Got a tip for us?
Let us know
Become a MacRumors Supporter for $50/year with no ads, ability to filter front page stories, and private forums.
iPod The Official iPod nano Flaw Thread
- Thread starter Apple!Freak
- Start date
- Sort by reaction score
I had a White Nano. I say had because today I phoned up Apple and got them to return it for me. Because of the scratches.
I spoke to 4 different people and each of them inturn recommended I buy the nano tubes in order to protect the nano. Excuse me? I must buy protection? Why didn't I get one with the ipod? One of them suggested I use the armband for nearly all occasions while using it?
Anyway, this thing was sitting back in its box for fear of damaging it further, I glance to my desk and my mini is still chugging along unscathed.
Why didn't they apply the same metal to the nano as they did to the mini? I'm talking about the tiny thin sheet covering the mini.
Anyway, they offered either £20 in good faith or because it was still in the grace period they offered to take it back. What I am going to do now is send it back and wait for the tubes to arrive and then buy a new one.
Flame me all you want but I feel the same way just like the other people who have had theirs damaged through no fault of theirs. Even my 3G ipod was never that bad.
I spoke to 4 different people and each of them inturn recommended I buy the nano tubes in order to protect the nano. Excuse me? I must buy protection? Why didn't I get one with the ipod? One of them suggested I use the armband for nearly all occasions while using it?
Anyway, this thing was sitting back in its box for fear of damaging it further, I glance to my desk and my mini is still chugging along unscathed.
Why didn't they apply the same metal to the nano as they did to the mini? I'm talking about the tiny thin sheet covering the mini.
Anyway, they offered either £20 in good faith or because it was still in the grace period they offered to take it back. What I am going to do now is send it back and wait for the tubes to arrive and then buy a new one.
Flame me all you want but I feel the same way just like the other people who have had theirs damaged through no fault of theirs. Even my 3G ipod was never that bad.
if i had bought the nano, the scratching wouldn't be a problem...cause i wouldn't admit the product had inferior materials.
...the day we got these in, they had horrible scratches within minutes, the black being far worse.
they are now embarrassing to look at after a week, and will likely need to have the demo units replaced within a month...some ppl don't mind if their new player gets scratched to **** or looks like you sand papered it after 2 days.
the chrome backing was always an issue, kind of ignorant of them to bring it back. they should have gone with the mini idea and used an aluminum shell. it just looks so terrible after touching it...entireley not what i'd expect from apple seeing as how they are about product perception and these are high visibility items.
...the day we got these in, they had horrible scratches within minutes, the black being far worse.
they are now embarrassing to look at after a week, and will likely need to have the demo units replaced within a month...some ppl don't mind if their new player gets scratched to **** or looks like you sand papered it after 2 days.
the chrome backing was always an issue, kind of ignorant of them to bring it back. they should have gone with the mini idea and used an aluminum shell. it just looks so terrible after touching it...entireley not what i'd expect from apple seeing as how they are about product perception and these are high visibility items.
_Matt said:
Sure. If anyone doesn't like it, I'll be more than happy to take it off their hands.
Chappers said:
OOPS!! Tut, tut Apple, quality design is only worthwhile if you use quality materials.
Blah, why did all these problems surfaces the day after I decided to make the purchase <_< It should get here sometime tomorrow...
I hope Apple does a recall if indeed, the nano's build quality is ridiculous as many are claiming. All signs point to that they will because the bad publicity only hurts the iPod brand.
I hope Apple does a recall if indeed, the nano's build quality is ridiculous as many are claiming. All signs point to that they will because the bad publicity only hurts the iPod brand.
d00kie said:
I doubt there will be an out and out recall, but I can see them either giving away free "care kits" or a small rebate amount for those who don't want the kit. By care kit, I mean they could give everyone who bought a nano a small bottle of polish and a microfiber cloth and a nanotube or similar skin or case.
They should give kits like that to the people who buy the "higher end" iPods anyways... so the 4gb nano and the 60gb iPod should come with those, and the the other models should be able to get them at a fairly low cost, say $15-20.
