Ipod Video (5th Gen) No Sound / Heavy Static - Read This! - Quick Fix Found

Started having the same issue a couple of days ago;; Called Tech Support and I'll have my replacement in a couple of days 🙂 Not bad for an ipod that is 3-4 years old 🙂

Now if only other companies would stand by their product like this, the world would be MUCH better 🙂

If you are willing to be persistent with the 1st level support person (who will follow their script, and tell you your iPod is out of warranty, ask if you re-set and restored it, and want to charge you $29 for further phone support, or take your iPod to an Apple Genius Bar, etc, etc...) and insist you talk to a product support specialist, you WILL be taken care of. It took me much longer than I expected -- 30 minutes to get past the scripted responses. I am so glad I was patiently persistent.

I FINALLY got through to a support specialist named Matt, who knew exactly about this issue. I have two of the 5th gen 30G units that have this problem. He took the serial numbers of each unit from me, and my personal info (name, address, phone #), and gave me a repair ID (one for each iPod). He told me to go to the UPS store (even told me the closest one to my house!) with the repair ID and UPS will box up and ship the unit for me to Apple. They will test the unit(s), verify the fault, and send me back a "new" unit (I expect a factory refurbished unit). Matt was outstanding.

This is why I continuously go back to Apple for their products. This type of customer service is outstanding. Way to go Apple....

The first time I rang support I got a very unhelpful person who would not hand me over to a specialist and insisted it is out of warranty and must be paid for to be repaired. Even referred to this page as not part of apple (hrm I see apple.com hrm) So I proceeded to ring back again and got a very helpful 1st Level support person named Peter. He did the usual out of warranty had to be paid for and then he actually looked at this site. Spoke to a supervisor and came back and said the pinch point problem and proceeded to give me directions in getting free postage and replacement. I thank you Apple this is the support I have been seeing for a lot of your customers.

Also side note he did make a point that this is a one time replacement. So I am assuming they are taking note of the replacement S/N. I just hope that this one won't get the same defect.

OzTux
Western Australia

Message was edited by: oztux

I have the same problem, but currently German support won't acknowledge that it is a Manufacturing defect.

Same here,

After being promised to get a UPS pick up of my unit. nothing happened.
after talking to several support people: filippov.k@apple.com ; maya.t@apple.com. nothing came out they won't aknowledge the case and are saying that this post is not valid since it s not officially recognized. Hans let s me know how its going for you.

it s seems that german support isn t flexible at all.

First of all, thanks to all who have paved this road. I was put through to a specialist after a 3' preliminary interview and he said he "knew the issue, no worries", gave me UPS instructions--pack it up and bring it to UPS store--and gave me a case number. He said I would get a new iPod "shortly".

I am hoping this story has a happy ending...

I am still waiting for my replacement...was told i would get it back within 3-5 days after i ship off my old one. And now they're saying it will still be another business week before i get my replacement...now this is BS

News Update:

After having been turned down by the German Apple Customer Care, I dialed the 1 800 US number posted by Jules Verne on page 29.

I explained my problem, explicitly including the temporary pinching solution, and referred particularly to this thread.

The person I spoke with told me upon request that he was a Product Specialist. He put me on hold to check his exchange program database and this thread, resumed the call, and told me that there was apparently no exchange program related to the present error.

After it was clear that I was calling from Germany, he recommended me to call the German Apple Cust. Care.

I said I already had so, was told that I was out of warranty, and offered a price list to order a new iPod. I further explained that I could take from this thread that people on a 31-page-thread each sharing one and the same technical problem, from Australia, the Netherlands and the US, claim to have received a product exchange due to an acknowledged manufacturing error.

I continued that, assuming that at least some of them are posting the truth on this thread, I called the US customer care of apple to reassure whether there is such a replacement or not. All I wanted to avoid, I said, is to be worse off than an apple user in the US, only because I occasionally happen to live in Germany.

