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Battery capacity is not the defining factor in battery cost, manufacturing is. I'd bet that they have almost identical manufacturing costs per laptop with either battery.

How much does Apple pay for the battery, and how much do they mark it up? If they only pay 10% more for the bigger battery, then they are gouging your 44%, etc.

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Right, I doubt that it scales linearly like that either. My comparison was just as absurd as the article's comparison in the other direction. Really, we don't have a clue how much Apple is making or losing by replacing these batteries. My guess is that Apple's battery replacement charge is based largely on the price point of the original product.

I worked in the laptop battery pack industry for a few years, your description is fairly accurate.

6 cell packs cost ~$22 to manufacturer. 9 cell packs cost ~$30 to manufacturer (outdated numbers). Yet, 9 cell packs MSRP for easily 50+% more.

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