The $99 Apple TV is Made of $64 Worth of Parts

Teardowns are a lot of fun for those of us who just love to stare at the resulting gadget porn. However, they're also pretty useful when it comes to putting a number on the cost of a device's parts.

iFixit usually has our back when it comes to pictures of gadgets in their birthday suits and instructions on how to tear things apart. However, iSupply uses its teardown for something else: estimating the total cost of manufacturing the device. On the chopping block is the new Apple TV, which the company has wasted no time in disassembling and pricing.

The market research team estimates the total cost of an Apple TV box to be $61.98, or $63.95 when additional manufacturing costs are added in. The most expensive part of the device is the A4 processor, which rings in at $16.55. In second is the 8GB of flash storage, which costs exactly $14, and in third place is the WiFi and Bluetooth module at $7.65.

Though the cost of manufacturing the original Apple TV is unknown, the cost of the second generation Apple TV is said to leave more room for profit. Andrew Rassweiler, an iSuppli analyst, told Business Week the cost of materials for the original device were closer to the retail price.

Read more on about the teardown on iSupply.

_{Source: iSupply via Business Week}