I was suddenly asked to be patient one more time, put on hold for half a minute, was given a reference case number and then told to go to the nearestby Apple Store to receive a replacement of my iPod there.

My appointment with the Apple Store is this afternoon. I'm still in between relieve and sceptic. I'll post on Monday how everything turned out...

In case I spend my wekend with a working iPod, Apple will be my #1. Nonetheless, German Costumer Care has to some homework...

Keep your fingers crossed!!!

I snapped my Ipod nano gen 5 in half in the store, it never held charge for more than 20 min from day one, the store wouldnt take it back! and left me to compain to apple! it followed the headphones to the bin after a few months

IM NEVER BUYING A NANO AGAIN

So... four business days after making the call, and three after UPS took it and did all the wrapping and mailing free of charge, I have a replacement 5th Gen iPod in hand. No charge, few questions, little hassle.

Thanks, Apple--way to keep this customer.

Although German Customer Care did everything possible to wear their customers down I will finally receive a replacement. I have already been called to pick up my replacement iPod in the closest apple store.

The American Product Specialist I had reached on the 1 800 number did a great job, very reliable: the message to replace my iPod was there under the given case number - as promised.

However, German Geniusses at the corresponding bar came up with a further brilliant idea: the message only ordered to replace my iPod, but not explicitly to replace it for free - so the apple store in Munich offered me a replacement for 170 €.

For that result I wouldn't have needed to call Customer Care.

Apple staff told me to call Customer Care again to clarify the issue. I replied it appeared to me to be their task to clarify their internal communication, but they refused.

I finally said I would call Customer Care again, if they let me, since I had very recently moved and my house was still not connected to the telephone network. They refused again.

Finally a manager showed up and took care of me. It turned out that the replacement order was indeed a replacement for free. My iPod was out of stock and had to be ordered first.

Now it's obviously there for me to pick it up.

Desired result, big hassle, only little enthusiasm about German service mentality.

Message was edited by: hans_trossin

Ok so I am back here... After being promised a new 5th gen ipod i get the old one back in the mail with a letter saying it wont be replaced. I think I will just go and return my new iphone and tell apple to go stick it up their ***.

SO ,
it took a lot of phone calls for me :
first i call the german support, and after reaching a product specialist he told me an ups will come and pick up my unit.

waited a few days nothing happen,

call back...case ID. no track of UPS...get over to produt specialist...talking about the case and the forum, and issue with the no audio and corners...well sorry you ipod is 4 years old ...there is no official note for reparation sorry...

so since i bought mine in US, I call US and find a really lovely product specialist, she was aware of the problem and add an " exception" note to my case ID.

So I called back german support and get through the whole process again...same things... I called again and found a more supportive specialist. Got a repair number with UPS....

1 week pass...no UPS...I called back...problem with the UPS....so I got to the product specialist aggain...got a new repair number and the next day the UPS picked up my unit...to be send to the repair center in netherland

a couple of day later i got a new refurbished unit similar to the one i sent...


SO it took me a lot of calls and emails to the product specialist.

Germany is much more tough on the case so you have to call the US Line. after you open a case online...


if you don t give up and stay polite, you will succeed

good luck

Kudos to apple and especially to the U.S ones, the german one was professionnal in the communication, but unflexible and unreliable.

I've got an ipod thats been defective for a long time due to no sounds when u plug in the earphones. My ipod is 5th generation late 2006 model. Good thing i've came across this forum that there is a manufacture defect. I called Apple support this Sept. 17 around 3:30 pm and informed them that i have a issue for a long time and informed them this forum. And they said yes we know we had a problem on the model u have and said that they will replace it for free but i need to send it out and got my repair id. Went to ups store and they pack and ship it for me. They receive the unit Sept 20. and confirmed the issue Sept 21 and got also a status that replacement product has been shipped for tomorrow Sept. 22. I am so happy. Thank you Apple.

GaRaS

I am still enjoying my free replacement, and I have gotten to help others with the same problem. Apple support is awesome! Again, the trick is to be persistent!