Overheating iPod Nano and Frayed MagSafe Replacements

[MacRumors]

http://www.macrumors.com/images/macrumorsthreadlogo.gif (http://www.macrumors.com)

Apple has issued a statement and a knowledge base article addressing two separate support issues that may require replacement.

The first issue received publicity (http://afp.google.com/article/ALeqM5j8-0iJyw6RKjuz89Qb5Jv7bWElFQ) today surrounding a Japanese report that certain iPod nanos may be a fire risk.Japan on Tuesday warned users of Apple iPod nanos of a potential fire risk after two new instances in which the popular portable music players overheated.This appears to only affect the first generation (tall rectangular) iPod nanos. Apple quickly released a statement today (http://news.cnet.com/8301-13579_3-10020108-37.html?part=rss&subj=news&tag=2547-1_3-0-20) acknowledging the problem: Apple has determined that in very rare cases batteries in first generation iPod nanos sold between September 2005 and December 2006 can overheat causing failure and deformation of the iPod nano. Any first generation iPod nano customers with any battery overheating issues or issues should contact AppleCare for replacement.

The second issue is one that with regard to fraying MagSafe power adapters that have been used in the MacBook and MacBook Pros. This issue has received some publicity amongst support forums. Apple has posted a knowledge base article (http://support.apple.com/kb/TS1977) indicating that affected customers may be eligible for replacement even if your adapter is out-of-warranty. You may notice a separation of the white insulation on the magnetic end of the MagSafe adapter. Under continued use, the cable may discolor and the rubber molding may become deformed.
Affected customers should visit a local Apple Store for evaluation and replacement.

Article Link (http://www.macrumors.com/2008/08/19/overheating-ipod-nano-and-frayed-magsafe-replacements/)

[Zieg3rman]

Glad mine hasn't gone up in flames yet...

[a1016neo]

I'm glad Apple is informing the public!

Now, do the same with the iphone 3G reception issues!

[audiohhh]

.

[Marlon_JBT]

It's about time Apple has acknowledged their MagSafe has issues.

of course I've already spent $85. :) Ah well.

[iVoid]

It's about time Apple has acknowledged their MagSafe has issues.

of course I've already spent $85. :) Ah well.

Email or go to an Apple store with yoru reciept and talk to them. They may refund your money or give store credit at least.

[junkmailbonzai]

I am happy to see apple stepping up and taking responsibility.

[thecartoonguy]

This may not be related, but I was watching the news tonight, and there was something, which caught my eye. In China the factories are starting to close since the super cheap labor is not in mass numbers any longer. Because of the failing factories, quality is starting to fail as well so the factory can remain open. I'm starting to wonder if Apple is having these issues since the mag safe, nano, the cough iPhone 3G, and some issues with the video cards in a few models. I may be reaching but it just seems to make sense, which sucks, since I love our mac and iPods.

[MattsxB]

Yay a fix for my 2gb nano that gets very warm and battery doesn't last more than 20 minutes!!! AppleCare is gettin a call tomorow from me... I will post results...

[Marlon_JBT]

Email or go to an Apple store with yoru reciept and talk to them. They may refund your money or give store credit at least.

That would work if I could find the receipt. That was months ago and I'm not sure where it is now. :(

[isauce]

Off topic, but I hope they announce about the GPU issue with the MBP! I guess they are taking their time.

[Small White Car]

Count me as another one who bought a new power cord months ago and threw the old one away with the receipt.

Oh well :(

[adamjay]

in your FACE: old bald "Genius" (Moron) at the Indianapolis Keystone Apple Store !!!!!

a year and a half ago i brought in two frayed 1st gen MBP power bricks and this so called "genius" told me they were fraying due to abuse. how can you abuse a product that is engineered to release itself from the laptop to prevent abuse!!!?? I guess i figured that a genius gets paid to, oh... i dunno, think.

i had to get a friend who was an Apple employee to swap the bricks out for new ones for me. i'm so thankful for that friend.

but today i say IN YOUR FACE BALDIE!!! ha!
And i hope you are reading, you know who you are!

