Gripes about iPod breakdowns grow

Sun-Sentinel ^ | 12/11/2006 | Nick Wingfield

[Swordmaker]

Unexplained malfunctions, battery failure among common complaints

This holiday season Apple Computer Inc.'s iPod is once again a top seller in stores, and the music player's white earphones remain a nearly ubiquitous sight on city streets and at gyms. But as it reaches deeper into the mainstream, more users are becoming familiar with a new sense of loss: the death of an iPod.

Among users of the device, it's long been common to hear of iPods laid low by batteries that no longer hold a charge, malfunctioning hard disks and screens with cracks. In some cases, problems are caused by users who accidentally drop their iPods or otherwise subject them to abuse, but other users say their iPods go belly up even after normal use.

[shuckmaster]

It like a cigarette lighter. After you wear it out, you get another one.

[rlmorel]

Good gosh, ET. You are drawn like a moth to a flame with these things...:)

[ken5050]

FYI pingee..

[antiRepublicrat]

FUD(Fear Uncertainty Doubt) a tactic used against a new or less known product.

SCO engaged in a huge anti-Linux FUD campaign after Linux was over 10 years old and quite widely known.

[antiRepublicrat]

In some cases, problems are caused by users who accidentally drop their iPods or otherwise subject them to abuse

Interestingly, some iPods are pretty rugged even with that. The new Shuffle is very difficult to kill, surviving immersion, getting stepped on, and being dropped from a third-story balcony. They had to run it over with a car to finally kill it.

iPods (or any consumer devices) with high-res screens are not quite so durable, although the original nano could take a lot of abuse despite the scratch complaints.

[antiRepublicrat]

(AND YES IT IS LESS THAN 5% TOTAL MAC OS MARKETSHARE IS 5.39% including OS 8,9 Etc...)

Marketshare means what's getting sold. OS 8 & 9 haven't been sold for years. Otherwise, I agree, OS X is a fairly "less known" product, especially in servers. Most IT guys I've talked to didn't even know there was a Mac server OS. But you should have seen their eyes light up when I told them it was UNIX underneath, and they were practically drooling at all the cool (included, or cheap) tools. Apple's server marketshare would go through the roof if they'd just do traveling road shows oriented towards IT people.

[Bloody Sam Roberts]

FUD(Fear Uncertainty Doubt)

LOL. I always knew the meaning of the acronym but I get such a giggle when I see iPod FUD.

The reason being is that fud is an old Scottish term for the vagina. So iPod fud seems to be an appropo juxtaposition of terms.

[Echo Talon]

SCO engaged in a huge anti-Linux FUD campaign after Linux was over 10 years old and quite widely known.

Linux is still a target for FUD(IMHO), It deserves most of its criticisms, but it also deserves a lot of praises also... Linux has VERY low share(especially in the home)

I'm downloading "SabayonLinux 3.2 "miniEdition"(Linux) as we speak.

[Echo Talon]

Good gosh, ET. You are drawn like a moth to a flame with these things...:)

I know. :( or like a fly to s... ;)

Sheesh...

I love those guys(swordmaker and antirepublicrat) and hope they and everyone else gets a kick out of it like I do. ;)

[SargeK]

Sorry all, but IMO iPods are junk. Wonderful little devices when they work right, but I have had two go teats up after a little over a year - both from failures other than batteries (although one of them went bad too.)

Neither of them was ever handled with anything but TLC - never dropped, immersed or even allowed to get too hot or cold.

I'm sorry, but something that costs $400.00 shouldn't be a.) non-repairable and, b.) dying within a year to 14 months.

Apple's concept for their technology is far better than their execution.

[martin_fierro]

	iPod
Send FReepmail if you want on/off iPing list WARNING: This is a high-volume Ping list. Turn your headphones down
The List of Ping Lists

[skateman]

it looks and smells like FUD

Not totally. Our I-Pod bought last year has had many of the problems described in this article. In particular we continue to have unexplained hard drive problems which Apple continues to tell us that nothing is wrong.

[bmwcyle]

http://www.creative.com/

[SamAdams76]

Everybody is yip-yip-yapping about the iPod. All jealous about its success. Everybody wanting to tear iPod down.

And why? SO Zune can rise like a phoenix from Bill Gates' basement to claim the music-playing, playlist-shuffling throne?

Now I like Bill Gates as much as the next guy. Dorky looking glasses-wearing guy who got his butt kicked in high school corridors. And I loathe Steve Jobs like the other guy, arrogant snot who steals ideas from others and makes them his own.

But lets get down to platinum pins that you stick in wall maps in fancy offices here. The iPod kicks butt. There is nothing like spinning the scroll wheel to drill down to that Built To Spill tune you want to listen too. And nothing like shuffling your custom "Taco Bell" playlist of 432 songs and coming up with "Who Cares If My Pants Are Too Tight" by much heralded alternative rock band "The Flaming Dicks."

Not that I don't want Bill Gates and Microsoft to rule the entire world but I hope that when they do, they don't make me listen to a Zune and they let me listen to my iPod. They can have the world but just give me my iPod.

[bmwcyle]

I just like creative and Cambridge Speaker Works better.