When Google Glass was sold to consumers for the first time in a one-off 24-hour sale, it retailed for a hefty $1,500. However, a new breakdown of the manufacturing costs of the hardware suggests that its components cost a measly $80.
The report from Tech Insights breaks down the cost of parts for the Google Glass, and the results revealed that it likely costs a staggering $1,420 less to manufacture than Google has sold it for. While this doesn’t take into account the cost of software or the cost of staff required to build the new tech, adding those costs on top of the $80 would still fall very short of the $1,500 is has retailed for.
Many suspected that the Google Glass was initially sold for $1,500 to keep it out of the hands of the general public, making it so that only burgeoning developers for the tech would plump up the cash to get their hands on it. However, that doesn’t seem to be the case, as Google is strongly refuting the claim that the hardware costs such a miniscule amount to manufacture, telling The Wall Street Journal that the report is “absolutely wrong”. However, the company refused to provide any further detail on how the results of the breakdown were incorrect.