[solipsism]

Mine did that about 6 months ago. I called and they sent me out a new one after verifying my CC had the funds to cover if I didn't send the bad one back. It was about 3 weeks out of warranty. When it started going it went quickly. a small crack turned into a tear and soon the whole thing was showing exposed metal fibers I taped it over but that didn't help much. I now pull in the adapter itself, not the cable to detach my MB.


Email or go to an Apple store with yoru reciept and talk to them. They may refund your money or give store credit at least.

That probably won't work if there is no proof of the fraying cable. For all Apple knows you lost it. Now, if you have the frayed cable you can get a replacement, put it in the box from the other one you bought and return it for store credit. There may be another way too, but I don't care enoguh to think through all the possibilities, but it will require the defunct HW.

[Small White Car]

but today i say IN YOUR FACE BALDIE!!! ha!
And i hope you are reading, you know who you are!

Wow. Gee. He did what his boss told him to do.
Tomorrow, he'll do the same.

:rolleyes:

How dreadfully crazy that is.

[Cassie]

I know it's unlikely, but I'm glad I sold my 1G nano a few months ago.

[adamjay]

Wow. Gee. He did what his boss told him to do.
Tomorrow, he'll do the same.

:rolleyes:

How dreadfully crazy that is.

actually, his boss was the friend who swapped them for me, though he wasn't working the day i brought them in.

i guess the ones that really get paid to think are the genius' bosses.

[Lepton]

I had a fraying magsafe adapter replaced at an Apple store for my MacBook Pro about six months ago, no questions asked - under AppleCare.

[LindseyOwen1]

I had the magsafe problem last month, however apple were really good about it. My laptop had run out of warranty but a call to apple and the dispatched one the same day and it arrived the following morning!
The did try and safe it was me not using it correctly and i got a load of emails on how to care for your adaptor. But I was actually impressed with apples service!

[Eduardo1971]

The Magsafe cord on my first generation Macbook frayed nine months after I purchased it (waay back when the first generation Macbooks were released)-the goons at the Apple Store in Glendale, California refused to replace it. They stated "it looks like it was abused"-what a load of rubbish. I ended up buying a replacement one.:mad:

[themoonisdown09]

I've had my Macbook Pro for 2 years now and I've had to get my Magsafe replaced once. I have AppleCare, so I just took it to my local Apple Service Provider and they replaced it for free. I also started pulling the adapter out itself rather than the cord. This is probably how you're supposed to do it.

My wife has the first generation iPod Nano, but she's had no problems with it.

[Eduardo1971]

**On a separate note..."if only my white, first generation Nano would burst into flames..."**:D

[coledog]

Mine was pulling away from the brick end and I called and got a new one under Applecare about 2 weeks ago.

Mine was the old bigger 85w and they sent one of the new smaller ones!

[tiresias314]

I went into the Apple store a few weeks ago with two frayed Magsafe adaptors for my Macbook, and they replaced both on the spot no questions asked.

Basically the adaptors weren't charging my Macbook anymore, and the connector was visibly frayed. I showed it to them and told them they didn't charge my Macbook anymore. They didn't ask to see my Macbook or check my warranty, simply said, "You're sure it's not the computer?" I told them I tested it with another adaptor belonging to my mother, which worked fine.

The girl walked over to two brand new adaptors, broke open the boxes and and replaced the parts I was giving her.

Say what you will, but I do love Apple customer service.

[gcmexico]

the magsafe melted for my MBA...took it straight to the store and got it replaced

[alphaod]

I went into the Apple store a few weeks ago with two frayed Magsafe adaptors for my Macbook, and they replaced both on the spot no questions asked.


Really? Cause I went to 3 Apple Stores, but they said the fraying could not have happened by itself; only after calling Apple Support did they send me a replacement.

[ChePibe]

What about fraying on the OTHER end of the cord?

My cord - where it connects to the power supply - has been fraying for a while now. The laptop is now out of warranty, but this is clearly a design defect similar to the first, and just as dangerous. Any help for me in all of this?

