have driven the camera category cost up by $6.30 in the iPhone 14 Pro Max," said Bai.

Apple's self-designed components have a larger share in the overall BoM cost of the iPhone 14 Pro Max than in that of the iPhone 13 Pro Max.

"Our estimate suggests that Apple's self-designed components account for 22 per cent of the overall BoM cost of the iPhone 14 Pro Max," said the report.