# R.I.P. iPod. never again.



## boi (Mar 15, 2003)

well, after several problems, my iPod is now officially out of commission. Kudos to Apple for not offering service on any of it, even though it was under warranty  .
after about 3 or 4 months of usage, the battery wouldn't last any longer than 3 hours. i called Mr. Apple and told them about the problem. they said that i could send it in and pay $30 shipping to have them look at it. but he warned me that "if the case is scratched, they'll deem it as abused and would not service it". after ranting about the fact that the back scratches after i breathe, look at, or even talk about the ipod, i finally gave up. i just got a car charger and went on with my musical life.

next i decided "hey, i'll get a cool new remote thingie. that'll be neato". so i got one. it was apparently DOA. i called Mr. Apple yet again and got the sound advice to "push it in hard and wiggle it around. trust me, it will work". neat! i love easy fixes. wiggle wiggle push push wiggle wig-- SNAP. $#@%! that little round thing around the headphone jack snapped in half. terrific. by then the Apple store near me opened up, so i took it there.  the Apple Geniuses? wouldn't take the headphones back or even look at my now tattered ipod. 

two months later. it's now 2 weeks before the one year anniversary of my iPod and i's bittersweet relationship. like clockwork the iPod decided to self destruct right before the warranty went out. the firewire port won't work at all. i've got ONE cd on the ipod right now that i'm pretty tired of. sigh. off to the Apple Store?. after an hour and a half drive, i arrived to some happy, healthy employees and Geniuses?. 
"hmm..." the Genius? said as he made a frowny face. "how long have you had it?"
"almost a year now. it's still under warranty" i said, making sure to speak the last four words very slowly and intently. 
"hmm..." the Genius? repeated. "let me take it to The Back."
so back he went, where the employees hide and talk about how sexy their computers are and read magazines with naked G4s. i sat on the little round chair meant for kids and waited. waited. waited.
waited.
i felt like i was waiting for my mother to come out of surgery.
finally the Genius? emerged and handed me the iPod. 
"well fella" he said, putting his hand on my shoulder as if he really, truly, deeply cared for me.
"you see these hairline fractures here?"
"no"
"they're right there. see?"
"uh, okay. yeah. i see em." 
"those are signs of abuse."
ding ding ding! there's that word again! i think it's the only thing they teach their tech guys concerning products under warranty. for all i know they took into The Back to abuse it themselves. i bet they tied it to a chair and whipped it for the entire time i sat on the kiddie chair. anyway, the conversation had to go on.
"since these fractures are here, we can't send it in because Apple will probably deny service"
"couldn't you try?"
"it would be better if you shipped it out. that way we could eliminate the middle man and you have more of a chance to get it fixed under warranty"
"but it costs me $30 and costs you nothing. go ahead and ship it out for me."
"nono, we can't do that. blah blah blah blah blah"
i stopped listening. i didn't care any more. i knew i was just beating my head against the $400 brick i was holding in my hand. there was no use. 
it's all very sad. i expected Mr. Apple to give me a little more respect because i purchased the $400 iBrick, but no. i suppose he thinks i got my moneys worth because i had the opportunity to use his amazing product for almost a year. he probably feeds them to his dog.
anyway, yeah. i'm through ranting... has anyone had a similar experience?


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## Darkshadow (Mar 15, 2003)

no


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## dixonbm (Mar 16, 2003)

That is really horrible.  I do agree thought that the iPod does scratch much too easily.  Hairline fractures...HA!  Remember the cracks in the G4 Cube.....

Anyway, you should copy your 'rant' and mail it to apple.  Although, I doubt it would do you any good.  It sounds to me like it was really apple's fault when they told you to push it in harder, the headphones that is.

Best of luck.


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## Izzy (Mar 16, 2003)

hmm...I'm wanting to get an iPod, but now I'm worried.  Does it really break that easily?

Fractures?  Did you ever drop it by accident or leave it in a bag that you dropped?  You mean it just get's cracks in it through normal use?  I can see scratches here and there...

I'd hate to throw down this kind of cash and then have the same experience.


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## voice- (Mar 16, 2003)

I've had a similar experience (not as bad, but...)

I got my 5GB iPod for christmas 2001. That is, I was supposed to get it by then, it was supposed to arrive in November, middle of December at last. February 2002 I had a brand new iPod...I loaded it with music, ran OS X off of it at school, carried it around everywhere for months.

As many have experienced, it crashed. No biggie, a little Menu+Play and it was fine.
Same thing happened again nopt long after, now I left it for 24 hours and then rebooted. Great!

January 2003 (when warranty was expired cause Apple said I would have it in November) the battery ran out and refused to recharge. Now I have to send it back to Apple to even hear if they want to fix it for me...at my expense of course.

