In all the hype over the Apple iPad, you'll likely have discovered that the price of the fabled device starts at $499. But how much does it really cost Apple to buy the materials and manufacture the device? Just $259.60, according to research firm iSuppli. However, as iSuppli's comparitive data on other tech devices reveals, the mark-up on an iPad is relatively low:
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Apple iMac Core Duo desktop computer
Retail price on release: $1,299
Cost of manufacturing and materials: $898
Most expensive single component: Microprocessor ($265)
(These estimates do not account for keyboard or mouse)
Apple's costs as percentage of retail price: 69%
Retail price on release: $499 (of which AT&T pays $300)
Cost of manufacturing and materials: $173
Most expensive single component: 8gb flash memory card ($22.80)
Apple's costs as percentage of retail price: 34%
Palm Pre
Retail price on release: $300 (of which Sprint pays $100)
Cost of manufacturing and materials: $170.02
Most expensive single component: Touchscreen ($39.51)
Palm's costs as percentage of retail price: 56%
Retail price on release: $599
Cost of manufacturing and materials: $187.75
Most expensive single component: memory card ($35)
Google's costs as percentage of retail price: 31%
All figures from iSuppli
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