[sbarton]

My wife's 1st gen Ipod Nano overheaded and melted at the base where the power adapter plugs in. I took it to 2 Apple stores and neither one would do anything because it was out of warranty. Best they offered was for ME to mail it into Apple for an estimate on repairs.

So we tossed it....great, now 3 years later they wan't to look at them....

A LITTLE LATE ISN'T IT APPLE?

[eliehass]

I had this EXACT issue with my MBP power cord which was still under warranty. I took it in to the store and they guy told me the fraying was a sign of abuse and was therefore not covered. I told him that made no sense and I had a faulty power cord which frayed on it's own. He brought the manager over who informed me that this is not covered at all (my cord looked exactly like the one pictured in the knowledge base article) and I was forced to by a new one. I was sure there had to be a mistake, so when my receipt was e-mailed to me, a gave a very negative review.

A few days later someone from the store called me about my negative review. They asked for my story, I gave it to them. They told me they would talk to the genius that dealt with me and call me back. I never got a callback. Thanks for the awesome customer support! Luckily I kept the cord, so now i will return to the store with the cord and a printout of the knowledge base article to see if I can get my money back.

[twoodcc]

well i'm glad to see Apple addressing these issues

[stainlessliquid]

local apple store? Isnt that an oxymoron for most people?

[whooleytoo]

I've had 3 Magsafe connectors fail on my 1st gen MBP

- First, the cable frayed. I thought it was faulty design (since it also happened on another MBP we bought at the same time), but it could have been my fault. Apple, in their wisdom, don't put any serrated "grips" on their plugs making them harder to pull out. So, I was leveraging the magsafe connector off by putting my finger under the cable and levering it up and off. Over time, this seem to have frayed the cable.

Edit: ignore the above. After reading the KB article, it sounds like exactly what I experienced. The cable was discoloured where it was 'bending'.

- The second melted through the cable insulation, at the Magsafe end.

- The third, the other end (wall socket piece of the cable) failed. This also happened with a colleague's MBP.

- As I speak, the light in my newest power adaptor is flickering from green, to orange, to green... Hope that's not a sign of problems to come...

Even though I've already replaced it, I wouldn't mind a free replacement in case this one fails. Pity there isn't an Apple Store in the country.

[jlafrenais]

Anyone know what model they are using as nano replacements? I've got one I need to get checked out. Just wondering if I'll score a new one or some 1st gen pulled out of storage somewhere...

[blehpunk]

I had that magsafe problem on two of my MBPs. I took them to the store and the genius said "yah that just happens, look, it's done it on all of our computers too" after tons of arguing he finally agreed to replace one of them, but made me use the other one. that one lasted a few months and then just quit working all together, so I called apple and they switched it out last week. i hate the people in my local apple store, I will only call applecare for problems now.

[happydude]

in your FACE: old bald "Genius" (Moron) at the Indianapolis Keystone Apple Store !!!!!

a year and a half ago i brought in two frayed 1st gen MBP power bricks and this so called "genius" told me they were fraying due to abuse. how can you abuse a product that is engineered to release itself from the laptop to prevent abuse!!!?? I guess i figured that a genius gets paid to, oh... i dunno, think.

i had to get a friend who was an Apple employee to swap the bricks out for new ones for me. i'm so thankful for that friend.

but today i say IN YOUR FACE BALDIE!!! ha!
And i hope you are reading, you know who you are!

we had the same problem. with the frayed cord, one apple store person at the mall of america in MN told us it was our fault for it having happened and was going to charge us $85 to get it fixed. so we went to a nearby apple store instead and they replaced it. i think it's good apple is now acknowledging the problem so it isn't a matter of who you talk to, but they have a standard approach. it's ridiculous it took them this long, and they should refund those who paid already.

but yeah, for baldie . . . i also hope my baldie is eating his words right now!

