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Attorneys Prepare iPod Class Action Lawsuit

Posted by pudge on from the nothing-better-to-do dept.

An anonymous reader writes "Well, it was bound to happen. It looks like some lawyers are preparing to file a class action lawsuit against apple computer due to the iPod's battery problem (previously discussed here, here, and here)."

15 of 175 comments (clear)

  1. Yes, because batteries last forever..... by Dark+Nexus · · Score: 4, Insightful

    Alright, so maybe they didn't use the BEST batteries. Maybe they made them proprietary so you couldn't just go replace it with a $10 or $20 one... Typical Apple. Anybody who didn't think they'd use their own format is NUTS.

    I really doubt this lawsuit will go very far. At least I hope it won't.

    --
    Dark Nexus
    "Sanity is calming, but madness is more interesting."
  2. 12 months from now... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 5, Insightful

    $51.2 million for the lawyers, anyone who had the ipod battery problem gets $20 off a select ipod accessory. Way to go.

  3. This should be interesting by Unregistered · · Score: 4, Insightful

    So they're gonna create a class action lawsuit on the basis that batteries die and cost money to replace? This is gonna be a hard sell. And i wouldn't be supprised if apple doesn't settle.

    1. Re:This should be interesting by MalleusEBHC · · Score: 5, Insightful

      Companies that use proprietary sizes, or much worse, don't even let the user change their own battery, are asking to be sued.

      How is Apple asking to be sued? Did they advertise that the iPods had replaceable batteries? No. Did they claim that the batteries would last forever? No. Apple made a design choice to have a non-user accessible battery in order to have a smaller, sleeker design. If you don't like this design, DON'T BUY THE DAMN THING. And if you do buy it, don't bitch later like you were mislead or lied to.

    2. Re:This should be interesting by valmont · · Score: 5, Insightful

      i call bullshit. for one, my guess is you are not an industrial designer. secondly, just because "standards" are there or emerging, or you'd wish there was a standard, has every chance, moral, and legal right to be irrelevant to Apple: if standards don't fit the bill, then fuck the standards, inferior devices can adhere to those standards and lose marketshare all they want to the sleeker iPod.

      have you even looked at the shape of the battery we're talking about?. What trap door would accomodate that? you'd basically have to replace screws with ugly-protruding latches. change form factor? then the battery becomes bulgy and the iPod is no-longer slick and thin. i'm sure i'm barely scraping the surface. let's scrape some more though:

      Part of the appeal of the whole Apple look is that it is one solid block of metal, no rugged edges, nothing to protrude, and yes that includes NO easy-to-open little battery door. Tiny digital cameras are NOT ipods. what you call tiny is actually way fucking bigger a form factor than an iPod. But again, beyond mere technical challenges, this whole issue is also about DESIGN. read my lips. D E S I G N. Nothing, absolutely nothing about the way Apple industrially designs its products is a result of a coincidence. Users like the iPod because it is simple. There isn't a lot of shit on it that catches the eye, things to fuck with that may confuse you, make you needlessly use your brain, and/or otherwise hurt the eye.

      i've have litterally seen high-school chicks use the back of their fucking iPod as a make-up mirror. silly huh? guess what all their friends want for x-mas? Now. you wanna stick an ugly-ass trap-door to further mingle a pimple-ridden teenage chick's face? What about personalized engraved notes in the back of the iPod? If you want such note to live in an esthetically pleasing environment, while retaining all the attention, you can't have lines, holes, trap doors on the same surface. imagine a blank sheet of paper on your bed with a message in blue ink right at the center that says "thanks for last night". Now, imagine the same message written on the back of a shrivelled croissant-wrapper with the bakery's logo on it. not quite the same impact is it? it is that silly type of detailed attention to DESIGN, among many other features, that makes the iPod a truly unique consumer item. i'm sure Apple pays people to sit around all fucking day and think of the impact of silly shit like that. silly, but it works.

      now. i understand people's frustration about their battery issues but hey, from a moral standpoint, that's the kinda shit they should have thought of before buying the iPod. $100 to change a battery is NOT the end of the world. I'll gladly pay $50 to some techie on top of the cost of the battery to ensure he successfully upgrades my battery without fuckin' it up. otherwise ill just do it myself. it ain't impossible to do. Even $100 is not a bad deal, Sony charges $100 for the rechargeable battery that fits their DSC P50 digital camera, and you don't really know you gotta buy the battery until after you buy the camera and realize that 2 AA batteries only let you take a few pictures. Unless you are like me and always read reviews of consumer products on amazon before buying. I'm not exactly seeing Sony being sued over this right now. legal foot to stand on? my ass. which brings me to my next point ...

