No Need To Drive Down Wages—A US-Made Smartphone Is Just As Cheap To Produce
09/03/2013
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One argument of the Slave Power in the immigration debate is that to compete in the world, wages need to be driven down.  Well, that does not appear to be necessary if this story is correct.
SFGate August 31, 2013 by AP
1st US-Made Smartphone Just As Cheap To Produce
NEW YORK (AP) — Motorola's new Moto X phone doesn't cost more to make simply because it's assembled in Texas, research firm IHS said Wednesday.
The Moto X is the first smartphone to carry the "Made in the U.S.A." designation. Labor costs are higher in the U.S. compared with Asian factories, where phones are typically made. But IHS said the Moto X is about 5 percent cheaper to make than Samsung Electronic Co.'s flagship Galaxy S4 phone. The firm said the Moto X's overall production cost is just 9 percent more than that of Apple's iPhone 5...
IHS said the estimated $12 for assembly is about $3.50 to $4 more than other leading phones.
"Our initial estimate suggests the additional costs of onshoring the Moto X are relatively low," IHS said.
The phone went on sale last Friday, starting with AT&T. It's coming to other carriers, including Verizon this week. The Moto X's price is about $200 with a two-year service agreement.
The Moto X is Motorola's first phone designed from the start under its new owner, Google Inc. The Internet search company bought Motorola Mobility for $12.4 billion last year.
Perhaps Google will also learn that older American workers are just as productive as foreigners without the substantial cost of shipping across the Pacific Ocean or legions of lawyers necessary for H-1Bs.  It also gives lie to the claim by Marco Rubio and the Gang of Eight that American workers just don't cut it.
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