[theheadguy]

w00t!

replacement of battery - or - nano? please say nano applecare person. (:

fyi-- for everyone who thinks apple is graciously helping everyone "no questions asked" out of the kindness of their heart, there is an internal support document that talks about any power adapter or battery issues that can cause a fire or the customer reports is overheating is to be replaced "no questions asked"... For the legal people out in the crowd, if they asked questions then that dialogue may press a customer to have apple admit fault or get a representative to reveal this is happening to others, etc. also, to not replace it when it is under warranty or to argue about it isn't worth the risk or liability of the adapter or battery actually exploding or setting fire. so the "no questions asked" policy is to keep their ass out of court.

[theheadguy]

well i'm glad to see Apple addressing these issues
more like be glad Japan did.

[japanime]

Does anyone have a link to Apple's "statement" regarding the first-generation nanos? The link in the original post goes to a CNET story that also quotes the statement (but provides no link to it).

I tried finding the statement on Apple's press-release site. Not there, as far as I can tell.


Edit: Never mind, found it on the Apple Japan site:

http://www.apple.com/jp/news/2008/aug/20ipodnano.html

[shoobe01]

Um... why all the stories about many magsafe adapters going bad? How about every apple power adapters for the past decade? Unless I am missing some subtle nuance, this appears to be the exact same failure mode as several /dozen/ power adapters I have had to replace over the years. Bronze bricks, flying saucers, etc, etc, etc. Occasionally there's a replacement program, usually not.

Yes, sturdier cords would make for bigger power nests to carry along, but we always end up there anyway (before magsafe, which cannot apparently be replicated legally) so who cares? Why can't apple just make a decent power cord?

[auxplage]

I have had one go bad on my MacBook Pro (1st generation), and two have gone bad on my girlfriend's MacBook (1st generation).

I only bought one of the three - my girlfriend's first - since I figured it was our fault, and I genuinely do not like ripping off companies.

That said, once mine went bad, there was no way in hell I was going to pay for it, and then her's went bad again - just about a month ago.

There are serious issues.

[Apple Ink]

Atleast now I wont have to treat my MagSafe like a new born infant!:p

[SchneiderMan]

lol i have so many non apple power adapters that never frayed in my whole life..

[solipsism]

lol i have so many non apple power adapters that never frayed in my whole life..

And I have so many Apple power adapters that never frayed in my whole life, but none of them were magnetically connected so I never abused them by ripping swiftly at the cord to unplug.

[CaptainCannabis]

My Macbook Air overheats... should I wait till it catches fire so that Apple replaces all the defective MBA's they sold?

[thefunkymunky]

Hmm, my MagSafe from my original MBP is starting to fray like the photo. Time to get a replacement me thinks. :p My USB cord for my iPhone3G seems to have problems keep a connection to my Mac though. Not physical damage to the cable from what I can see. But if I squeeze and bend the cable near the USB plug the iPhone sometimes disconnects and loses Sync. Will I get this replaced too? I thought it might be a dodgy Dock connector in the iPhone.

[dogbait]

Most connectors, power, audio etc. have grips on the connector itself so you don't have to yank them by the cord. Apple in their pursuit of style over practicality designed the magsafe connector to be so small that you can't really grip it!

It's not really a problem with the manufacturing quality of the magsafe adapter, more the design. If everyone could pull the magsafe out by the connector rather than the cord Apple wouldn't have this problem.

[Snowcat001]

It's all nice to see them replacing them and everything.. but are they actually going to FIX it???

What are the odds for new magsafe adapters coming with the new macbooks and macbook pro's in september?

[dahcheet]

I haven't noticed any over heating on my 1st Gen iPod Nano. Of course, I don't use it nearly as much as I used to back in college. Now it sits in the speaker dock in my bathroom. I'm going to start taking it out when I'm not using it though. Don't need my house catching on fire while I'm at work.

Is Apple replacing all 1st Gen Nanos purchased between those dates or just the ones that overheat?

[whooleytoo]

Most connectors, power, audio etc. have grips on the connector itself so you don't have to yank them by the cord. Apple in their pursuit of style over practicality designed the magsafe connector to be so small that you can't really grip it!

It's not really a problem with the manufacturing quality of the magsafe adapter, more the design. If everyone could pull the magsafe out by the connector rather than the cord Apple wouldn't have this problem.

It drives me nuts!

