New iPod Nano Costs Just $46 To Make

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A lot of people seem to be receiving the new Apple iPod Nanos well. They’ve been given a complete redesign and now they’re smaller than ever with a little touchscreen that looks like iOS (but really isn’t). Now, the manufacturing wizzes at iSuppli have taken the MP3 player apart and accounted for all its bits. Despite being smaller and cooler, Apple is actually making a health profit on the little boxes.

iSuppli reports that the iPod Nano costs just $43.73 in parts, with $1.37 in labor, bringing the unit cost to $45.10. As you’d expect with that big (well, big enough) touchscreen, it’s a bit more expensive than the last generation iPod Nano, with that device coming in at about $40.80 to make. You wonder how Apple made $8 billion in income last year, it’s because they charge a $100 markup.

You’d think that the touchscreen may be the most expensive bit on the iPod Nano, but it’s just the second-most expensive at $11. The flash memory for the device (the cost of NAND memory is always volatile) is the most costly, at $14.

Despite Apple’s big profit margin on the little iPods, they appear to be selling well and have been well received by the community. What do you think about the new iPod Nano?