Funny as h***, man. Not the f** part, but in general. :D

"nancy-boy" lol

Its amazing that they would try to save a few pennies by having some cheap plastic clip on such an expensive device. Its seems like they always seem to fail in the "last mile" on their products. Hinges on laptops, clips on mp3 players....1 buttom on mice...

I picked up great leather case from in-case at the apple store for $20. It was sitting next to the $40 original apple cases which are c***. The in case has a great clip and openings for the controls and screen, with a nice plastic protector for the screen. All for $20

Come on guys/girls. This is rediculous. Apple is a company! They are trying to make money!! I would rather them skimp on the case than skimp on the ipod. I mean, it is one of the best pieces of electronics I have ever owned. They sell it for so cheap too. So give 'em a break. Oh, and the one button mouse is a "feature".

Yeah, what were you all thinking!!!! Just because Apple gives you a clip doesn't that you were supposed to use it!!!!!!!!! It's your fault you dropped your iPod!!!!!!! Don't blame Steve, he is god, and his butt feels like two soft pillows against my adoring lips!!!!!!!!! You guys are Dumbasses!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

First, it is bad reporting to give so much attention to a single user's experience. Now that we've heard from those that can relate (and those who can exacerbate), shouldn't we also hear from those that haven't had their clips break? Given human nature, we won't hear from them. But MacNN should have made an effort to contact Apple (or an Apple store or 2 or 3) to see what their stance is in this regard. Everyone, including Apple, can have the occasional design flaw (however stupid); to report on an old flaw without any info regarding the fix, does little good. Has the problem been fixed in the new models? Was this a short lived problem? Was it minimal? Are somefolks simply being to rough on what should be considered an expense piece of sensitive electronics? Regardless, better reporting is needed.

That's why I bought a Marware convertable. Only after spending $100 on cases that were just too flimsy and replacement warranties at CompUSA. It seems only Marware knows how to make solid cases that still give the iPod room to breath. Yes Apple should make better cases. Write them. They do have a feedback link on their site. As for not putting it in your pocket, did you ever notice the iPod tends to overheat when in a pants pocket? And try not leaning over with it in your shirt pocket and causing it to fall. About the only safe spot for it is in a belt pocket or a jacket zipper pocket. But who spent $150 on the jacket Apple is offering. No LCD screen on the sleeve to tell you what it is playing! That's the least they could do for a $150 jacket.

I meant belt clip carrying case that is well built.

Apple is always "aware" of situations regarding their increasingly defective products. But do they do anything about it? Rarely - unless the situation will open them up to legal problems.

Take all the broken screens on iBooks and very expensive PowerBooks. Apple has been "aware" for some time that the latches on these portable computers are defective and cause the screen to crack. An issue Apple will not cover under warranty even though it is clearly a manufacturing defect.

They are so "aware" of this situation that they make it a point of deleting posts on their own message boards regarding this and other situations that they are responsible for creating through Apple's own defective design/engineering and inadequate manufacturing processes.

Apple used to be the #1 best manufacturer of Hardware and Software. Now that they are on this new path of trying to be the Jack of all trades by making in house solutions for everything - yet a master of nothing they are the biggest example of a failing company in the world.

God Apple needs a new CEO that can provide a competent and reliable direction for the company. I sure want to believe but I realize now that Apple is not the company to buy from or invest in. Such a bummer for a long term (10+ years) Apple supporter.

why didn't they bother telling anybody? because they're apple, and they are very concerned about public perception. They'll tend to fix a problem in a quiet way rather than putting a big ad on their site "WARNING! YOUR IPOD BELT CLIP MAY BREAK AND CAUSE YOUR IPOD TO FALL 1 STORY OR MORE!"
It's up to us to make a fuss, nancy boys or not. Swing those purses, boys!

Mine broke after less than a week, and I just bought my 10gig (old style) a few weeks ago at Best Buy (on closeout). I was quite gentle with it, but assumed it would, for example, be able to resist the pull of 1 earth gravity with the weight of an iPod in it. Bad assumption. The hinge component of the clip was clearly of poor design - there is simply no way the product could function well as designed. This is not a new trend in product design however; I once bought a trackball that didn't work worth a darn, took it back and found that the next one was the exactly the same. Finally, I took a good look at it and discovered that the amount of friction between the ball and the rollers just wasn't sufficient. I took a piece of fine steel wool to the track ball and made it nice and matte instead of super-glossy, and the product then worked properly for years. Now, this company (don't remember which) was producing and selling huge quantities of a product that simply couldn't work as designed. That's just plain crazy. Anyway, Apple certainly isn't the only company producing the occasional product of terrible design.