Even worse are the iPhone headphones which is really tight and difficult to grip. Worst of all - the TV-out cable for the iPhone. The composite jacks are extremely tight, but offer no grip. It took me several minutes to pry the cable free from my HDTV!

If Apple had designed the wheel, it'd be triangular, for extra pizzazz. :rolleyes:

[kironin]

uh? I thought the magsafe business was old news. Many months ago, may be even a year ago, my magsafe started smoking at the connection end due to it wearing through (even a little fire, quite impressive). I called Apple about it and discussed what had happened with them and they sent me to the local Apple store to exchange it for a brand new one with a reinforced end. No cost. No hassle. It was out of warranty. The reason they sent me to the store is I simply didn't want to wait for a new one being shipped to me after I shipped the old one to them. There was no need to have a "genius" make this decision, Apple customer service had already made the decision and the "genius" just needed to visually verify that yes indeed the connector was smoked. I guess the difference is I made sure I knew what the outcome would be from going to the store before I got in my car and spent gas going there.

[MattsxB]

Yay a fix for my 2gb nano that gets very warm and battery doesn't last more than 20 minutes!!! AppleCare is gettin a call tomorow from me... I will post results...

I just got off the phone with an apple care product specialist. My case # was 104366064. They do not know anything about this issue. If your ipod was not fire they will not help you.

[JayMan8081]

This is great that Apple is addressing two issues and with the case of the nano pretty quickly too. I have a MacBook so I'm glad to hear about the MagSafe replacement program should mine ever exhibit that flaw.

[bytethese]

I've had 2 adapters replaced on my MBP so far. I bought it in March 2006. I was shocked that both were fried at the magsafe (safe???) ends. :)

I was able to bring them in to the Apple store they were replaced. It's still good to see that this was acknowledged however so that all affected can not get a replacement as well. :)

[Mr$Whale]

Damn. My power cord for my iBook G4 was frayed to hell and finally quit last month. I decided to just go and buy a 3rd party adapter for about $20 via amazon. Should I check into getting a replacement for my power cord (I still have the original now non-working power cord). I should go in anyways because my battery ain't too great and I'm angling on selling the iBook shortly.

[jeremytehjerk]

anyone found a more specific time frame on which cables might be affected? "MacBook" seems a little general. Though I do notice the picture on the apple site is of one where the cord is white, and mine, as well as the most current ones use slightly gray cords so I assume it is with an older magsafe cable only? Or they just changed the cord color alone slightly at some point for no particular reason.

[nbs2]

I just got off the phone with an apple care product specialist. My case # was 104366064. They do not know anything about this issue. If your ipod was not fire they will not help you.

Well, that's AppleCare, but what about Apple stores? I'm confused by some of the comments I've been reading, as it appears that Apple has not released the S/N range of affected nanos. I have one that fits the model listing, and if there is a risk I would rather have it replaced before it gets too "warm."

[alphaod]

My Macbook Air overheats... should I wait till it catches fire so that Apple replaces all the defective MBA's they sold?

The processor will halt and power off the whole machine if it's gets too hot long before it can even get damaged.

Now it were an AMD processor, it'd be a different story.

[biffer43]

power adapter frayed called applecare told to go to applestore, went and got on STANDBY for TWO HOURS geez what a waste of time for a GENIUS to tell me my adapter was defective, i think the duct tape was a dead giveaway, make an appointment or be prepared to wait a LOOONG time:mad:

[jpine]

Thanks for posting the story. My wife's adaptor looks just like the one in the picture on the linked Apple website. I'll get a new one today (fingers crossed).

[JabbaII]

Shouldn't a responsible vendor do a recall instead of "come to us when your mag safe melted" :confused:

Obviously something was not designed properly so Apple should find a fix for it.
All you get is another mag safe that will melt under certain conditions.

Sony recalled their laptop batteries.

