“The iPod nano is fast becoming Apple’s next Cube. Like the diminutive desktop machine before it, the nano is being criticized for its alleged cosmetic defects. Apple’s support forums are littered with posts from irate nano owners who say the device’s screen scratches far more easily than it should,” John Paczkowski writes in a blog entitled, “Of course it didn’t scratch on Steve’s turtleneck. Those things are made out of sable, ya know” for SiliconValley.com’s “Good Morning Silicon Valley.”
“Too bad. Because the nano is an otherwise impressive little device. Perhaps, Apple can use some of the more than 40 percent profit margins it’s getting on the device to outfit it with a sturdier display,” Paczkowski writes.
Full article here.
At least he used the word “alleged” even if there is no sign in his article that he has ever even touched an iPod nano.
John Paczkowski is an editor at SiliconValley.com and has been writing “Good Morning Silicon Valley” since 1999. Prior to his tenure at SiliconValley.com, he served as Online Editor for the San Jose Mercury News, Editorial Director of New Media at the San Francisco Bay Guardian, and, once-upon-a-time, as an Editor for Turner Broadcasting’s ill-starred 1995 Web venture SPIV.
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“I’ve had my black 4G nano for about a week now and the lcd screen is full of scratches,” writes one. “It seems to me that everytime you take it out of our pocket to change a song or something, it puts scratches on the screen. The screen was scratched minutes after opening it out of the box, but initially I thought it was just me being a little careless with my new toy, so i tried cleaning it with my t-shirt but obviously that isn’t the case anymore. I keep the nano in my jeans pocket with absolutely nothing else and it still gets scratched. I mean whats the point of the nano being soo small when you cannot put anything else in your pocket for the fear of the nano getting scratched.”
Really! You would put a $250 electronic device in your pocket and expect it to not get damaged, that’s ridiculous! And you polish the screen with your t-shirt? Do you put your laptop in your backpack and throw it around? Does anyone have common sense anymore?
The alleged flaws/cracks in the Cube’s case were actually injection-mold lines. They weren’t flaws at all.
It looks like the alleged nano screen flaws are just as bogus, so the analogy kinda fits, in a weird backward sort of way.
Elmer F.U.D. writes: “Does anyone have common sense anymore?”
No, i don’t think so; “common sense” is now very uncommon.
If I ever buy an iPod, (holding my breath for a bigger HD based one. That is if flash memory dosn’t take over). The first thing I’m gonna do before i even turn it on or plug it into my mac, is PUT A PROTECTVE COVER ON IT. Stick it in an invisible shield, stick that into an iSkin, stick that into one of those leather case thingys and wedge the whole lot into one of those metal armour case things.
what a crappy thread… someone stole the spot light by name calling and this will probabl become a political firing gallery.
what’s to say that this ‘typical elitist liberal media twit’ isn’t a ‘typical dumbass conservative media bigot’?
people hear what they want to. no?
I hate the word alleged.
Wow! Amazing how all the writers here just can´t stand or believe that Apple can make a flawed product. Everyone else is wrong, Apple is right. Sounds like the same statements MDN contributors said about critics of the cube…and we all know where the cube is today.
The problem with iPods is that they are made from the same stuff CDs are made of- polycarbonate. It’s very tough- but not at all scratch resistant.
There are also two kinds of iPodders: people who throw their iPods about and don’t care about scratches (like Shawn King) and people who get all upset with the teeniest smudge (like me). A friend of mine is the beat-up iPod type, and you know, seeing one is kind of endearing- a bit like trendy “distressed” jeans. Once the iPod has that “beat-up” look, it doen’t matter any more. In fact it feels more rugged.
However, to see an otherwise perfect iPod with one or two scatches is like having a few grains of sand in your delicious shellfish meal at a fancy restaurant. It ruins the whole experience. iPods aren’t alone though. The same is true for most electronic gadgets- Game Boys, PSPs, etc. It’s a pity though that the aluminium case of the mini was much easier for perfectionists to keep in order, and now it’s gone! I wish they had kept the mini, and put a colour screen on it.
