Friday, July 16, 2010, 01:30 pm

Apple will give away free cases for every iPhone 4 through Sept. 30

By AppleInsider Staff

Every new iPhone 4 purchased through Sept. 30 will be eligible for a variety of free cases, and those who already purchased a first-party "bumper" will receive a refund, Apple announced on Friday.

Apple will offer its own bumpers, but said it cannot make the cases fast enough for customers, so it will source some other cases from other vendors and give users a choice of options. Users will be able to pick which one they would like.

Customers can apply for their free case on Apple's website starting late next week. "Pick a case, zoom, we'll send it off to you," Jobs reportedly said. "That simple."

In addition, customers who are still unhappy with the iPhone 4 can return their handset undamaged within 30 days for a full refund. Users can return before or after they've received their free case.

"No restocking fee or anything," Jobs said. "We want to take care of everyone. We want every user to be happy."

However, he revealed that there will not be a refund for customers who bought third-party cases for the iPhone 4. There are a very small number of people in that category, he said, because there are so few cases available. Jobs said he wishes there were more people with cases, because then the problem wouldn't have been as widespread.