[SMacDuff]

I have an appointment for tomorrow with an Apple Service center (no Apple Store here in Sweden) where they are going to replace my Macbook's wristrest due to cracking. They are also replacing the battery and both are being done for free even though my Macbook is past its one year warranty. Nice! Now I'm thinking I may get them to check my power adapter as well since I'm already there. My Macbook was purchased in Dec. 2006 so it fits the list of those that can be replaced even though my adapter doesn't show any signs of wear. Would be nice to get a new wristrest (likely including keyboard), magsafe adapter plus battery!

[The Tall One]

Visit an Apple store for evaluation? Are they joking? Have they been to New York City yet?

[mspman]

I know it's unlikely, but I'm glad I sold my 1G nano a few months ago.

In other news, a few months ago someone actually bought a 1G nano. :)

[thras]

I just called Apple regarding the Nano. They're sending me a box to send my "broken" one in, with a brand new replacement :D I should have it by Monday latest!

[snake101st]

I just called Apple regarding the Nano. They're sending me a box to send my "broken" one in, with a brand new replacement :D I should have it by Monday latest!



Does that mean a 3G nano? If so, I might just send my ugly 1G in. :D

It does feel a little hot when its charging. ;)

[aross99]

Sweet that they are replacing older adapters too. My PGB4 adapter has had electrical tape on the connector for a ling time, since the insulation has frayed.

I have a bad MB adapter too, so I will take both of them in for free replacements!

[thras]

Does that mean a 3G nano? If so, I might just send my ugly 1G in. :D

It does feel a little hot when its charging. ;)

I sure hope so!

[idesign245]

Do you get charged when you call AppleCare outside of warranty? I'd call about my nano but its way out of warranty and I don't feel like paying to call to get it replaced...

Does anyone know if/how they verify if the iPod is actually defective?

[AndroidSUCKS]

This is great that Apple is addressing two issues and with the case of the nano pretty quickly too. I have a MacBook so I'm glad to hear about the MagSafe replacement program should mine ever exhibit that flaw.

"pretty quickly?" this version of the nano has been out for over THREE years. And during this time, if wanted to swap your overheating nano down at the Genius Bar you were told that "warm nanos are normal .. (no exchange go home)"

[freedomlinux]

...at the Genius Bar you were told that "warm nanos are normal .. (no exchange go home)"

I called AppleCare USA to ask if I should be concerned about the nano problems. First level support acknowledged that there was a press release, but they were not told what to do about it.
So, passed onto Tier 2, the supervisor denied the problem entirely. Once I gave him the link to the Apple Japan document explaining the problem, he admitted that two nano had been defective in Japan, but the USA ones were fine.

Okay, that so far is generally reasonable. The scary part is that he said it was completely normal for my nano to get warm while charging, to the point that it causes discomfort to touch it. What?!

[snake101st]

I was just wondering, since I have the 4GB nano 1g, would that mean Id get the 8GB 3g? I mean if someone with a 2GB 1g gets a 4GB 3g, shouldnt I get an upgrade as well? I think its only fair.

Im waiting a bit for the people to set up procedures and all that so I dont get the usual "yeah its hot whatever" routine, as mine is hot when I charge it, I dont want to take any chances. Itd be nice to get that upgrade in the process, too.

[december]

I was just wondering, since I have the 4GB nano 1g, would that mean Id get the 8GB 3g? I mean if someone with a 2GB 1g gets a 4GB 3g, shouldnt I get an upgrade as well? I think its only fair.

i think that going from a 1st gen to a 3rd gen device for free almost two years after you bought it probably removes the criticism that you are being treated unfairly.

[Tclare]

Well my Magsafe finally gave up about 2 months ago. Because it was during exams I couldn't afford not to get a new one. Luckily I did keep the receipt, the box of the new Magsafe, and the old one. So I went to Apple today and they gave me a refund on the new one I had bought. And replaced the old broken one. So I'm happy. And I need to decide what to spend the £60.00 on. :)

[snake101st]

i think that going from a 1st gen to a 3rd gen device for free almost two years after you bought it probably removes the criticism that you are being treated unfairly.

Yeah but I paid I think $250 for it, the new 8 gigs are $200... I bought it thinking that it wouldnt (possibly) explode in a battery acid-y mess, but apparently I was wrong. So 4gig 1g owners should get the upper version imo, not the lower.

