Businessweek quotes iSuppli as saying Apple’s little TV revolution only costs $64 to make. That’s about a quarter of the production cost of the previous AppleTV ($237) back in 2007. Since that one sold for $300, Apple is still making more as a percentage (minus marketing, R&D, etc,etc,) than they did before (35% new vs. 20% old). The A4 chip and the 8GB of Flash are the most expensive bits in the new version but they only come in at $16.55 and $14 respectively. Oh, and FUN FACT: Intel’s Pentium Chip ($40) plus the chipset ($28) on the previous model alone cost more than the whole new AppleTV today. Clearly, the present day equivalent of that chip is much more powerful and might be cheaper but Intel just doesn’t sell SoCs for $16. Doesn’t take a rocket scientist to figure out why Apple is building its own chips these days, does it? It also shows why the Intel-based GoogleTV will be three times as expensive as the AppleTV.