My nano isn;t in yet, still waiting for it to ship (today or tomorrow they claim), but my skin from decalgirl.com arrived yesterday, so I can go right from the box to the skin before I do ANYTHING else to it. I'll probably unpack it and apply the skin using my microfiber glasses cleaning towel so I don't 'trap in' any fingerprints or dust.
just thought i'd cast a vote along with the ranks of dissatisfied iPoders. i don't actually own a nano. when they came out, i hit the apple store and noticed several of the demos very beat up, two or three were frozen, and no nano tubes available for two weeks.
anyway, i agree the scratching is unacceptable. but it's not just the nano. a couple of years ago i ordered an ipod for a friend. when it came in the mail, i was too excited and eager to check it out. so i opened it up and loaded a few songs onto it and took it to a cafe for only a few hours. neeless to say (it was intended as a gift), i totally babied that thing. it only spent time in three places: my empty cotton pocket, an empty pocket in my bag, and on a polished wooden table as i sipped coffee. but by the time i got it home, i was horrified at how destroyed it looked. it looked like it'd been scraped over gravel for a few minutes. i didn't have much money, so i gave it to the friend anyway. but i was SO embarrased to give him a shiny new toy that looked 3 years old just because i tested it out for a few hours.
anyway, that was the regular iPod. I've always thought the materials of these things were completely dumb. If they released a powerbook with the same type of design, most people would laugh and sales would plummet. what good is superior aesthetic design if it's beauty barely even makes it out of the showroom?
i'm glad i managed to pick up one of the last 6gig minis. it's tough, it holds more, and the battery lasts longer. who the hell needs a color screen the size of my toenail?
(oh yeah, and i agree with the cell phone argument. my phone is a basic non-flip style phone which came free with my plan. it's been manhandled for 2 years now. dropped...in and out of pockets filled with pens and change and whatever else...it only has a couple of tiny nicks on the backside battery cover. the screen looks new still. come on apple! figure it out!)
anyway, i agree the scratching is unacceptable. but it's not just the nano. a couple of years ago i ordered an ipod for a friend. when it came in the mail, i was too excited and eager to check it out. so i opened it up and loaded a few songs onto it and took it to a cafe for only a few hours. neeless to say (it was intended as a gift), i totally babied that thing. it only spent time in three places: my empty cotton pocket, an empty pocket in my bag, and on a polished wooden table as i sipped coffee. but by the time i got it home, i was horrified at how destroyed it looked. it looked like it'd been scraped over gravel for a few minutes. i didn't have much money, so i gave it to the friend anyway. but i was SO embarrased to give him a shiny new toy that looked 3 years old just because i tested it out for a few hours.
anyway, that was the regular iPod. I've always thought the materials of these things were completely dumb. If they released a powerbook with the same type of design, most people would laugh and sales would plummet. what good is superior aesthetic design if it's beauty barely even makes it out of the showroom?
i'm glad i managed to pick up one of the last 6gig minis. it's tough, it holds more, and the battery lasts longer. who the hell needs a color screen the size of my toenail?
(oh yeah, and i agree with the cell phone argument. my phone is a basic non-flip style phone which came free with my plan. it's been manhandled for 2 years now. dropped...in and out of pockets filled with pens and change and whatever else...it only has a couple of tiny nicks on the backside battery cover. the screen looks new still. come on apple! figure it out!)
They plunder this site for the word on the street ... I thought everyone knew thatChappers said:
It sure ain't good publicity. A guy at work was going to dip for a black nano, and now changed his mind. ... I'm pretty sure he won't be the only one.
Personally, if I was him I'd still plump for it, but then I'm a little too die hard.
TurtleDragon said:
While I am not saying you are wrong, demo models are really hard to get an accurate feel for the product from. For example, the nano's I saw at the Apple store looked great... they were a little scratched up, but they were in the front of an Apple store in one of the busiest malls in the state, I can't imagine how many people had handled them. Both the black and white models looked fine. Were they newly placed demos? I don't know, but everyone in that store (I was there for about an hour waitng for a genius) picked one of them up, and when I looked at them on the way out they looked exactly the same as when I stopped on the way in.