May I suggest Creative Jukebox Zen, boi? 20GB HD, lower prize, about the same size and support MUST be better...


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## RPS (Mar 16, 2003)

Whoa I totally know how irritating, frustrating, downright awful that feels. Like voice, I got my iPod weeks too late, too. Now, Everything is starting to break. The plug on the iPod is broken.
But, it stull works fine. But when I plug my under 2 months old remote control in, 80% of the time all I get is *chrssssssgggghhhhhh*. I call them and they say it's the iPod, but when I just put my headphones in it, w/o the remote, it works fine! 

btw= I know this is not your priority right now, but you write really funny.


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## chevy (Mar 16, 2003)

> _Originally posted by voice- _
> *I've had a similar experience (not as bad, but...)
> 
> I got my 5GB iPod for christmas 2001. That is, I was supposed to get it by then, it was supposed to arrive in November, middle of December at last. February 2002 I had a brand new iPod...I loaded it with music, ran OS X off of it at school, carried it around everywhere for months.
> ...



The warranty starts at the day you receive it, not at the day you order it or the day you are supposed to receive it.


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## j79 (Mar 16, 2003)

the little round thing for my headphone plug also broke.
i've resorted to surrounding my headphone plug with a thinly slice piece of eraser.
would the remote be of any value? does it sit better?? right now, if i touch the jack (without the eraser slices), it'll either make a static sound, play thru one side, or just stop producing sound...


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## boi (Mar 16, 2003)

maybe writing a letter is in order? perhaps a petition? i'm really sad that this happens because the iPod is a very cool device. there's got to be something we, the consumers, can do about this.


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## RPS (Mar 16, 2003)

I think multiple letters will do the trick.

It's so frustrating, even though I really want to hate the iPod and smash it down really hard, it's too cool and expensive to do.


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## markmac (Mar 16, 2003)

boi, 
I feel for your aggravation and frustration. But by the way, your ability to write about your troubles with a wonderful sense of humor that (sorry) gave me a few chuckles is really wonderful!!! Seriously, consider putting some of your frustrations into writing not only about ipods, but quite possibly about your life experiences in general. (Then in your first book, you can put Apple in your acknowledgements as having started you on your road to fame and ..)

I know that doesn't help with the pod stuff.

I do want to thank all those others who put their 2cents in. I have been wanting an ipod for a while but now at least if I do purchase one I WILL FOR SURE also purchase Best Buy's 4 year warranty for their $40. I'm also waiting  for the new models to be released, hopefully soon.


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## mr. k (Mar 16, 2003)

iPod oh iPod...

I can't wait until I see what the new ones are like...  If they have 40 gd harddrives I can't wait.  I'd buy one before I could blink.  But let's hope there are interesting new features in 'em also.  ]crosses fingers[


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## boi (Mar 16, 2003)

Thanks to the two who have commented on my humorous writing. sometimes my sarcasm and blunt-ness get me in trouble.
by the way, all those '?'s after 'Genius' should be  the little trademark symbol (option-2). so just pretend they are when you read ^_^.
i'm going to try and get the CompUSA extended warranty this weekend. i was told that it was possible, so i'm going there with my $30. hopefully CompUSA isn't so picky about their warranty claims.


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## twister (Mar 17, 2003)

Good luck boi.  Or you could always try a different apple store if that's possible.  I had good luck with CompUSA and they have an upgrade option too!


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## callieX (Mar 17, 2003)

I like you have the original ipod.  I bought it Februrary 21 2002 from one of the local store here.  In Janurary I started having the battery problem.  I was told by an Apple rep to take it back to where I bought it and they would give me a new one.  The store said no but to send for warranty work.  I contacted Apple on their website. They told me I was still under warranity and they would be sending me a shipping container to ship to them in.

That week I went out of town for training I told my wife what to do when the shipping container came.  I could not access my email that week I was gone but was confident my iPod would be taken care of.  My wife told all week that nothing came.

When I got back to work I found an email from Apple saying "Authorize payment of $45.75 for shipping" so that we can process your order.  I already spent $400 on the damn thing in the year I've had it it worth less than that now.  

I tried calling them and email them about why is it $45.75.  No one returned my call or emails.  I decided that $45.75  was too much and found a possible fix for it over the internet.

I have had Macs since 1984.  All my Macs worked without a problem except for my Wallstreet powerbook and this iPod.  Both times Apple support put me through hell.  

Calliex


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## Arden (Mar 17, 2003)

Here's an easy fix for any iPod problem:

Take a screwdriver, take off the case and start fiddling with the insides of the iPod.

When that fails to fix anything, shoot yourself in the head. 

