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http://www.macnn.com/articles/06/02/13/apple.sued.over.nano/

Lawsuit contests iPod repair charges

updated 08:35 am EST, Mon February 13, 2006

 

Apple sued over Nano


Apple is being sued for the replacement fees it is charging customers for replacing broken iPod nano screens. The Mercury News reports that a consumer group has filed a lawsuit, alleging the "iPod nano player is defective because its screen is easily scratched and that the company is breaking its product warranty by charging $25 for replacements. The lawsuit, which is seeking class-action status, was filed b the Los Angeles-based Foundation for Taxpayer and Consumer Rights; it claims that the Nano can not endure normal use without getting scratched to the point where it becomes unusable. The suit contends the Cupertino-based iPod maker should warn users accordingly." The group is asking that is also demanding that Apple recall or repair the defective products for free, or refund the purchase price to dissatisfied customers as well as asks that the Apple add scratching or cracking to its warranty coverage, according to the report.

The law firm behind the current lawsuit is the same firm that negotiated the iPod battery settlement last August, which claimed that Apple did not reveal the the life and true capacity of the iPod batteries. The Mercury News reports that terms of that settlement ranged from Apple giving affected customers $25 in cash or credit to full battery replacements at no charge.


by MacNN Staff

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  1. willed

    Professional Poster

    Joined: Oct 2000

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    02/13, 08:55am | report spam | Reply |

    ...

    Don't people in America have anything better to do than file spurious lawsuits? I mean, who tries to sue someone over $25?

  1. Stratus Fear

    Senior User

    Joined: Dec 2002

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    02/13, 09:02am | report spam | Reply |

    Sigh.

    Cracked? Sure. There isn't any reason that the screen should crack (that is, if you're not an idiot). So if it does, sure. Apple should replace it. But scratched? What the h***? People should know to take better care of their stuff. That'd be like me suing Timex because my watchband (made of metal) is all scratched up from daily wear. And it certainly isn't unusable. Real life case: One of my friends keeps his nano in his pocket, all the time. Scratched the living h*** out of the screen. To me, the amount of scratches is certainly annoying (not unusable, and it's a lot more than I've seen on other nanos -- looks like some car keys got to it, and that wouldn't surprise me, knowing him), and I'm not really all that picky. Yet he admits it's his own fault, instead of going in on a lawsuit at Apple.

    This is what I see from this lawsuit: "Oh no, I can't keep my iPod in my back pocket right next to my fat a** where a reasonable person would realize it would get scratched and/or smashed. I'm gonna sue!!!" Stupid people. Take care of your damn stuff and that won't happen. I'm a nano user for three months. No scratches.

  1. Zang

    Fresh-Faced Recruit

    Joined: Jan 2004

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    02/13, 01:41pm | report spam | Reply |

    :/

    Okay, despite all the talk, I have yet to see a single photo of a Nano that I would deem "unusable" or "unreadable".

    Western culture is severely lacking in responsibility. Everything scratches. Everything breaks.

  1. testudo

    Forum Regular

    Joined: Aug 2001

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    02/13, 01:47pm | report spam | Reply |

    Re: sigh

    Yeah, really. People should know that if they take this thing out of the box, it'll scratch, and therefore its their fault for using it.

    But the nano scratches inordinately easily, and when the screen gets really scratched, it becomes nearly impossible to read. h***, I've read reports that people are getting a scratched screen even though they've kept it in the carrying case Apple supplies with the thing.

    This is what I see from this lawsuit: "Oh no, I can't keep my iPod in my back pocket right next to my fat a** where a reasonable person would realize it would get scratched and/or smashed.

    Why shouldn't I be able to put a nano in my pocket? I've put my normal iPod in my pocket with no problems with it getting scratched. Get a nano, and with no warning, you're supposed to 'know' that you have to keep it wrapped up in some silk protective cloth or something?

    If apple's going to sell a product that's delicate, then they need to put a big sticker on it that says "Don't think about touching this with any type of cloth or abrasive material. It scratches easily". Or if they're going to produce something whose most logical storage place is a pocket, and they advertise it as a device to store all your music in your pocket, they should at least make sure it actually could be put in your pocket.

  1. Stratus Fear

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    Joined: Dec 2002

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    02/13, 02:38pm | report spam | Reply |

    re: sigh.

    The nano doesn't scratch any easier than a 5g video from what I've seen. And I do use mine in my pocket (my comment stems from where I've heard some people keeping it in the same place as their wallet -- hello! that's just stupid). I just do what I need to take care that it doesn't get scratched while it's in there (screen protector-style protector and a case, and I've done the same with my normal iPod -- people do it with PDAs, why should anything else with a screen be an exception?). Cellphone screens scratch just as easily in the pocket, and people keep all kinds of things in there, too, including keys and money. It isn't Apple's fault if you damage your stuff in the most obvious of ways.

