Research firm iSuppli claimed Apple aimed at 50% margins for the iPhone but according to DisplaySearch it will only be about 20%:
For instance , DisplaySearch suggests the cost to Apple of the display approaches $60, almost twice that of other estimates due to the 3.5-in 320 - 480 display and the nature of the touch screen technology.
According to DisplaySearch Apple has followed its normal trend of eschewing the use of off-the-shelf displays for its innovative designs. The market research group stresses the narrow bezel around the display, as well as the thinness of the device, indicate that a standard display product would not meet Apple's aggressive design requirements.
It believes the underlying technology of the display is LTPS, or a derivative thereof, and that the glass is thinner than the typical mobile phone display, perhaps as thin as 0.25 mm. The silicon technology underlying the display and thinness of the display glass combine to increase the manufacturing cost to the panel maker, and by extension, the price that Apple pays for the display. "DisplaySearch analysis indicates that the price of the display is $30, and that this may be doubled because of the multi-touch panel and its integration on to the display," the company said in a statement.
