Why are cell phones so much more expensive than tablets?

[mxmaniac]

Why is it that cell phones are way more expensive than tablets? For this question I'll reference android phones vs android tablets.

They are basically the same thing except, the phones have is the radio components to make phone calls, besides that the tablet has pretty much all the same functionality with a bigger, higher resolution screen. It seems to me like a big high res screen, would cost more than a radio chip.

You can find a multitude of good recent tablets like the latest nexus 7 brand new for under $200, and decent ones for $100-$150. Try and find any halfway decent phone at all, even older ones for under $150, and it can't be done. Even old galaxy s2 phones sell for over $200.

 

[Baumy15]

because they make you pay a premium for the mobile equipment you get a tablet and cant make a call or you get a phone and can make calls that's how they make money

 

[smackers_12]

Screens cost basically nothing. The radio chip and the aerial and all the stuff needed for a phone to interface with the mobile network costs more than a larger screen

 

[CraigN]

^ These are both true. It's why they tack on an extra $100 for most models of tablets that come with LTE bands. Radios are surprisingly expensive. LCDs are pretty cheap, even for bigger and better resolution.

It costs a lot of money to squeeze that tablet power in the size of something that fits in your hand, the integrated circuit design is more complicated when it's that small.

 

[jitpublisher]

Because everyone, in every family wants a cell phone, and people are willing to pay for one. Cost of materials or parts is a secondary thing. They are both relatively inexpensive to make today. A cell phone today is an extreme example of price based purely on perceived value, and price that the market will pay.

 

[Someone Somewhere]

More radios and antennae are needed, there's more regulatory approval needed, and everything is getting packed into a smaller case.

Also, most tablets don't actually have a much higher resolution display - if it's a $150 one, you're not getting more than 720p, or 1080p at a pinch.

 

[nimits]

my tablet has radio too actually it is fablet.