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The entry-level version of the new-generation Mac Mini carries a Bill of Materials (BOM) of $376.20, which increases to $387.14 when manufacturing costs are added. This low-end model of the Mac Mini is priced at $59, reflecting the relatively thin BOM/manufacturing margins generated by Apple's PCs in relation to its lower-cost consumer items, specifically the iPod line.
The attached table summarizes the results of iSuppli's teardown of the new Mac Mini.
The total materials and manufacturing costs reported in iSuppli's teardown analysis of the new Mac Mini mirror only the expenses for direct materials, manufacturing and basic tests. Not included in this analysis are costs above and beyond the material manufacturing of the core device itself-i.e., the cost of intellectual property, royalties and licensing fees-as well as those expenses not already included into the per component price, software, software loading and test, shipping, logistics marketing and other channel costs.
Mini finds its inner mobile PC
"Unlike most desktop computers from other brands, the Mac Mini and, indeed, Apple's entire Mac line make extensive use of components designed for notebook computers," said Andrew Rassweiler, director and principal analystfor iSuppli. "This enables the Mini and other members of Apple's computer line to achieve their very sleek and compact form factors, and to reduce energy consumption. However, the use of these components, along with other cost adders like software, yields a computer that is more expensive to make."
The Mac Mini's focus on mobile components starts at the top with the PC's use of Intel Corp.'s Core 2 Duo P7350 microprocessor, which is designated as a mobile chip. The specific Mac Mini torn down by iSuppli incorporated a 2GHz clock speed version of Core 2 Duo P7350, which carries an iSuppli estimated price of $118.35. The next-level Mac Mini model features a 2.26GHz version of the microprocessor, available from Apple at a $150 premium in retail pricing.
Another mobile microchip embedded in the Mac Mini is the Nvidia GeForce 9400M graphics and I/O controller hub. Apple commonly uses this same part in its MacBook line of notebook PCs. The Nvidia GeForce 9400M comes in at an estimated price of $65.16.
Other mobile components in the Mac Mini that command a price premium include the 2.5-inch form factor Hard Disk Drive (HDD) and the slim Optical Disk Drive (ODD). The Hitachi 120GByte 2.5-inch-format HDD comes in at a price of $46, while the Mac Mini's ODD-a DVDAR DL/DVDARW/CD-RW 8 x speed drive-is priced at $32.
Cutting PCs down to size
At a size of 6.5 x 6.5 x 2 inches, the Mac Mini is tiny compared to a more full-size desktop PC tower enclosure, which can be 10 to 20 times larger, not including Apple's external power supply, of course.
Power up
In spite of its use of some mobile components, and the latest energy-saving silicon process geometries, the Mac mini overall has a great deal of processing power. As a result, it employs a 110-watt external power supply, representing a higher power usage than the first-generation model, which employed an 85-watt power supply. This is so despite the process geometry leap from the 0.13 micron technology employed in Freescale's RISC microprocessor in the first-generation Mac Mini, to Intel's 45nm process Core 2 Duo used in this most recent generation Mac Mini.
"The new Mac Mini is a more powerful computer than the first-generation model, causing its peak power requirements to rise," Rassweiler said. On the other hand, the Mac Mini has earned its green designation as it consumes less than 13 watts when in idle mode.
Nvidia inside
Another major difference between the new Mac Mini and the first- and second-generation models is the use of the Nvidia graphics controller and I/O controller hub. The first-generation Mac Mini employed an equivalent ATI part. The second-generation Mac Mini also employed an Intel graphics processor. This represents a departure from conventional Intel chipset designs in which Intel provides all of the core silicon and processing beyond the microprocessor.
"Nvidia, as a specialist in the domain of graphics processing and acceleration, clearly enhances the performance of the Mac Mini," Rassweiler said.
About iSuppli's Teardown Analysis service
For more information on iSuppli's teardown of the new Mac Mini, please visit: http://www.isuppli.com/ProductDetail.aspx?ID=28514&L1ID=180&L2ID=1045
Why do the world's top technology companies rely on iSuppli for their teardown needs?
Because iSuppli's Teardown Analysis team is the most experienced in the industry and can draw upon a vast library of data and expertise that only a broad-line market-research firm can provide.
iSuppli's Teardown Analysis team leverages the expertise of more than 25 experts in various fields, all of whom have extensive electronics industry backgrounds and far-reaching expertise in equipment and component analysis, to develop a comprehensive understanding of electronic designs and costs.
iSuppli's team has been conducting teardowns for seven years, but the company's background in this area goes back much further, with members of our management team having established and participated in teardown programs at another research firm starting in the mid 1990s.
The iSuppli Teardown Analysis service has dissected more than 1,500 electronic products, from mobile phones of every variety, to personal computers, to set-top boxes, to video-game consoles, to high-definition televisions. The team engages in rigorous teardowns that enable a complete identification and accounting of all components found in electronic equipment.
The teardown team's extensive experience in dissecting electronic equipment allows it to make sophisticated observations regarding product design and component selection based on manufacturer, region of production, design approach and other factors.
Pricing for components found inside of equipment is determined using iSuppli's Component Price Tracker (CPT) service, which provides detailed information on costs for more than 350 components commonly found in electronic equipment, allowing iSuppli to develop highly accurate BOM estimates.
Component prices are subject to significant changes over time due to manufacturing learning-curve processes, as well as inventory and supply-and-demand issues. The CPT provides forecasts and updates of pricing movements that have unparalleled accuracy.
For more information on iSuppli's CPT, please visit: http://www.isuppli.com/catalog/L2_prtr.asp
iSuppli's Teardown Analysis team also consults with iSuppli analysts covering various areas of the electronics industry to develop a comprehensive understanding of electronic equipment. iSuppli's analyst team covers every segment of the worldwide electronics industry, offering industry-leading expertise in equipment, components and supply chains.
For more information on iSuppli's worldwide analysis team, please visit: http://www.isuppli.com/about/experts.asp?view=5
All Information and Intellectual Property Contained Herein is the Sole Property of iSuppli Corporation
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About iSuppli Corporation
iSuppli Corporation is the global leader in technology value chain research and advisory services. Services afforded by iSuppli range from electronic component research to device-specific application market forecasts, from teardown analysis to consumer electronics and from display device and systems research to automotive telematics, navigation and safety systems research. More information is available at www.isuppli.com and by following us at twitter.com/iSuppli
CONTACT: Jonathan Cassell, Editorial Director and Manager, Public Relations, iSuppli Corporation Tel: +1 408 654 1714 Tel: +1 408 921 3754 Debra Jaramilla, Manager, Marketing, iSuppli Corporation Tel: +1 310 524 4047 e-mail: djaramilla@isuppli.com WWW: http://www.isuppli.com
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