Teardown revails glass BOM cost of $80

[ShadowCaptain]

Teardown.com did a teardown of the google glass and reveal what its parts cost, less than $80 total including cost to manufacture

Hopefully that means they will be pretty cheap when they come out

 

I would pay $200-$300, anything more is just WAY too much in my opinion

 

 

here is a list of a few components

Processor - $13.96

Wifi and bluetooth chip $10.79

Camera chip $5.66

 

If they upped the BOM cost they could still include a better camera and still make profit, its always interesting to see how much parts cost. (or how little)

 

EDIT : just looked at one of their articles about the iPad cost - they gave it a manufacturing AND BOM cost of $326

http://www.techinsights.com/uploadedFiles/Public_Website/Content_-_Primary/Teardowncom/Sample_Reports/Mobile_Devices_Deep_Dive_Sample_Report.pdf

 

Original Article:

 

http://www.technobuffalo.com/2014/04/30/google-glass-parts-cost-under-80/

[matin94]

how good does this work though?

i think google glass is around 3 years away for me to be able to buy it. but this might push things a little bit faster.

 

Edit. imagine if they could fit a Qualcomm processor in that that'd be worth buying even for $500

[AMICLG]

I was literally just using my friends glass and I was like there's no way it should cost $1500 for what is basically a piece of plastic even though it's really cool.

[GlassBomb]

With newer products like the Google Glass and whatnot. Most of the actual cost of the product is research and development.

[Sneaky]

You also have to consider the amount of money that goes into research and development for these kinds of things.

[Fred Castellum]

You also have to consider the amount of money that goes into research and development for these kinds of things.

Profit margins.... R&D... operating and mass manufacturing costs... plus legal regulations put in place for product sales. 

[Eyal]

Not very surprising.. I expected the manufacturing cost to be around $100

[Markus1712]

Another thing to remember is the economies of Scale! AS for now Google glass has a limited number. So it will become cheaper with larger amounts! Especially the costs of implementing the supply chain and developing a fabrication process and place will then have less impact.

[silberdrachi]

Not to mention this isnt really a "consumer" product yet. They actually were discouraging people from even applying to the explorer beta program if they didnt feel they had the right reasons or could provide the right perspective.

 

This wasnt exactly google trying to sell a product, it was more a way to make a super exclusive beta program for a product they are THINKING about making. For all we know in a few years this project could get shitcanned like AndroidTV was for a long time. Google has tons of money to make moves like this, driverless cars, and drone technology, they are like a civilian version of DARPA. Throw money at 100 programs, see if any of it works, repeat until rich.

[IAcKI]

They will come down with more revisions for sure, you're paying more now to be first in line.

[Misanthrope]

Profit margins.... R&D... operating and mass manufacturing costs... plus legal regulations put in place for product sales. 

 

Right so being generous, that's another 200 or 300 bucks per unit? They could go to market with it already for 500 and make damn healthy profits. So what exactly is the hold up? I don't buy it that it's just revisions and  improvements, they just want to create a buzz, generate interest and speculation and anticipation by doing this exclusive preview stuff.

[Askew]

As long as people will pay $1500 they will sell it for that, it's not like it's an essential item.

[Fred Castellum]

Right so being generous, that's another 200 or 300 bucks per unit? They could go to market with it already for 500 and make damn healthy profits. So what exactly is the hold up? I don't buy it that it's just revisions and  improvements, they just want to create a buzz, generate interest and speculation and anticipation by doing this exclusive preview stuff.

I'm not trying to justify their pricing or anything, I'm just pointing out factors that have to do with product pricing. 

 

I don't expect it to cost a fortune upon release anyway. 

[AMICLG]

With newer products like the Google Glass and whatnot. Most of the actual cost of the product is research and development.

If you look at Google glass it's basically a prism with a mirror on one end and a angled reflector in the middle, a middle school science teacher could probably built it. So R&D very likely cost nothing for a company like Google.

