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What's this?!! Not only do they want their money back, but they want a percentage of the sales?!! I thought it was only corporate America that was greedy!

Excuse my ignorance of US consumer law (or law in general for that matter), but what possible grounds could the plaintiffs have for seeking a portion of Apple's profits from sales of the nano?

the point is, the iPod DOES get pretty easily scratched when compared to almost any other consumer-electronic device. I can live with it (I've got 3 cases for mine) but the NEW user is probably going to be a little turned off. It probably is something Apple should address.

Wow. Talk about frivolous lawsuits!

Barman, this drink you sold me made me piss myself.

http://moderntoss.com/gallery/tourette/tourettewool

I agree with R and Mac-Daddy, what makes these people think they are owed Apple's profits on other people's purchases? I can understand wanting your own money back, but to demand someone else's money is just BS.


As far as dumb-ass Jason: who the hell in their right mind wipes their iPod with a Paper towel?!?! You're supposed to use a soft-lint cloth, not an coarse piece of paper.

Direct from Apple's support site:
"How to clean iPod
To clean iPod, unplug all cables and cords and set the Hold switch to Hold. Then use a soft, damp, lint-free cloth. Avoid getting moisture in openings.

Don't use aerosol sprays, solvents, alcohol, or abrasives to clean iPod."

http://docs.info.apple.com/article.html?artnum=61119

Jason deserves what he got.

Whats the point? If it you take it back to Apple they will replace it. If you care about scratches, get a case. Last time I checked at my optometrist if you try to clean plastic lens from your glasses with a PAPER towel it will scratch it. Clean it will a soft cloth.

I'm being sued by Steve Ballmer because I got scratched when he rubbed me with a paper towel. But it's his own fault. If he hadn't made me so fat from eating all those donuts he wouldn't have to wipe 100 times after every fart just to get me clean again. And he'd be able to use Charmin instead of Extra Strength Bounty.

Now I wonder if Mr. Tomczak happens to work for, say, Real or Creative Labs. Seriously, if he can show up in court with a brand-new-in-the-box nano and scratch it in front of the judge by rubbing a paper towel on it, then he should be awarded with the Magician of the Year title. Unless that "paper towel" has a "60 grit" label on it, that is. But then again, McDonalds managed to lose a "common sense" suit to a woman who thought it's safe to drive with a HOT cup of coffee between her legs. So you never know. Our court system has no shortage of driveling idiots.

MW: group. If this is such a big issue, how come no words from the consumer groups?

rendering the screen on the Nanos [sic] unreadable

you have to be kidding me.... i had a 1st gen 5gb ipod that i had forever, and had TONS of scratches, but NEVER made the screen "unreadable"

it's sad that Apple will have to pay attorney's to get this frivolous lawsuit thrown out....

"I thought it was only corporate America that was greedy!"

You forgot about lawyers

Tomczak is probably a "left-wing liberal wingnut"! That explains the lack of common sense.

If the the result Apple makes iPods better I will like that action

This is the stupidest thing I have heard in a while. I have friends in other countries that say that in the US we have some of the most absurd law suits. Hard to argue against that when you read this

Gotta love lawyers. Its what makes this country great. Whether they are Apple's lawyers or lawyers going after Apple.

Its one thing to file a class action suit against the scratching. Its another to ask for profits. But hey, all these lawyers need to do something.

"I thought it was only corporate America that was greedy!"

Nope, just human nature.

Hammer, u sound like u never ask for money in exchange for the work u do;
if u think lawyers are overpaid go to law school

I believe the USA would be a better place if the losing party in a lawsuit had to pay the winning party's expenses, plus court costs. We took most of our laws from England but somehow left that part out. Not too many frivolous lawsuits in Jolly Old.

I scratched my bum with toilet paper. I think I'll sue the paper company. Will I have to show the evidence? No wait...just fergeddabowdit.

By the way, a paper towel is very rough. It is harder than glass. This is why you don't clean your eye glasses with a paper towel.

God Bless America!

Apple should countersue for a frivolous lawsuit claim. I'm sure they won't (bad PR generated) but there should be some disincentive in place to keep bogus claims like this from being filed.

I hope Apple doesn't settle for anything more than replacing the scratched units (if indeed this is a real issue or just one of a lack of common sense as mentioned above). Any other additional settlement will only encourage other parasites like these (both plaintiffs and their representing attorneys) to file further frivolous claims.

