Samsung Electronics Co. Ltd. (LON:BC94) (KRX:0059935)’s latest smartphone, the Galaxy S5, just launched last week. Although the phone roughly retails for about $660 without a contract, the phone actually costs just $225 to manufacture. This means about 60% of the phone’s costs goes to Samsung’s profits.
The most costly feature on the Samsung Galaxy S5
The phone’s most expensive feature is the 5.1 1080p Super AMOLED panel which retails for roughly $63. The NAND and LPDDR3 costs $33 together. The Fingerprint Sensor surprisingly costs just $4.00 and the heart-rate sensor set them back just $1.45. The overall bill of the materials cost of assembly tallies up to just $5.00 but that doesn’t include the costs of software development, engineering, marketing, or distribution. All of these aspects possibly tally up to $404.
Overall, the Samsung Galaxy S5 is a surprisingly simple phone. The Los Angeles Times recently elaborated in a report, “To improve user experience, Samsung has gone the opposite way with the GS5. It consolidated many features into more understandable groups and eliminated other features altogether. The deleted features are still available to users through downloads. Customers can add features one by one, introducing themselves to each element over time. This makes the GS5 a device that is a lot easier to get to know than its predecessor. Rather than trying to explain hundreds of features, Samsung instead focused on a few that make this device stand out from its peers. The phone has a top-notch screen, great durability, an improved camera, a long-lasting battery and useful health tracking capabilities. ”
Samsung Galaxy S5 is simple and smart
Although Samsung Electronics Co. Ltd. (LON:BC94) (KRX:0059935)’s latest flagship phone doesn’t have the same surface appeal or premium look, it makes up for that with durability. This new model is both dust and water proof. The phone can remain submerged underwater for up to 30 minutes. This means minor spills or a little rain won’t damage the phone. The Samsung Galaxy S5 isn’t for everyone, but it’s still a good solid phone for those who want a little more.
