Whenever some corporate entity releases their new piece of hardware into the wild, iSuppli outs their obligatory cost analysis. As novel as iSuppli’s research may seem, knowing the real costs of the gadgets we’re addicted to is more frustrating than newsworthy. And, thanks to iSuppli, we learn that the Nintendo 3DS enjoys almost 60% margins, similar to the DSi.
According to the report, the bill of materials for the 3DS is $100.71; manufacturing costs are only $2.54. This is about a 33% increase in real cost over the DSi. The new and upgraded parts that contribute to the price increase are the new 3D screen, $33.80 vs. $21.95; memory, $8.36 vs. $3.61; and a few new UI components (accelerometer), $6.81 vs. $3.98.
You may be asking yourself, “The 3DS just came out yesterday. How in the *beep* were they able to tear it down and price it out so far?” Well, friends, they got a hold of the Japanese model that has been out for over a month.