    You can spin this the other way, easily. If you're going to insist on buying a product, you should research it before you buy it, like a responsible consumer. And if you've done so, and you've heard the potential problems beforehand, you're responsible for taking the risk if you purchase it anyway. Not to say the nano has any problems, though (and it doesn't -- the people complaining about the scratching throw these things around or are absolute neat freaks and would complain about something imperceptible, in my experience).

  1. ibugv4

    Fresh-Faced Recruit

    Joined: Jun 2003

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    02/13, 03:46pm | report spam | Reply |

    am i missing something?

    It's the SIZE OF A CREDIT CARD and it's got A BATTERY what part of this combination do normal people not get as "FRAGILE?"

    My god; you'd think we made things that last. Look at Ford's layoffs and recall status; lets look at motos first iTunes phone, how about Lexmark or HP's printer quality over the years.

    Things break. Americans abuse their toys and want a refund about it. And if your an American company you ensure it breaks faster, cheaper, and in a way that costs the end user for their stupidity.

    Learn, people, LEARN.

  1. LouZer

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    02/13, 08:32pm | report spam | Reply |

    Re: sigh

    So, since your iPod is scratch free, that means Apple's product is not at fault and perfectly defect free. Well, hey, maybe you got a good one. The point is, there've some 2 dozen of these lawsuits. That's a lot of scratched iPods to think that everyone is abusing their iPod and its their fault.

    Cellphone screens scratch just as easily in the pocket, and people keep all kinds of things in there, too, including keys and money. It isn't Apple's fault if you damage your stuff in the most obvious of ways.

    I had an open-screen cell phone for several years, kept it in my front pocket, sans any case, with keys and all, for the whole time. No scratches to the screen. I've stored my iPod in my pocket for long stretches of time. Same thing.

    But don't you think that Apple, with all the money they make, if they're going to make a product and have a clearly scratchable screen, that they, I don't know, spend another 50 cents and apply their own scratch resistant cover to the stupid thing. I mean, this is typical apple. Sell them a product that's missing important pieces that they have to get themselves. All so they can pretend its cheap. (Long ago you actually had to buy a keyboard separate from their overpriced macs. Today, you generally have to buy USB hubs and external firewire drives, because Apple refuses to sell computers that are upgradeable and lack a usable number of ports. Now they want you to buy an iPod, then immediately go out and spend more money to protect it.

  1. LouZer

    Fresh-Faced Recruit

    Joined: Nov 2000

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    02/13, 08:36pm | report spam | Reply |

    Two more things

    One: Doesn't anyone see all this shoddy merchandise talk as distressing. I mean, if this stuff keeps going around (true or not), more people are going to stop buying apple products (OK, so no one's buying their computers anyway, but this may keep new people from buying them). There is a thing as good public image. They should be concerned.

    Second: Despite your alls arguments against this, you do realize that Apple actually admits there is a problem. Otherwise, there would be no $25 charge for repair, it would be a $100 charge for repair (h***, it costs like $60 to replace the battery). By having a repair program, and charging a completely un-apple low fee, its basically the same as Jobs yelling "Hey, we've got a crappy product, but pay us to fix it!" (Oh, wait, that's what they do with the defective iBooks, still broken after all these years).

  1. Stratus Fear

    Senior User

    Joined: Dec 2002

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    02/13, 11:20pm | report spam | Reply |

    .

    I don't think there is a problem. I think people are lawsuit happy (and it's not like it hasn't happened before). You take care of the things you buy and everything is usually ok. I think the low charge at all is only meant to appease people while not losing money on all of this BS. Sadly, everyone still wants to support that idiot Joe Sixpack. Do as you please, guys. That doesn't change a thing. I've seen enough nanos besides my own to know what's up.

  1. jdonkey123

    Fresh-Faced Recruit

    Joined: Feb 2006

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    02/22, 11:25pm | report spam | Reply |

    ipods cool but break 2 ez

    You guys are partly right, and partly not. America is lawsuit crazy, and no it's not Mcdonalds fault that i'm a fata$$

    However, I own a 4GB Nano and i also had a 3rd gen ipod before (that the hard drive went bad on and Apple's ipod repair was WAY TOO MUCH!) anyway, i was pretty careful with it, but it got scratched up way easier than my old 3rd gen did. I wouldn't say i couldn't use it any more, but it looked really crappy. i found a new one from and since i didn't pay for it the ipod(a present) i figured i could spring for a new front panel (pretty expensive but oh well.)

    Anyway it looks brand new, and I am using a screen protector this time, but it kinda sucks that you have to put something less attractive on your nice looking ipod to keep it nice. it's kinda like a new pair of shoes that will look like c*** after wearing them once!

    So since they're only suing for what Apple should be giving them (a good product) I say go for it!

    p.s. i know a bunch of people who have broken LCD screens really easily, i'm surprised they're not suing for t hat!

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