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Inside the Third Gen iPod Nano
ahess247 writes "When the leaked photos of the 3rd-gen iPod nano first hit the Web it quickly took the nickname 'little fatty,' but fat could be better used to describe Apple's profits on the project. BusinessWeek reports that a teardown analysis by iSuppli finds that it costs Apple only $58.85 to build the 4-gig iPod nano, and $82.85 for the 8GB version. The analysis also reveals some of Apple's suppliers, about which it is usually very tight-lipped. Synaptics is back as the supplier of the click-wheel technology, beating out Cypress Semiconductor which had it previously. Also of note: The same Samsung CPU chip that powers the video and audio in the nano is being used in the iPod Classic as well."
Are not all that go into the final street price. You got R&D, Marketing, Logistics.. Steve's Salary...
---- Booth was a patriot ----
Many of the numbers iSuppli comes up with are pretty much made up. Regardless, most news organizations assume that the entire difference between retail of the device and the iSuppli number is "pure profit," etc. - this is utter nonsense. Previous iSuppli numbers have been shot down by reason, I hope to see the same thing in this instance.
Yeah, the v3 Nano is cheaper to build. Its also cheaper to buy, with a 4 GB unit now $150 and $200 for the 8 GB, as opposed to 2 GB for $150, 4 GB for $200, and 8 GB for $250.
Test your net with Netalyzr
Actually, the Classic was changed to use the same guts as the Nano, not the other way around. Some folks e.g. http://www.pbs.org/cringely/pulpit/2007/pulpit_20070914_002928.html are not very happy about it, either.
Price gouging? It's a luxury product. Does that concept even really apply?
From the referenced article:
"ISuppli's estimates don't account for nonhardware costs, including software development, intellectual property, packaging, final assembly, and distribution."
and
"When you look at all these other costs, which you can't see from a teardown, then you begin to see why Apple's gross margin tends to be in the 30%-to-35% range historically."
Just to save folks a trip and an excuse...
As is usual in such things, the cost of the hardware itself is not the majority of the cost of the device.
Everybody gets what the majority deserves.
Actually the new nano and classic dont run on portal player chips anymore hence they needed a complete OS re-write.
How many computers are too many?
Business Week:
After taking apart the nano, iSuppli estimates that all the parts inside cost Apple $58.85 for the $149 model"It is our blasphemy which has made us great, and will sustain us, and which the gods secretly admire in us." - Zelazny
I purchased a 3rd gen Nano for my wife. She is very pleased with it. She even manages to watch some of her favorite TV shoes on it. It might be slightly wide - but it is very thin. Our only complaint is the dozens of bugs. However, these all appear to be software based so hopefully most of the annoying ones get fixed soon. How hard is it to code something like coverflow? Please forgive me if I'm wrong - but that feature is by far the most buggy. I also can't say too many nice things about iTunes. Is apple trying to make it suck on purpose? That's what it seems like to me.
Including it's shortcomings we are happy with it overall. Being able to personalize the player by engraving the back actually was a selling point. It takes a dumb electronic device and turns it in to a sentimental keepsake.
It may well depend on the device.
Electric razors don't usually have the same kinds of batteries as MP3 players, and they also have a much higher power requirement.
Some MP3 players need more power than others. But they pretty much all have Li-Ion batteries rather than the NiCad or NiMH batteries that you find on most consumer electrics.
Another option is an AAA- or AA-powered MP3 player (yes, there are some) with one of those in-the-case battery replacements that provide 1.5 or 3v through a dummy battery and connect to the wall with a thin wire you can slip under the edge of the battery compartment (or drill a hole in it... which I figure you'd be up to). You'd be pretty much assured of that working.
You've never actually done any product-level R&D, have you?
It's a little more complicated than the LEGO experience you seem to be describing...
What part of "a well regulated militia" do you not understand?