Its kind of like you buying the highest macbook and then a year later there is a recall, they wouldnt give you the lowend one, would they?

[idesign245]

Has anyone successfully gotten their 1st Gen Nano replaced yet? If so, with what and how did they check to see if your unit was affected?

[aross99]

Sweet that they are replacing older adapters too. My PGB4 adapter has had electrical tape on the connector for a ling time, since the insulation has frayed.

I have a bad MB adapter too, so I will take both of them in for free replacements!

Be prepared to bring in a copy of the Tech Note for this issue. I went to the local Apple store today with a MB Adapter, and a PBG4 adapter. The insulation on the MB adapter had separated, and started to melt. The PBG4 strain reliev had cracked, and the wires were exposed.

The Genius Bar had not heard of the Tech notes - even though I pasted them into the "anything else we should know" section of the reservation form for making a Genius Appointment.

They wanted me to bring in the computers - even though the tech note said that wasn't necessary. A second genius came over and said she HAD read those Tech Notes (from my reservation), and said "they were legit". The first Genius seems quite distraught that Apple was not requiring the S/N of the computer.

The first Genius had been arguing with me, and I don't think he would have helped me, had he not spoken to the 2nd Genius.

In the end, they swapped the MB adapter w/o incident, although they REALLY wanted the computer S/N, so I gave them my Apple ID and they looked it up.

I struck out on the PBG4 adapter. Evidently he felt that my "broken strain relief" was not the same thing as a "separation of the cable at the strain relief".

He did offer to so a out of warranty repair (ie replacement) of the adapter for $60 (instead of $80 for a new one). I told him it wasn't worth it. I have another dead one at home, and I will just replace the cables. it may be a bit ghetto, but for my plod PB it will be fine...

So - just a heads up to go in prepared, and be ready to educate the Genius, because they may not aware of this issue. I would take your computer S/N also.

[nishishei]

This may not be related, but I was watching the news tonight, and there was something, which caught my eye. In China the factories are starting to close since the super cheap labor is not in mass numbers any longer. Because of the failing factories, quality is starting to fail as well so the factory can remain open. I'm starting to wonder if Apple is having these issues since the mag safe, nano, the cough iPhone 3G, and some issues with the video cards in a few models. I may be reaching but it just seems to make sense, which sucks, since I love our mac and iPods.
You are reaching. The MagSafe adaptors have been a POS since it was introduced. It's a design flaw. China makes practically the entire world's supply of power adaptors, and I haven't had one spontaneously fray itself except for the MBP MagSafe adaptor.

Don't blame China for every crap that Apple bestows on us. The crap was designed in California.

[wchua24]

what if i got may ipod who sell it to me on the internet. can they replace it?

[snake101st]

what if i got may ipod who sell it to me on the internet. can they replace it?

No, only apple will, call them :P

That said, Im waiting until the new Nano's come out to call, just in case they feel nice enough to give me one of them. Or if not Id have a better chance of getting a 3G. :cool:

[nicegoogly]

I spoke with them on Saturday. They are replacing the battery only on iPod Nanos. No replacement unless they cannot fix it. Don't waste your time unless you think you have a battery issue. Note: the battery is on the bottom quarter of the iPod Nano, that is where it is supposed to get hot when you speak with the product specialist. I would have thought replacing with a refurbished Nano would have been easier. The box to send it out in is overnighted and it will take two weeks to replace the battery. Hopefully, someone else made out with a more recent Nano, but I have seen the same results elsewhere.

[AndroidSUCKS]

The first Genius had been arguing with me, and I don't think he would have helped me, had he not spoken to the 2nd Genius.
....
So - just a heads up to go in prepared, and be ready to educate the Genius, because they may not aware of this issue. I would take your computer S/N also.

Most of these geniuses need to go back to selling shoes or testing video games for a living. unless someone comes in with a very simple problem whose solution is already published on the apple troubleshooting site, the genius won't be able to help you much. and if he's a jerk, he'll likely deny that there's a problem and that what you're seeing is really normal.