IHS iSuppli teardown shows entry-level iPad Mini costs only $188 to produce

IHS iSuppli teardown shows entry-level iPad Mini costs only $188 to produceAccording to a recently-released `iPad Mini teardown' report by IHS iSuppli, an analysis of the internal components used in Apple's new smaller tablet has revealed that the production cost of the entry-level version of the tablet is approximately $188.

Noting that Apple spends barely $15.50 per 16GB of flash memory, the IHS iSuppli report implies that Apple reaps a profit of $141 on the $329-priced 16GB Wi-Fi-only version of the iPad Mini. However, the report does not take into account the expenses which Apple undertakes on things like marketing and research and development.

With the profits made by Apple soaring higher in the case of the tablet's $429-priced 32GB model and its $529-priced 64GB version, an AllThingsD report has pointed out that the company makes an additional $90 on the former model and $162 more on the latter model, over and above the $141 profit it makes on the base model.

Clearly, as per the IHS iSuppli teardown of the iPad Mini, Apple has sufficient scope for a healthy profit on the small-tablet version which boasts more on-board memory.

Moreover, the teardown also showed that the A5 chips of the iPad Mini are still supplied by Samsung; and that the most expensive of the components used in the tablet is its 7.9-inch screen manufactured by LG and AU Optronics. Priced at $80, the screen accounts for approximately 43 percent of the total production cost of the tablet!