Seriously, though, you could try starting a petition at www.petitionanything.com, or boycotting the iPod until Apple promises to do something.  Just some suggestions.


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## boi (Mar 31, 2003)

alright, i did it. i took it apart. 
and i fixed it.

well, for the most part anyway.

while i was at it, i sanded the metal case on the back. everything's semi-peachy. firewire port works now, but the remote still doesn't. oh well. better than an ibrick.


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## Inline_guy (Mar 31, 2003)

Man I hate to hear all that.  I had a really good experiance with mine.  I got it and after like a week it stoped working.  It would not even boot at one point.  I sent it back to Apple (free of charge) and it had two HUGE scratches on it.  The next day they sent me a brand new one. 

I have had no problems with the new one.  THe battery started to hold less of a charge, but after the newest update it is fine.

It makes me sad to hear your stories.  I know how upset I would be.  Here is hoping it all works out.

Mathew


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## Arden (Mar 31, 2003)

> _Originally posted by boi _
> *alright, i did it. i took it apart.
> and i fixed it.*


Boy (boi?), I wasn't completely serious about that.  What exactly did you do?


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## boi (Mar 31, 2003)

i know you weren't. i had actually forgotten you mentioned it, honestly.
i took off the back, battery and hard drive and noticed the firewire port was carefully installed with a very small piece of scotch tape. brilliant.
i took a soldering iron to the ibrick and voilá, it's an ipod again. that firewire port isn't moving any more. i have to elevate the firewire cord a little bit, so it goes into the port at an angle, but it's a small price to pay. i'll eventually fix that with some tape or something. 

now my ipod has... character ^_^. 

i also sanded the back of it to give it a brushed metal look. it looks fantastic. now all i have to do is get rid of the scratches on the plastic, somehow fix the discoloring of the wheel (spraypaint maybe? i wonder how silver would look...)  and fix my little remote port on the top. now that apple has denied me warranty, i'm no longer afraid to customize my baby.

i'll snap some pictures of the whole process once i find the charger for my digitical camera. i found the number of guides on the internet for taking an ipod apart to be extremely insufficient. i need to pass on the help, because i know a couple other people here have ipods with broken firewire ports. it's really a pretty simple fix. it was my first time with a soldering iron (thanks for the help blake!).


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## Arden (Apr 1, 2003)

"Digitical camera"... lol

You may want to be careful what you actually do to your iPod so you don't custom melt it or damage any of the components.

Now that it's working, though, have you thought about writing a "How-to" of how to fix it?


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## boi (Apr 1, 2003)

the fix was a pretty obvious one, so i don't think i'm in any danger of destroying anything. but yeah, i'll write a how-to once my 'digitical camera' is working ^_^


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## Arden (Apr 1, 2003)

> _Originally posted by boi _
> *i also sanded the back of it to give it a brushed metal look. it looks fantastic. now all i have to do is get rid of the scratches on the plastic, somehow fix the discoloring of the wheel (spraypaint maybe? i wonder how silver would look...)  and fix my little remote port on the top. now that apple has denied me warranty, i'm no longer afraid to customize my baby.*


Like I said, be careful what you do...  You may want a custom job, but you shouldn't use any strong materials that could melt/warp your case, get inside & ruin the functionals, etc.  I'm also not sure how you're going to fix plastic scratches (if you figure out a "foolproof" way, tell me so I can unscratch my glasses! ).


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## ksv (Apr 1, 2003)

hey, http://deep.urbanturban.no/ipod/ 

Heh, a month after I did this it stopped booting... Sent it in to Apple for repair - and 6 days later I had a brand new one delivered on my door - the day before christmas eve 
Just me, or is AppleCare actually better in Europe than in the US? _That_ is unusual...


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## boi (Apr 1, 2003)

> _Originally posted by arden _
> *Like I said, be careful what you do...  You may want a custom job, but you shouldn't use any strong materials that could melt/warp your case, get inside & ruin the functionals, etc.  I'm also not sure how you're going to fix plastic scratches (if you figure out a "foolproof" way, tell me so I can unscratch my glasses! ). *



i'm not sure what you're talking about  . i wasn't going to throw it in the fire. i'll probably spraypaint my scroll wheel (it comes off) and that's it. i don't know of any way to fill in plastic scratches other than fine wet sanding it.


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## monktus (Apr 13, 2003)

Its a shame about the problems you guys have had with your iPods, Apple UK were fine with me.

The headphone connection on mine was a bit dodgy so I sent it back to apple (they paid for the courier both ways) although they said they couldn't find a fault with it. I thought that it must be the headphones that were the problem so I asked for another pair and they sent them out free of charge.