As to the Nano story, the cracked screen issue looks to me like a flaw in some Nonos, but the scratches are just life!
Maybe in the future someone will invent a tough material with a hard, scratch-resistant finish. Here’s hoping.
Wouldn’t the Dell Ditty be considered a cosmetic defect in its own right ? The screen on a $300 phone would also scratch slightly as well just from general use. Solution: If you want your Nano to remain pristine, keep it in the original box an never use it. Otherwise, deal with it.
Look the real issue here isn’t scratches, that’s just a load of rubbish. What stopped me dead in my tracks (I was about to buy one for my wife’s birthday) was the cracked screens. That’s the real issue. Anyone who is worried about scratches should live in cotton wool.
I just want Apple to address the issue of cracked screens before the nano becomes a no-no.
I don’t understand why the constant Cube comparisions.
First of all the issue in question is the screen on the Nanos, which is a defect. The Cubes didn’t have defects, the Cube was and still is a great machine to have.
Secondly, the Cube wasn’t a bad machine it just sold poorly beacuse it wasn’t positioned in its market correctly.
I used to do an informal survey of Cube owners where I used to work and almost to the very last person they said they “loved” their Cube.
So based on what this person is saying, the Nano will not sell, but everyone who buys one will love it.
I don’t know the exact difference between the two but my 4 gen iPod has never had a case and is scratched to hell (not that I mind, I didn’t want a case) but the screen is still readable. My black iPod nano which I’ve had for two weeks is scratched far worse from the same type of treatment (being placed in my jean pocket) and the display is almost unreadable on the left hand side. I don’ know why Apple added the glossy coating but it is certainly getting in the way of functionality.
I checked out the heavily abused nanos on display at my local Apple Store and they looked no worse then any other iPod. Had a couple scratches, but nothing major. Mostly fingerprints and oil on the black ones. I think this a MS funded FUD.
For heaven’s sake PUT A FREAKING CASE ON IT!!!! These freaking whiners who piss and moan about something so avoidable just confounds me. Yes, glass or plastic will scratch if you put it in your pocket with your FREAKING KEYS!!! Problem is that its thinness makes it a big enticement to pocket. There is such a thing as plastic scratch remover, assuming the screen is hard plastic, that should take out most scratches. But if a scratch is caused, ASK YOURSELF, why was my Nano in contact with a sharp metallic object in the FIRST FREAKING PLACE. And FYI, the Cube did NOT have cracks, it had a few shallow lines here and there which is a natural part of plastic injection molding.
I think the easiest answer is to at least put one of those invisible shield things on. I mean it does look far less obtrusive than an iSkin. But I do seriously think Apple should look at MATT finishes in future. My iBook of three year of age is scratched to buggery. But the Apple logo in the center looks new. And it’s not that I can’t see the scratchs, there are no scratchs. This polycarbonate stuff or whatever it is looks all nice and shiny. But if a product is gonna look old and used after a couple of weeks or days it’s not worth it.
you guys are such jackasses.
the cube, nice as it was, DID have NEGATIVE issues with its case that were WIDELY REPORTED. now it seems the nano does as well. that’s the analogy the writer’s making. and, if you follow the links in his post, he seems to have some evidence to back it up. christ, obviously something’s going on if there are 500+ people complaining in apple’s support forums and an entire web site dedicated to the issue.
you can’t fault the guy for simply pointing out some pretty clear user dissatisfaction.
quit being so friggin knee-jerk about this stuff.
Kinda sad how people make mountains outta molehills.
” width=”19″ height=”19″ alt=”downer” style=”border:0;” /> The iPod Nano is a great product. I know it. I’ve been an Apple fan for many years. I even coaxed my 10 year old Apple Performa PowerPc through many crashes and burnouts because I loved it. Apples products leave a bond that can never be broken. Listen to people talk about their Macs, watch people sway to the music from their iPods, no words can express the wonder that people have for their Apples. Neither do the numbers. Keep at it Steve.