On the other hand, every singel Nintendo DS that I have seen in a store is completely unusable because the screen is destroyed (although, I will point out that you can see the LCD is undamaged, but the coating and touch sensitive layer is completely wrecked). However, I've not known anyone to complain that the screen on the DS has been damaged during regular usage.
All in all, it's tough to say how durable a product is based on the demo units in stores. However, I think it is safe to say that Nintendo and Apple need to team up for the GBA2... let Apple/Ives design what it looks like, let Nintedo actually build the thing (everythign they make is super tough... sometime ugly, but strong!), and have Apple interface people review what Nintendo comes up with to 'refine' whatever amazing innovation Nintendo makes next. ;-)
Gotta agree with the Nintendo DS' durability. I have one and it has survived a whole lot of abuse. Some of the demos I've come across had the usual wear and tear but I have not seen one with a demolished screen.
Hmmm...I remember the store that had the nano kept it behind glass. All the other iPods were on display. I think I'll stop by later and see if I can have a closer look at the nano
Apple, hurry up and address this issue.
Hmmm...I remember the store that had the nano kept it behind glass. All the other iPods were on display. I think I'll stop by later and see if I can have a closer look at the nano
Apple, hurry up and address this issue.
If you actually go to the site linked for that article, it makes interesting reading about why the screens could be cracking. I'm just glad I am holding out even considering a nano until the price drops a bit, even then it would only be an exercise iPod, not a main one.crap freakboy said:
Cry more noobs
Take care of your investment. It doesnt take a genius to figure out that if it scratches put a protective sleeve on it or something. Don't blame Apple for your inability to take care of your ****. Maybe your clumsy ham fisted handling of electronics is more suited to a Dell DJ.
Take care of your investment. It doesnt take a genius to figure out that if it scratches put a protective sleeve on it or something. Don't blame Apple for your inability to take care of your ****. Maybe your clumsy ham fisted handling of electronics is more suited to a Dell DJ.
There are two major causes of the scratch problem that nobody seems to have mentioned yet. For starters, it's smaller, so the same scratches you get on your bigger iPod seem bigger because they're on a smaller reference point (like how the moon looks very small when high in the sky and huge when closer to the ground) and the lexan/polycarbonate/whatever plastic they use layer is thinner. Accordingly, scratches will appear deeper because of the changed dynamics of light reflected through the plastic. A tiny scratch on the surface of a thin sheet can appear deeper this way.
Also, the scratches can be caused by pockets themselves. Little bits of foil, dust, and even fibers live in pockets. Washing machines aren't particularly effective at cleaning out the seams of pockets, and turning them out in the laundry can actually help them catch little metal filings and bits of dirt. So even though there are all these claims of scratches happening in empty pockets, this doesn't necessarily mean anything because pockets are hostile places full of small abrasive bits.
Cars come scratched when you buy them, cell phones, sunglasses, watches, and plenty of other expensive things can become scratched. The price argument is a load of crap. Just because you paid more for something doesn't mean it's more immune to scratching than cheaper goods. I've got a chunk of concrete I found from where they're doing construction nearby. It was free, and it doesn't show scratches at all. Maybe Fossil should use that because my sunglasses got scratched when I accidentally brushed them against a tabletop. I think Audi should have used duller paint on my car, because it gets scratched a little bit every day when I drive! The soles of my shoes are made of rubber that's too soft--the aesthetic pattern on the bottom is fading! I paid $85 for these shoes and I think the interconnected lines should still be there because I COULD have selected $20 shoes, but I didn't. I bought them based on appearance, but they've proven fallible! Oh noes!
It's a piece of plastic and electronics, not an original Picasso or a space shuttle heat shield. For the nano, life goes on. It's well-built and durable, but it can be scratched if an abrasive agent comes in contact with it, like most substances known to man. It's certainly not a soft, subpar plastic, but it's not a diamond, either.
