It’s still 99% a design that they made almost 10 years ago and more importantly, uses 10 years old parts - the AMOLED display is 320x160 resolution which is almost antique by todays standards.
If they are seriously suggesting the hardware costs forces them to charge €1399 for OP-1, they must think their customers are idiots who believe anything. I bet one OP-1 costs about 100€ to make for TE - all the rest is profit.
For less than what TE asks for OP-1, you can get latest mobile CPU that is made with very expensive 7nm process (that rivals desktop CPUs), 12,9" retina resolution 120hz touch screen - and all in a package that’s light weight and slim. And this from a premium brand (Apple).
To state that 10 year old mobile CPU with 320x160 resolution screen and couple custom buttons in a case costs more to make is just laughable.
Just speculating. OP-1 is essentially 10 year old mobile phone technology. The electronics shouldn’t cost much more than 50€ total when bought in bulk. I added another 50€ for the custom case and buttons/knobs. I may be little off in my estimation but I don’t think by much.
this is not how any of this works. apple is a huge and rich company with established production in factories, with tons of expensive tech and materials at their disposal. te is a bunch of talented engineers and designers.
i mean, if any of us decides to make a 10 years old tech phone, it’ll cost us much more money than for apple to build their latest ipad pro. this is incomparable.
Sorry, but TE is not just “any of us”. TE is a company who has been making OP-1 for 8 years, thousands of units. I am pretty sure they can source 10 year old mobile phone parts for cheaper than 1399€ - like they did already 8 years ago.
In technology, parts tend to become cheaper, not more expensive and TE should be no exception. They are just greedy is all.
I’m not interested in splitting hairs here, but I am interested in facts and I haven’t seen too many. Speculation without much to back it up doesn’t add much to the discussion.
But here are some objective truths:
ifixit generally sells parts at a 50% markup, as mentioned in an interview with Mr. Rossman on his youtube channel.
Here’s a list of OP-1 parts that ifixit sells retail.
Go ahead and take about 50% off there (Squirrely Dan), and you’ll get some idea of a partial value of the BOM.
Not counting the small generic parts, thats at least $165 of the BOM already:
CNC machined aluminum coated case not included.
Screen not included
Logic board not included
It has been mentioned earlier that parts should become cheaper, not more expensive.
But obsolete parts that only one vendor is using (TE) from one supplier skews the supply/demand relationship and that drives up the price. It becomes a custom part and custom = $
This is business as usual in manufacturing.
So what? thats not what i want! Also Apple is the most valuable company on the planet by market capitalization - you cant compare TE to Apple. Apple has far more negotiating power with its supply chains… And btw, Apple charges more than Windows based offerings for similar power.
By your logic then all vintage gear should be free as it is outdated tech…
Regardless you’re missing the point, I don’t want another computer.
Your narrative says that iFixit gets spare parts for OP-1 for same price as TE. Where did you come to that conclusion? I would assume the manufacturer who buys parts in bulk gets those parts way cheaper than some 3rd party company.
Also, my narrative is that 10 year old mobile phone parts combined in a custom case shouldn’t cost 1399€. It’s really not even worth arguing with someone who says otherwise, it’s just ridiculous.
If the $28 speaker part is your main point of contention, ignoring the $70 connector board, $100 keyboard, and $90 UI board, all of which are in conflict with your narrative that you " bet one OP-1 costs about 100€ to make for TE - all the rest is profit." then I’m afraid you are correct and there is no point in arguing.
Lots of assumptions. But buying in bulk for a custom part that one vendor needs and few suppliers produce doesn’t amount to massive discounts for a smaller vendor to take on. The supplier is just happy to move more custom parts out the door, instead of waiting on the one customer that normally buys them to order, turning inventory into cash. The second vendor often only buys the over-run amount that the first vendor (TE) is not contractually obligated to purchase.
not just that, but they are making many many units. millions. price per unit goes down quickly when you do that. how many OP-1’s do you think TE sell every year? hundreds? thousands?