Oh, did I mention that I had to buy the 10gig iPod to replace my original 5gig iPod with the all-too-common "bad firewire port" issue which Apple so cheerfully likes to, ah, censor, from their boards....

Despite the recent Consumer Reports article, I have to say that Apple's quality control really *has* gone down-hill, it just hasn't do so quite as quickly as the rest of the industry.

Mine seems pretty stout...

The ending to this story is that Apple did end up replacing my case.

If you have a similar issue, I suggest you contact apple customer relations.

so how do i get a replacement??

I had THREE break on me.
Apple replaced every one of them by me just placing a phone call...
I did not even have to send the old one back! No hassle! (Mind you, that is in the UK).
All I had to do was call Apple customer serbices, say my clip broke off for the 3rd frigging time and they sent a new case!
(INothing to stop people calling and claiming broken clip without even owning a case in the first place...)
My guess is that they placed a truly large order to start with and they all have the problem, which is a design problem, not material.
They just have a ton leftover to get rid off and keep sending them out for free until they run out and then devise a better clip.

My girlfriend ( now fiancee ) bought me an iPod for Christmas last year. The day that I got it, I opened the box, and lo-and-behold, there was a carrying case with one of the hinges on the clip already lose. Needless to say, the first time I used it I was in for quite a suprise.
I then took the case to the Apple store here in town, where I was told that I couldn't get a replacement from Apple ( but they had many shiny new 3rd party cases they could sell me ) no thank you very much.

The point is not to wear the iPod on your belt using the clip, that is impossible. Rather try to realize that there is no belt.

"Take the number of (ipod cases) in the field, A, multiply by the probable rate of failure, B, multiply by the average out-of-court settlement, C. A times B times C equals X. If X is less than the cost of a recall, we don't do one." To quote one of my favorite movies.

belt clip made from plastic is piece of c***...

1. Apple can't tell the affected people probably because they don't track cases by serial number. Even if you registered your iPod, I don't think they know if you got a good case or a cheap case. Should they really spend money on infrastructure to track this? Call them up, get a replacement - problem solved.
2. Apple probably doesn't make these cases - I would imagine these are purchased from a third party, making it even more difficult to track.
3. Apple's quality isn't decreasing, it's just that the few small problems are getting reported more and more on these web sites. People don't post or get a headline on MacNN if their stuff works "just fine." And nobody counts statistics on people's stuff that works. As someone mentioned, one person's problem is getting far too much press.
4. I've seen a lot of things where owners have claimed they were gentle on them when you can see clear evidence of misuse. I would imagine some of this comes into play here as well. Not everyone, but some of them.

Anything worn on the belt (mobile 'phone in natty Nokia leather case etc.) that is NOT a pair of trousers is asking for bother and WILL make you look like you're all about the c***.

Pockets were invented to put things in; Belts just stop your arse crack showing when you bend over. Don't attach anything to your belt and you'll look neither g** nor stupid (if either is a problem for you).

"Oh. Such a bummer. So I was in the middle of a 3 way c**k sucking scene, while some other guy was seeing to my tradesman's entrance and my iPod suddenly falls off and breaks on the floor. It's all covered in j*** and it doesn't work any more! Damn Steve Jobs you b****, for making cheap clips that attach to my belt which then cause my iPod to get all spunky. Now come on Troy - Fire up the Village People CD and let's get it on....!"

They are so "aware" of this situation that they make it a point of deleting posts on their own message boards regarding this and other situations that they are responsible for creating through Apple's own defective design/engineering and inadequate manufacturing processes.

For the last time, Apple's support forums are for just that -- support (note that the tab on their website isn't titled "b****** and Rants"). Apple's within their rights to delete off-topic postings from their boards. You've got the rest of the entire Internet to complain on if you so desire.

I've been repairing Apple products (along with others) since 1987 (and using them for about 10 years prior to that). The quality (longterm durability) is definitely declining - and I suggest that before you say this is "bitching" you TALK to some people who repair them for a living - and I don't mean at the local Apple store, they might be a bit biased :-)

Additionally, the number of design and manufacturing defects is increasing.

I'm NOT saying they are junk - I am saying they are not as good as they used to be. In fact, they aren't NEARLY as good as they used to be, BUT, they are still better than the "Wintel" brands we also repair.

if you find that you're the type who can appreciate a 50lb hot beef injection, the answer to the case problem is right there behind you.

With your iPod nestled snugly half in and half out of your floppy hoop, you can now use your porta-juke as a way of showing off your peculiar asset. See a cute looking Johnny down by the mall? Ask him to tell you how much time is left in your song. Let his fingers do the walking!

The extra heat generated by being swaddled in your little pocket is bound to be a bonus, and having the music right in the source of your jive will make you the dance, dance, dance!

itz