Apple Inc.

iPod Shuffle

Date: Mar. 11, 2009
Retail price: $49 (4GB)
Cost of components: $21.77

The latest iPod shuffle is so small–less than 2 inches long–there's hardly room for parts or controls. The most costly components inside are $6 worth of flash memory for storing music. In the unit examined by iSuppli, the memory was supplied by Samsung. The tiny Apple (AAPL) device also includes a Samsung-made chip that handles music and control functions and costs $5.98.
Add in the cost of the battery ($1.55) and the headphones with the inline volume controls ($1.20), and you've accounted for about two-thirds of a device that costs less than $22 to make, including packaging.