iPod replaced with book

A little girl in Maryland this Christmas opened a box that was supposed to contain an iPod classic, only to discover a book and a strange note in place of the portable player she thought she had received, according to myfoxdc. The box, which her father purchased at a local Wal-Mart store, contained "Awakening Loving-Kindness" by Pema Chodron accompanied by a strange letter, which reads: "Reclaim your mind from the media's shackles. Read a book and resurrect yourself. To claim your capitalistic garbage go to your nearest Apple Store."

The man who purchased the 'iPod' claims the box was completely sealed when he bought it, and learned that he was not the only customer to receive a surprise instead of the expected gadget. A Wal-Mart store manager said the store had already offered a refund to another customer who had a similar problem, and considers the entire ordeal to be Apple's problem.

Wal-Mart offered the little girl's father another iPod, but he declined, saying he would purchase his next iPod directly from an Apple Store.

One of many

The Maryland iPod switch is the latest event in a growing list of similar scams occurring across the U.S. MacNN reported the story of an Alabama man last month who purchased what he believed to be an 80GB iPod classic for his daughter, only to find a used and scratched 30GB iPod video in its place. Two Texas-based Target stores during the month of October unknowingly sold sealed boxes filled with rocks instead of shiny new iPods, and one Hawaiian customer even opened a shrink wrapped iPod box to discover a sealed fish or meat product nearly a year ago. Yet another unhappy Wal-Mart shopper found six AA batteries inside a 'new' iPod box, which bore a piece of paper taped to the top with a hand-drawn picture of a screen and buttons designed to look like the missing iPod within.

by MacNN Staff