Brian Allen & ron,

RIGHT ON!!!

I'm going to sue Vaurnet because I used steel wool on the lenses and they scratched.

life was good before all these windows people started using Apple products.

hey the numbers on my tv remote are worn off, i'm suing toshiba, rca, ge, etc.

Why are my tire treads wearing down? Sue 'em.

thank god microsux makes perfect products.

Why is everyone so defensive of Apple, when all people want is for the iPod to resist scratching from paper towells? My $150 cell phone resists scratching from being in my pocket with my keys, why not my $300 iPod?

You realize that, in California, one doesn't have to graduate from an ABA-accredited law school to sit for the California Bar exam? Even 'graduates' of online diploma mills (such as Concord Law School) are eligible to become licensed attorneys!

If you ever marvel at the level of craziness that occurs in the Courts of California (or the 9th U.S. Circuit as a whole, for that matter), just keep this in mind...

MW= "cut", as in "It doesn't take much to make the cut in the eyes of California Courts."

When you pick a lawyer or doctor (if you get to pick), remember that 50% of them graduated in the bottom half of their class.

Not sure of US laws here but...

You'd only have a case against Apple if they explicitly stated that the nano was in some way more durable against scratches than other things that appeared similar quality. They made no mention of it's scratchableness (new word) in any literature either one way or the other, so how do you prove that they did anything wrong?

MDNMW: 'rest' as in - let's give the lawyers a rest eh?

I parked my new car in a parking lot and the door got a ding in it - I had a car before and this never happened maybe my new car is more susceptible to dings - I want my money back and profits from the automaker.

my nano is my 5th ipod. after 3 days of regular use, a small section of my screen was unreadable. i could literally NOT READ the "time remaining" numbers because of the scratches. i may have just gotten a nano from a bad batch, but the scratching is excessive. i solved my problem by using brasso to polish out the scratches.

now here is where things get interesting. i bought my nano the day they were available in the apple store. 3 days of scratching rendered that one feature useless. after i brassoed it, i didn't have that problem anymore. cases were still not available, so i decided to see what would happen if i kept using it the same way (in my pocket just like my other 4 ipods). surprisingly, the new scratches that formed over the next month didn't compare to the initial scratches of the first 3 days. they are comparable to the scratches of my previous ipods. i still keep it in my pocket every day, but the nano is doing fine. there are cosmetic scratches of course, but those don't bother me. the screen is completely readable.

i just wanted to post this to let people know that in some cases the scratching is truly excessive. i do however, think that this law suit is ridiculous. if you don't like it, take your nano back for a replacement or your money back. then you can sue for the restocking fee =)

This story needs a better descriptive headline:

"Lawyers smell money in Cupertino, take every opportunity to try and get some of it for themselves"

Along with such other headlines like:

"Microsoft seeks exclusivity with new format, seeks to use its size as leverage"

"Politician seeks votes, changes position to accomodate public opinion"

"Pit bull raised by angry drunk bites mailman"

Are these things new(s)? What's "new" about them. Bah. Greedy lawyers. Class action law needs reform, badly.

Consumer: So, you're gonna stick it to the man and get me my money back, right?

Class Action Lawyer: Uh, yeah.. we're stickin' it to the man.

Consumer: And getting my money back, right?

Class Action Lawyer: Exactly. We're getting them to pay lots of money.

Consumer: I'll get my money back?

Class Action Lawyer: Well, of course there are legal fees, and court costs, and billable hours, and research fees, and negotiations, and back room deals...

Consumer: So I'll still get some money, though, right?

Class Action Lawyer: If by "some" you mean a coupon for 50¢ off your next purchase, then unequivocally, yes.

Consumer: (thinks, scratches head..) ummm...

Class Action Lawyer: But we're STICKIN IT TO THE MAN!

Consumer: (suddenly regains enthusiasm) STICK It TO the MAN! YES! Boo-rah!

"Mr. Tomczak rubbed a paper towel on his nano’s face and 'that alone left significant scratches.'"

Duhh! That's why your optometrist tells you never to dry your plastic lens spectacles with paper towels or tissues. It's always someone else's fault, isn't it. Hot tip: Screw the lottery, just buy a cup of coffee at McDonalds or an iPod nano and sue, sue, sue!

stupid americans... always with the sue, sue, sue... for shame.

