That has to be the biggest factor by far. I got my pixel 6a for around 300€ total with a mobile plan (free calls, sms and a small amount of data)

Does everything I and realistically the vast majority of people need it for. And you can get perfectly usable phones for even less.

There is no way apple can beat that value, even if their update policy and thus longevity is one of the few things I envy.

Also many benefits of the iphone imo rely on being invested in their ecosystem.