Also, the scratches can be caused by pockets themselves. Little bits of foil, dust, and even fibers live in pockets. Washing machines aren't particularly effective at cleaning out the seams of pockets, and turning them out in the laundry can actually help them catch little metal filings and bits of dirt. So even though there are all these claims of scratches happening in empty pockets, this doesn't necessarily mean anything because pockets are hostile places full of small abrasive bits.
Cars come scratched when you buy them, cell phones, sunglasses, watches, and plenty of other expensive things can become scratched. The price argument is a load of crap. Just because you paid more for something doesn't mean it's more immune to scratching than cheaper goods. I've got a chunk of concrete I found from where they're doing construction nearby. It was free, and it doesn't show scratches at all. Maybe Fossil should use that because my sunglasses got scratched when I accidentally brushed them against a tabletop. I think Audi should have used duller paint on my car, because it gets scratched a little bit every day when I drive! The soles of my shoes are made of rubber that's too soft--the aesthetic pattern on the bottom is fading! I paid $85 for these shoes and I think the interconnected lines should still be there because I COULD have selected $20 shoes, but I didn't. I bought them based on appearance, but they've proven fallible! Oh noes!
It's a piece of plastic and electronics, not an original Picasso or a space shuttle heat shield. For the nano, life goes on. It's well-built and durable, but it can be scratched if an abrasive agent comes in contact with it, like most substances known to man. It's certainly not a soft, subpar plastic, but it's not a diamond, either.
yenko said:This just in:
Steve Job's in tears over complaints about iPod nano.
Hires new design team to build th "tiPod nano-o-mano".
New features include a polycarbonate ballistic screen membrane, titanium back with electrostatic epoxy coating for a mere $599 for the 4Gig model and only $499 for the 2 Gig.
Less $25 trade-in for your "defective" iPod nano.
i'm not paying that much for that. they should have made the damn thing quality in the first place.
I have accepted reality!
My black nano is quite scratched up after minor use. I opted to take action and stop mourning its prevous mint condition. I bought some Ice Cream from Rad Tech to buff out the scratching and a clear Invisible Skin to adhere over the surfaces to avoid this problem in the future. I do love my black nano, the size and crisp clairity of the color screen. It is exactly what I wanted, an upgraded version of the shuffle. Compact, beautiful, and highly functional and most importantly an Apple product.
I have to admit this might not be such an issue with if I had got a white one
My black nano is quite scratched up after minor use. I opted to take action and stop mourning its prevous mint condition. I bought some Ice Cream from Rad Tech to buff out the scratching and a clear Invisible Skin to adhere over the surfaces to avoid this problem in the future. I do love my black nano, the size and crisp clairity of the color screen. It is exactly what I wanted, an upgraded version of the shuffle. Compact, beautiful, and highly functional and most importantly an Apple product.
I have to admit this might not be such an issue with if I had got a white one
hmm
Fact: iPod nano scratches extremely easily
People defending the build quality don't own a nano???
My nano has never even left my house and has more scratches than my 2001 original 5GBiPod.
People that own nano's know the truth and the other people have no clue.
I wish I could return my nano and wait for nano 2nd generation.
cool concept, horrible execution.
Fact: iPod nano scratches extremely easily
People defending the build quality don't own a nano???
My nano has never even left my house and has more scratches than my 2001 original 5GBiPod.
People that own nano's know the truth and the other people have no clue.
I wish I could return my nano and wait for nano 2nd generation.
cool concept, horrible execution.
spacepower7 said:
I have a nano??? And actually, it's fine. The scratches are similar to that of my 2G iPod in nature--and fewer, as one might expect. They look worse, but they actually aren't. The build quality is superior--step on it. It'll still work. THAT is build quality, not its perceived sensibility to scratching, which is totally aesthetic. If you want to preserve the original finish, either never use it or cover it immediately after purchase.
FACT: People are ridiculous.