      from a legal standpoint, Apple never said their battery would last a lifetime. in fact Apple doesn't even advertise iPod as being a lifetime device. In fact what piece of consumer electronics ever makes such claims? NONE. NOT ONE. this is why Best Buy, Good Guys, Fry's

      --
      Extraordinary Vacations. Exceptional Prices
  4. Is it really a problem? by SoCalChris · · Score: 5, Insightful

    Don't ALL batteries eventually lose their ability to hold a charge? I agree that Apple should have designed the iPod so it is easier to replace them, but consumers also should have thought about things like replacing the batteries before buying an MP3 player that costs that much.

    As with almost all class action suits, the lawyers will more than likely end up being the only "winners".

  5. Re:See the light. by Dark+Nexus · · Score: 5, Insightful

    My CD player runs the CD on a pair of AAAs for ABOUT 40 hours (this is what it's rated for, manufacturer's stats).

    I can get a 12-pack of AAA cells for $9 US, plus tax.

    Now, the first batch of IPod batteries to fail went after 18 months of "heavy use". Let's call that... 5 hours a day. At least.

    4 hours a day, for a year and a half... 2737.5 hours of use.

    That translates into $102.66 US, plus applicable taxes.

    Compare to the $99 battery replacement from Apple. The $49 3rd-party battery. Compare to the people who've been running theirs under "heavy use" for over 2 years now.

    Hmm..... those Duracells aren't looking so good, anymore.

    --
    Dark Nexus
    "Sanity is calming, but madness is more interesting."
  6. How were they wronged? by gumbi+west · · Score: 4, Insightful
    Can someone please explain to me how owners of the iPods wronged? They bought the iPod, they used it, if it had problems while in warrenty they were fixed, then after the warenty ended, the battery died and costs a lot to replace. I can see why they were upset, but I just don't see how Apple is oging to be in legal trouble for this. How was the customer wronged?

    What jurry is going to award these whiners any money what so ever?

  7. blah by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 5, Insightful

    How is an ipod any different from a watch? I need a special tool to open one of those too.

  8. Re:Sounds like BS to me. by ITR81 · · Score: 5, Insightful
    I doubt it once you figure the battery normally runs around $50 and to get the tool kit it will cost you $60 bucks. Now figure you get warranty from Apple and they also install it for you, test it and then ship it back to you.

    It cost $69 bucks to send it to any of the other 3rd party companies and you pay for shipping making it come out around $80 bucks by the time you finish. So no $99 bucks isn't bad when Apple covers the battery. Apple won't cover a battery you installed or someone else installed. I think most folks would send it to Apple just for the piece of mind that their battery now has warranty covering it now.

    Also go price a Nokia brand name batter and you will probably pay around $50-60 bucks for it...which is very similar to Apples battery except for the service and labor charge added to it.

  9. *sigh* by psxndc · · Score: 4, Insightful
    Q: What do you call a lawyer without a client?

    A: Unemployed

    Lay the blame where appropriate. Lawyers are part of the problem, but not the only part. Blame the clients that hire them.

    psxndc

    --

    The emacs religion: to be saved, control excess.

  10. Sounds dumb, but... by Undercover+Pillow · · Score: 4, Insightful

    I could definitely see some compensation for people that were forced to replace their batteries (or iPods) prior to Apple's $99 replacement policy. And that doesn't seem totally unreasonable.

  11. Re:Sounds like BS to me. by Toraz+Chryx · · Score: 5, Insightful

    " My original 5 gig got went from 11 hours to 45 mins over three years of constant use."

    three years of constant use?

    from a device that's been out barely over two years?

  12. Its not a three year battery by bdsesq · · Score: 5, Insightful

    Batteries are not designed to have a life in YEARS. Their life is measured in RECHARGE CYCLES. Once the engineers know how the device is supposed to be used someone then figures out how often it is expected to be recharded and converts that into days/months/years.

    I believe the battery in question is rated for 500 charge cycles. If you charge it twice a day then it will only last about eight months. If you charge it every two days then it will last just about three years.

    If you drain the battery 20% and then recharge it you have used one of the battery's recharge cycles.

    This is the main reason why normal batteries last longer for some people that for others.

  13. Re:Sounds like BS to me. by gamgee5273 · · Score: 4, Insightful
    The Neistat bros. are media whores who can't spell "irreplaceable." We aren't talking Einstein's lost sons here...

    I suspect pushing that dumpster in the video was akin to a Herculean task in the Neistat universe.