It did used to be about 250$, but they dropped it. Yes, you can get a battery replacement kit elsewhere for 50$, but you do not have any protection in that case... some people are willing to pay the extra 50$ worth of labor just to not have to open the case and possibly damage the components (I think it also handles shipping of the iPod as well... so the price seems to be pretty accurate IMO considering labor/shipping costs these days)