[Stheart]

If they upped the BOM cost they could still include a better camera and still make profit, its always interesting to see how much parts cost. (or how little)

 

The main reasons that companies don't do that in the first place though, is for future generations of the product. For example, when apple came out with an ipad that had the front facing camera, they could have done this in earlier generations of the product, but withheld so they would have a new "feature" for future products.

[SimonB]

some times i cant understand why people even comment something they could manufacture for 300 sell for 500 and get big profit... world don't work this way since manufacture cost is 1/10 almost all of the times since there is shipment cost distribution cost 2 times has value added taxes  and so on so actually if you manufacture something lets say in china then deliver it to EU then put it in storage then in shop then sell it price grows from 5 cents too  4-5$ what is 100 times the manufacture cost + when you research something there is cost for researching then for developing equipment to do something ( in perspective of plastic melding you must make the mold of item that often cost fortune) so in that case they need at least 2 or 3 plastic mold's to make glasses frame 

 

people buys sports cars ships planes for billions you think bugatti veyron manufacture cost more then S class Mercedes i doubt that. And the most important thing i have to say is " MARKET DICTATES PRICE"

[Misanthrope]

some times i cant understand why people even comment something they could manufacture for 300 sell for 500 and get big profit... world don't work this way since manufacture cost is 1/10 almost all of the times since there is shipment cost distribution cost 2 times has value added taxes  and so on so actually if you manufacture something lets say in china then deliver it to EU then put it in storage then in shop then sell it price grows from 5 cents too  4-5$ what is 100 times the manufacture cost + when you research something there is cost for researching then for developing equipment to do something ( in perspective of plastic melding you must make the mold of item that often cost fortune) so in that case they need at least 2 or 3 plastic mold's to make glasses frame 

 

people buys sports cars ships planes for billions you think bugatti veyron manufacture cost more then S class Mercedes i doubt that. And the most important thing i have to say is " MARKET DICTATES PRICE"

 

That entire post reminds me of that saying that goes: 90% of statistics are made up on the spot: Seriously no offense but as expensive as marketing and distribution gets, once you do it en-masse those costs go down, your numbers seem way off. 

[kuddlesworth9419]

R&D costs money you know that Google wants to get back.

[Misanthrope]

R&D costs money you know that Google wants to get back.

 

I don't think it works that way for Google: They wouldn't be spending 5 billion on Motorola's patents, 3 billion on some heat switches company or buying fucking drone companies. 

[Adamuchan]

I don't think it works that way for Google: They wouldn't be spending 5 billion on Motorola's patents, 3 billion on some heat switches company or buying fucking drone companies. 

 

There's nothing wrong with recouping expenses and securing investments in the present AS WELL as the future. Google has got the cash.

 

In regards to Glass, I think Google just wants to create hype around the product while recouping some of the costs of R&D. I don't think it will be long before we see affordable, mass produced Google Glass. I predict a price range of $200-300 for the consumer version.

[Some Tech Nub]

I have some links to companies associated with google glass, and a little bird told me awhile back that google glass would retail around $300. Keep in mind how much r&d work goes into this tech.

Having used google glass, it's unique and very helpful. It just needs some time to become accepted in society.

[Exynos]

As long as people will pay $1500 they will sell it for that, it's not like it's an essential item.

They will drop price even if it was selling at $1500. Google is making up R&D Costs 

[Jordan Goulding]

 

people buys sports cars ships planes for billions you think bugatti veyron manufacture cost more then S class Mercedes i doubt that. And the most important thing i have to say is " MARKET DICTATES PRICE"

Unfortunately for you that is a terrible example as Volkswagen lose millions of dollars on each sale of the Veyron, it is, somewhat like Google Glass, a tech demonstration/example  

 

[Pure]

Google marketing. They know they are very well known.  The technology with the google glass has never been introduced to the public on a global scale, they are taking the advantage of this and increasing the price 
For example of popularity. Beyonce's new album "Beyoncé " was released the same day she announced it. With the popularity, she knows she will do well with sales. This is kind of the same idea with google glasses. 

[LegendKillerRG]

I need glasses that could improve my vision "digitally"...