Flavor isn't the end-all be-all goal of food. I regularly drink soylent, and I could care less that it is basically tasteless. I drink it because it's cheap and takes ~15 seconds to open and finish. No grocery shopping for it, no cooking/meal prep required. When I'm eating alone, that is all I care about.

What's the current cost per meal of Soylent?

Depends on what you consider a "meal."

Soylent 1.6 (powder) is "$1.93 per 500 kcal" where 2000kcal is what most people eat a day. If a meal to you is one third of 2000kcal, it costs 1.93 * ((2000/500) / 3) == $2.57 per "meal."

Soylent 2.0 (drink, bought because it's "more convenient") is "$2.69 per 400 kcal." If a meal to you is one third of 2000kcal, it costs 2.69 * ((2000/400) / 3) == $4.48 per "meal."

So compare either of those to either your dinner or snack expenditures. To me it seems that 1.6 can save you money on dinner, while 2.0 is intended to help you save money on "snack time".

"Here is the computer calculated quantity of tasteless nutrient sludge necessary to maintain your productivity for the day" could very well be the first line out of a dystopian novel somewhere.

Powder is the cheapest option, which comes out to $1.93 per 500 kcal

$2.69 per 400 kcal. bottle

>new version that actually has flavor?

Too much flavor could make it annoying to have regularly day after day. They're specifically aiming for a neutral flavor.

>Maybe even a little rebranding?

Yes, they know they sound like "Soylent Green". It's the point and gets you to recognize the name.