iPod nano 1st gen program begins

Apple without fanfare has ramped up an iPod nano Replacement Program in the US. Echoing a similar program from Japan last year, the program replaces first-generation iPod nano players from a particular batch of serial numbers for safety reasons. The lithium-ion pack will overheat in "very rare cases," Apple said, referring to a small number of instances in which the batteries caught fire.

The susceptibility only stems from one battery supplier, but it includes packs made by that company from the very start of the iPod nano's life in September 2005 through to slightly after the start of the second generation, in December 2006.

As before, owners can get a replacement iPod through an online check and should get a replacement in about six weeks after Apple's depot gets the old iPod. Apple can't recreate engravings and recommends that users have separate copies of any content on the iPod before they turn it in, since the information won't be copied over.

Lithium-ion batteries from the era were susceptible as a whole and helped lead companies like Apple to using lower-capacity but safer lithium-polymer packs for more of its devices in the future. Sony faced a wide-ranging problem at the time with a mass notebook battery recall that affected most major PC builders, including Apple.

by MacNN Staff