iPhone 15 Pro/Ultra periscope module pricing revealed: See how much Apple's paying
The iPhone 15 series is coming along this fall with lots and lots of changes in tow, many more in comparison with the relatively lackluster iPhone 14 series. For example, the iPhone 15 and the iPhone 15 Plus will both be scoring the new Dynamic Island display punch-hole, while the iPhone 15 Pro and the iPhone 15 Pro Max/Ultra will most likely be scoring new 10X periscope cameras, vastly improving on the somewhat short merely 3X telephoto that has been gracing the premium iPhones for years now.
Regarding the periscope camera, it's likely the most exciting new upgrade slated for the premium iPhones (barring the USB Type-C port substituting the Lightning port), and while the jury is still out whether both the iPhone 15 Pro and the iPhone 15 Pro Max/Ultra will be getting a periscope camera, we already seem to know how much Apple will be paying for the outlying hardware.
A new report by industry insider Ming-Chi Kuo claims that Apple will be paying just shy off $4 per a periscope camera module to Largan, one of Apple's go-to camera lens suppliers.
Normally, Apple relegates iPhone camera lens supply to both Largan and Genius, but this year Largan's getting the full pie all for itself. However, as a side effect, it's profit margins might be non-existent.
Apparently, this is lower than the industry average of $4.50-$5 per module, and will negatively impact Largan's profit for the upcoming iPhone manufacturing season. Essentially, the supplier's profit margins will be extremely thin, but Ming-Chi Kuo believes that Apple might get away with paying even less next year in time for the iPhone 16 series as Genius will also be joining the supply chain, driving prices way lower than the $4 margin.
Of course, $4 seems ridiculously low for such an advanced piece of tech, but we should never forget that this pricing is adjusted after the respective economies of scale have been applied and usually don't include all the R&D costs.
Other exciting rumors about the premium iPhones include a full titanium build, as well as lack of "clicky" hardware buttons and utilizing capacitive force-feedback keys that will allow Apple to also kill off hardware buttons.
As we know more about the iPhone 15 series, so will you.
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