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Early estimates say new iPad cuts Apple's profit margins
These estimates are always to be taken with a grain of salt but, if UBM TechInsights is to be believed, Apple is cutting into its precious profit margins to keep the price of the iPad flat. According to the research firm, the total cost of components in the 16GB 4G model is around $310 -- not including assembly and shipping. With a final price of $629, Cupertino is pulling in about a 51 percent profit, a sizable drop from the estimated 56 percent profit margin on the similarly specced iPad 2 at launch. A large chunk of that increased cost of production is made up by the new retina display, which is estimated to cost around $70, and the LTE chipset, which UBM priced at $21. In contrast, current pricing on the panel in the iPad 2 and its 3G radio rest at around $50 and $10, respectively. We're sure Tim Cook isn't losing any sleep though, there are plenty of other ways to make up that lost dough -- like selling more iPads.
PlayStation Vita cost estimated at $160 in report
We've got a PlayStation Vita from Japan, sure, but we're not taking it apart all willy-nilly like some people. But if we did, and we also had a keen eye for the price of specific electronics components, we might have already realized the pieces comprising the device could add up to $160 in total.Unsurprisingly, the display and touchscreens are said to account for the bulk of the estimated cost at $50, while no other piece of the device even crests the $20 mark. Of course, none of this pricing includes the cost of research and development, testing, shipping, manufacturing, marketing, etc., so it's not exactly a perfect representation of the investment Sony has made with its latest handheld.It does, however, give the Japanese hardware giant approximately $140 of space to work with on making the more expensive Vita (the $300 3G one) profitable from the jump, not to mention the 3G-less $250 model.
Report: 3DS components cost about $100
UBM TechInsights has done a teardown of the Nintendo 3DS and marks the total cost of the system's hardware at $101. That's $15 more than the DSi was reportedly made for, though the 3DS also includes a 3D screen and a gyroscope, along with other enhancements. Retailers are selling the 3DS for $250, but that's not all markup -- there are marketing, research and other charges associated with a console release, and everyone in the supply chain has to take their own cuts, of course. Still, Nintendo is likely making a profit on every unit sold, which is exactly as expected (and what it did with the Wii). Even before you start talking about games and licensing, Nintendo is making sure there's some money rolling back its way from day one.
Apple iPad and Samsung Wave share a brain
At his keynote yesterday, Steve Jobs very proudly touted the "wonderful" A4 processor, saying it was "designed by our own team" and, additionally, "is so good." That chip is the muscle inside the iPad and the new iPhone 4, but now we're finding that others are using it too... a little more quietly. We knew that Intrinsity was the company behind the (previously dubbed) Cortex A8 chip, and that Intrinsity worked with Samsung to develop and manufacture it. Now we're finding that Samsung is keeping a little of that sweet, sweet silicon for itself. The Samsung Wave uses a processor called the S5PC110A01, which UBM TechInsights has verified shares the same 1GHz A8 core as Apple's A4. No, Bada may not be showing quite the potential of iOS 4, and something tells us the new iPhone will be a bit more popular than the Wave, but it's safe to say these two handsets have definitely fallen from the same ARM family tree.
