Latest iPod lawsuit weighs on Apple shares
Prince McLeanShares of Apple Computer continued their downward spiral on Monday, this time amongst concerns over a new lawsuit charging that the colorful displays on the iPod nano are prone to scratches that render it unreadable.
"This is marketed as a beautiful, sleek device, which it is, but that feature is completely gone after a few weeks of using it," Harvey Rosenfield, an attorney who filed the latest complaint, told the San Francisco Chronicle. "If Steve Jobs can pull it out of his pocket, we should be able to pull it out of our pockets without it being ruined," he said.
The 19-page complaint filed late Thursday in San Mateo County Superior Court is the latest in a string of lawsuits to hit Apple following the introduction the iPod nano less than five months ago. It's also the second suit to allege that the iPod nano is defective due to its scratch-prone display/protective coating.
In October, a disgruntled iPod nano owner filed a class-action suit against Apple, charging that the nano's screen scratches excessively during normal use. The complaint seeks that customers be refunded for their nano purchases in addition to gaining a share of the company’s profits from the players.
Apple, which acknowledged that there is a "real but minor issue" that could cause unexplainable cracks in a fraction of 1 percent of iPod nano displays, has denied the player's screen or protective coating is defective.
"The iPod nano is made with the same high-quality polycarbonate plastic as the fourth-generation iPod," Apple said in a statement last September. The company's official stance on the matter is that customers should use one of the many protective cases on the market to shield their iPod nano from scratches.
Apple shares closed at $64.71 on Monday afternoon, down $2.60 or 3.8 percent.
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18 Comments
Was Apple not replacing them?
That said, I would call the current material choices poor enough to be defective. Some people say that it is a deliberate choice for marketing reasons, but I think it is pretty f-ed up to deliberately chose substandard materials.
Suggesting that customers buy protective cases is a cop-out, because that hides the design of the core product and even accelerates the scratching where dirt gets caught between the case and the iPod.
Cracks are one thing--Apple admits that issue (though rare) and has taken care of it.
Scratches are another.
Is Apple lying when they say the iPod Nano surface is the same material as other iPods?
Scratches are another.
Is Apple lying when they say the iPod Nano surface is the same material as other iPods?
My understanding is that Apple is replacing the ones with severe scratches.
Yes, I've heard they've been generous with the replacements, with a policy of erring on the customer's side. That's good.
But I'm still wondering about the material, and whether Apple's lying when they say it's the same. Especially in light of other iPods NOT generating the same scratch hysteria, and in the light of Consumer Reports believing that the material is different.
It could simply be an interesting study in group psychology that explains why nano owners complain more about scratches than 4G or 5G owners. But it COULD be Apple telling a really stupid, easily-caught lie.
I'd think there would be solid evidence (as opposed to anecdotes) one way or the other by now, but I haven't run across any. Is the nano's material the same, as Apple claims?
These lawyers need to go Quail hunting with the Vice President.........Seriously.