iPod Nano Scratch Scandal

The Webmaster at iPodStudio.com posted a great summary about the aftermath of the iPod Nano Scratch Scandal. Here he is, in his own words:

“You know, it’s funny how certain companies, often when they pass a certain financial size, seem to repeat the same mistakes over and over, as if their judgment becomes fatally impaired by success. One such mistake is underestimating the power of a few disgruntled but net-savvy customers, riled firstly by their SCRATCHED IPOD NANOS and secondly by Apple’s typically flippant and blase handling of their complaints. Why exactly does a customer have to setup an entire WEBSITE and invite thousands of people to express their frustrations publicly before Apple decides to listen or respond “appropriately”? (I use inverted commas as Apple’s EVENTUAL RESPONSE was hardly what I’d personally label as appropriate, all things considered..) The complaints began as a few murmurings on various forums, including OUR OWN, then came the website dedicated to forcing Apple to address the problem and now the story is running in many of the national and international newspapers, tabloids and broadsheets alike; even the radio stations are tittering about it.. I’m currently listening to the UK radio channel TALK SPORT via a net connection, as I do most days, and between discussing the English Premiership and the latest cricket, even they had a 3 minute discussion about iPod nano scratches and the website that forced Apple to finally come clean. The British DAILY TELEGRAPH WRITES: “Apple was cowed this week by a customer who thought his iPod Nano was flawed. Andrew Murray-Watson looks at how Matthew Peterson turned his web skills and sense of outrage into a global campaign which forced the technology giant into a U-turn, and wonders if there are lessons in this story for other companies.” Darn right there are lessons to be learned but most importantly by Apple itself, in my most humble opinion, who seems to be rather prone to stroking the fur of their loyal customers in completely the wrong direction. It’s not particularly difficult to train a customer service department to pay the customers (who in turn pay their wages) a little respect after they shelled out $250 US for Apple’s latest and greatest and if a customer service department will not listen to the customers and pass on the information to people who will in turn listen and act appropriately, then surely it can serve no useful purpose? Ian Fogg, a senior analyst at Jupiter Research, had this to add: “Apple has a fanatical following with huge expectations. It matters more when something goes wrong with an Apple device than for another company.” Maybe so, but has Apple pondered that thought, for even a nanosecond?” ~Full Monty

The scratches were a very minor problem compared to the faulty LCD screens in a few iPod Nanos, which was quickly addressed and fixed by Apple. But in hindsight, Apple should have been more sympathetic to customers with scratch issues.

If you have already scratched up your iPod Nano, then you may want to investigate the $4 fix for this problem. If you are planning on getting an iPod Nano and want to keep it scratch free, consider not jamming it into a pants pocket full of coins, keys and broken glass. After all, it is a $250 paper-thin electronic gadget. Seriously, a little common sense can go a long way.