Initially my iPod showed up as being out of warranty but I spoke to someone about it and they thought that Scotsys must have just had it lying around for a while in the shop (its a 5gb). I explained that I had just bought it and they were fine about the whole thing.

I haven't had to get much repair stuff done on my Macs but I've never had any experiences like you guys have had (I spilt orange juice on my G4 keyboard about a week after I got it and they gave me a new one free!). There shouldn't be but perhaps there's a difference in service between regions?

The 'abuse' thing is especially annoying, iPods do get scratched very easily. What are they playing at! I'd hassle Apple a lot about it all.


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## Hypernate (May 6, 2003)

I've had a similar problem. I picked up my iPod and half of the little ring in the head phone jack just fell out. I sent it to APple through the AppleCentre I did work experience at. 3 months later, the AppleCentre called me to say that Apple had sent it back, but they didn' tknow why. A week later, I was told it was because the warranty was declined. Another week passed and I was able to pick it up and I was tol dit was goin gto cos tme AU$400 to repair. THAT'S ONLY HALF THE PRICE OF MY IPOD! They will have declined it because the screen is a little scratched because I had a couple of coins in my pocket with the Ipod without thinking. I'm seriously hoping now though that the rest of the ring doesn' t break or the headphones won't fit at all.

Is it as obvious to you that Apple is aware that this problem is THEIR fault in the way that they have re-designed the headphone jack on the new iPods?!


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## Arden (May 6, 2003)

Wow, that's some bad mojo.  Hope you can find someone to fix your 'Pod.

A little frenetic witht hes paceb ar, are we?


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## Dreamify (May 14, 2003)

Wow... I'm not getting an iPod after hearing that what happened to you guys. Thanks for the warning.


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## monktus (May 15, 2003)

Its unfortunate but I think they're in the minority. If everyone was having all those problems then Apple wouldn't sell any!


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## Arden (May 15, 2003)

So you wouldn't buy a new car if a few people had a problem with it?  You wouldn't buy a new computer if a few people had a problem with it?  Even if the vast majority had no problems at all?

Just because some people have a bad experience with faulty hardware does not mean you should not buy an iPod for yourself.  A) you don't know if you will repeat the same problem, and B) Apple just redesigned the iPod, so hopefully they fixed this problem anyway.


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## callieX (May 15, 2003)

I agreee if just a few people have problem that is not a reason not to buy something.  But it does say something about the company when it does not stand by its products.  $400 is lot to pay for something that doesn't work.  In my case by the time my iPod began to fail it was almost a year.  It was still on warranty and by that time the price had dropped.  In my case they wanted $46 dollars in shipping  with no explanation why.  It wasn't my fault there was a problem with the battery.  After all I was one the early adopters which helped make the darn thing a success, it was still under warranty, they should have fixed for free plain and simple.

Calliex


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## monktus (May 15, 2003)

Hassle them about it - I got my ipod shipped to Amsterdam and back for free, if you're under warranty its not fair that you should have to pay when Apple Europe don't make you.


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## Arden (May 16, 2003)

Of course, you probably paid a lot more for your iPod in Scotland than we do in the States... is that fair?

In the end, it all seems to even out.  (If only!)


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## Perseus (May 18, 2003)

Well I am getting nervous about all of these iPods breaking, I am planning on getting the 15 gig...I mean my friend dropped his (landed really hard) and the screen got all messed up, the screen looked like it was a blotch of ink. Apple said they couldn't repair it. Plus, my friend said hers crashes all the time. I still think however after hearing all of this I am still going to get a 15 gig one, I mean, I'd much rather have the iPod on me than the huge case logic where I have to change all of my cds and all of that stuff especialy when I am on bus rides.

-Perseus


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## monktus (May 18, 2003)

I wouldn't get nervous about them, they're quite sturdy. Don't get discouraged by a couple of bad experiences - they happen with every product, even if its a good one.


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## Arden (May 19, 2003)

Case in point:  We are a Toyota family.  We own 3 excellent Toyotas: an '86 Camry (mine, whee!), an '01 Sienna and an '03 Corolla.  None of them has ever had anything major go wrong, and the Camry even has almost 400,000 miles and is going strong.

Now, a guy in one of my classes has had a different experience with Toyota.  These normally excellent vehicles failed for him and his family.  They had I think a car and a truck, and neither worked properly (I don't remember any details, but I'll ask him).  Just goes to show that even the highest quality, most reliable vehicles sometimes encounter problems.


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## kalantna (May 19, 2003)

Is it still in warranty? Because I'll send you the $30 via paypal and you can ship back in. 

Seriously, how much did you pay for the thing. $200? $300? I think that $30 shipping would be worth the trouble.


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