The problem with your BMW comparison is this. When buying a car, you want something that is going to last (or at least hold some value if you sell it off sooner

The problem with your BMW comparison is this. When buying a car, you want something that is going to last (or at least hold some value if you sell it off sooner). If you are spending $50K on something you want it to be solid, dependable. You want it to still be as solid and dependable in 6 or 8 years. The quality you get from the BMW is going to remain for the life of the car. You probably don't get that out of a $17k Hyundai Elantra. If you want it to last a long time... you need the quality build. But with a phone, meh. It'll be replaced in a year or two anyway. Sooner if you drop it in the toilet or leave it at the bar. I don't think most people (even iPhone people) keep a phone long enough to get the long term benefits of this "micron precision" beyond just that subjective "it feels nice" you might have at first. My phone is plastic. It probably doesn't have micron precision in the manufacturing. But it looks nice. And it feels nice too. It even feels like it will last as long as I need it to last before I'm ready to get a new one.