What is the cost to produce an ipad?

[Asheran Mojomaster]

Can anyone help me with this? I'm having trouble even finding a detailed list of the exact components in a first generation ipad.

Anyone know exactly what all of the parts are and how much they cost to produce? Or what they go for wholesale?

I know that is a strange thing to ask, but I am very interested in doing some comparisons between that and the shipping cost from China vs having it produced in the US and paying higher wages but much less shipping.

I don't care about the newest ones. Just the old, first generation ones and the current cost to make one of those (not sure if Apple still does, but that is irrelevant)

[Winnow]

Maybe 229.00 for 16GB original iPad

http://www.geek.com/articles/mobile/isu ... -20100210/

That article has a list of components



$10.00 to manufacture!

[Asheran Mojomaster]

Yeah, but that is in 2010. I am curious about how much those components would cost today. I have heard the processor can be as low as $5 today (compared to $17 then).

[Winnow]

Yeah, but that is in 2010. I am curious about how much those components would cost today. I have heard the processor can be as low as $5 today (compared to $17 then).

Why does it matter? People would be making the iPad 4 now. No one would want the original iPad.

Why not do a present day shipping and cost comparison for iPad 4 parts, shipping, etc so it would be valid?

[Asheran Mojomaster]

Because small companies are not going to be very effective at competing at the high end production of tablets, and producing the high end ones is less likely to be cost effective in the US.

International shipping and import costs are a larger % of the cost for low end tablets, so more likely to be offset by production costs inside the US.

[Winnow]

Because small companies are not going to be very effective at competing at the high end production of tablets, and producing the high end ones is less likely to be cost effective in the US.

International shipping and import costs are a larger % of the cost for low end tablets, so more likely to be offset by production costs inside the US.

What does that have to do with the original ipad? It would be the present conditions, not the past. They don't make iPad 1's anymore.

[Asheran Mojomaster]

Because small companies are not going to be very effective at competing at the high end production of tablets, and producing the high end ones is less likely to be cost effective in the US.

International shipping and import costs are a larger % of the cost for low end tablets, so more likely to be offset by production costs inside the US.

What does that have to do with the original ipad? It would be the present conditions, not the past. They don't make iPad 1's anymore.

A baseline tablet needs to have similar specs to the original ipad. There are some out there with slightly lower, but they do not function very well.

I want to figure out the cost of basically making an ipad 1 clone in a different shell with Android, and how much of it could be accomplished inside of the US in a cost effective way. Especially the assembly, and hopefully the manufacture of core hardware (maybe not all. cheap cameras, mics, etc would cost very little to ship in high volume, so probably would not be efficient).

I'm not just doing this for pure curiosity. I actually have plans in mind if I can work out all of the numbers.

I've already put in requests with Intel and ARM to get information on processors.

[Aabidano]

iPad1 and the Touchpad had very similar component costs, about $235 iirc which matches Winnows price.

The larger Kindle Fire HD and iPad2 are close as well (I think) but I can't find the reference at the moment.

Problem you run into is when you aren't a primary or volume market for the pieces/parts is that in selecting them you've got to predict as best you can how long the volume users of X are going to be around. You run the real risk of essential parts going out of production and no reliable/affordable source.