Don't any of you understand? This is the lawyers law suit. This firm saw an opportunity to make (extort) money from Apple so they recruited a bunch of soreheads to join a class action (read: lawyer's money tree) suit.
If they actually win some sort of settlement, the only ones who will see any cash will be the law firm. This is typical of most class action suits. Even frivolous lawsuits are settled because the targets pay off rather than spend a fortune defending them, usually resulting in cash for the lawyers and some sort of worthless coupon or mail-in rebate for the customer.

Let the fools sue. If they're lucky, they'll get a $50 coupon at the Apple Store out of the deal (after the attorneys have lined their pockets first of course). Just gotta love the liberal courts in this country...

What in the friggin' world is everyone so surprised about? This is Standard Procedure for an Apple product release: Apple releases a product, it has a minor flaw (being the 1.0 version), some opportunistic lawyer files a class-action lawsuit, Apple settles, the lawyer gets to eat and the Apple customers get some coupons they'll never use. Hell, I'd be surprised if Apple doesn't budget for this.

now if only we can find his email and tell him what we really think ... I can't believe this. (I smell conspiracy)

The day after the Nano was announced, I bought one at the Apple Store. When I asked if they had any, the employee took one of each (black and white) out of his front jeans pockets. I reached for the black Nano and was immediately shocked at how bad the scratches were after only 1 day. The white was also scratched but not as visible as the black. I went home with the white Nano. Two days later I left on a week long roadtrip. Was I dumb enough to not put the Nano in something that was scratch proof? Not a chance! I found something that would enclose the Nano completely and only took it out to charge or hold in my hand. Why would I do this? COMMON SENSE!!! If someone was stupid enough to not protect their new Nano then SCREW THEM!! People need to start taking responsibility for their own actions.

“Excuse my ignorance of US consumer law (or law in general for that matter), but what possible grounds could the plaintiffs have for seeking a portion of Apple's profits from sales of the nano?”

“Punitive” damages. [Translation: Greed]

Litigation like this is sign of a society in decay. :-(

Duh.

Paper towels contain all kinds of nasty lens scratching materials. Just ask any optomitrist if you should clean your eyeglasses with it. Or better yet, ask a competent photographer if they use it for their camera lenses.

Duh.

Whatever. Point is, my three-year-old cellphone has less scratches than my six-month-old (always-cased) iPod. There's a reason why textured plastic exists: scratches are less noticeable, grip is more secure. That is part of design, Mr. Ive.

Oh wait ... did I change my cellphone skin last June? Dang!

god, what idiot uses a paper towel to clean their iPod with. Paper towels will even cause scratching on eye glasses (even the scratch resistent kind). The manual specifically states to use a soft cloth. If people can't even follow basic instructions (and common sense), then they really should get some other player—maybe one of the Rio's. There's a couple of them who'se looks could only improve by intense scratching. Break out the paper towels.

What do these people think they are, a record company?

Ah, yea, and while we're at it, let's complain and launch a class action about how easily scratches can appear on supposedly indestructible CD's and DVD's.

They also scratch from paper towel. And tissues. And handling in general.

I gotta keep wiping my ass with Brawny.

Donald Trump here I come.

Not possible, UNUSABLE... please

read this and tell me how a few scratches can make it unusable

http://arstechnica.com/reviews/hardware/nano.ars/3

Excuse me Mr Berman (if you are reading this...)

My Ford windscreen is scratched. I want a brand new one, and I demand a profit share from you.

My coke bottle when I boght that time had a scratched mark. I demand a 12 dozen bottle to be replaced, and insist the right to have the profit share from you.

Do you think are we stupid, or just simply you are just simply an idiot!!!!........

This is one class action suit that is totally warranted!

You Apple apologists just look like a bunch of morons with your denial of the facts.

Go take a look at the Nano demo units at any Apple store or other retailer where they are out for demo. The screens ARE scratched so bad that you can't read the display easily.

Man! You fat asses need to haul your 300 lb couch potato butts out once in awhile and actually investigate the situation.

The NANO DOES NOT have the same scratch resistance as other iPOD models.

Anyone that actually owns one knows that, and found that out the first time they took it out of their pocket and found that something as soft as 100% cotton is too tough for the Nano to handle.

I call 'Bullshit'.

I have a 3 year old iPod without a scratch on it. You just have to take better care of your toys. This idiot probably broke all of his Christmas goodies before New Year's Eve.

I smell a FUD campaign from someone with very deep pockets.

Is that you Billy?