Shuffle cannot tolerate sweat/moisture

After reading through the threads I can see that there is a problem with the Shuffle control and moisture. I have been using my Shuffle in the gym for about a month now and notice that when I start my workout everything works fine (i.e. volume control, advancing songs), once I reach the sweat zone of the workout the Shuffle begins to behave oddly, the voice over activates for no reason, cannot adjust the volume, advancing songs is intermittent. Initially I thought this was a low battery problem but a quick check of the headphones with my iPhone revealed the control issue. Apple replaced the headphones and lo and behold the same problem started with the replacement. It is quite obvious that the Shuffle headphones are not designed for the workout environment which I find to be quite surprising since it seems Apple tries to cover all scenarios when they design their products. Hopefully Apple is listening to our complaints.

Add me to the list of people who never would have thought Steve Jobs could make a blunder like the 3G Shuffle and it's headphones. Isn't Apple embarrassed by their little instruction video, which shows an apparently sweatless woman running with her Shuffle clipped to the waistband of her shorts?

Unfortunately for me, I can't get my Shuffle or headphones replaced. I bought the iPod through the Apple Store (Canada) and had a friend carry it to Tanzania. No Apple Stores here and the 2 local dealers won't entertain sob stories about items they didn't sell.

I was happy running with my 2G Nano on an armband, until one day in October when some guy lunged out of a car window and ripped it off my arm. I specifically went for the Shuffle because it could be hidden away.

Now, if I can get the Shuffle working again, I'll do the knot thing and the saran wrap thing and the clip the Shuffle upside down thing. But Apple shouldn't be hiding out like Tiger Woods, hoping the problem will just go away. It won't.

I own an iPhone 3GS and a MacBook Pro. My wife has a 2G Nano and a MacBook. My kid has a MacMini and is getting an iPhone for Christmas. This aberration from Apple's usual design and build quality is a shock for me. Somebody at Apple, Steve, should take responsibility and fix it.

Very annoyed only used Ipod 20 times and same problems as those on the forum!! Voice ativates without me pressing earphone control, songs skip or the same song plays several times in a row. This happens whether I am at the gym or sitting still on the train. Will not be replacing this product but will request a refund. Couldnot be more disappointed by the false advertising that it can be used whilst running which was the reason for purchase. Secondly, why would I buy a product that only works if a bag is wrapped around the earphone control whether I am at the gym or walking in the rain.

I am a very upset customer and feel like I just got ripped off. My wife got me a surprise yesterday with a new I-pod shuffle to work out with as my old i-pod nano had finally died. Then in my first work out this morning the head phones succumbed to the sweat problem. Pretty disappointed in the shuffle product as I can barely hear any of my music and the volume control doesn't work.

Add another upset shuffle owner. I took my shuffle to the local service center who reps apple on island. I was told my warranty has been void becuase they say I submerged my shuffle in water. If running with your shuffle falls under submerging the shuffle in sweat and rain then yes it was submerged. I surly will not buy another shuffle for my fitness needs.

I am surprised by Apple's inability to fix the problem.

Just adding my comments to this thread. I get about 20 minutes. I have a beard, so that might add to it.

Called last night, and they gave a lot of suggestions... Most involved spending more money on other products.

Agreed. VERY VERY POOR product testing. For a third generation product, and from Apple who prides themselves in their human engineering, dropped the ball on this product. I'm really disappointed in both the product and the support of the issue.

Has anyone tried rubber cement or something like that?

Found the solution that works for me... went to my Apple store and made them give me a new one (acted like they never heard of the problem) after telling them I would not schedule an appointment and come back another time so they could trouble shoot it... sheesh... a $59 product! Got the new one, brought it home, and promptly wrapped the in line controller with plumber's tape starting about a cm above the clickie thing and ending about a cm below. The plumber's tape is so thin and white you will never know it's there. So far, around 4 sweaty workouts with absolutely no problems. Total PITA to have to do it, and I know I'll be replacing tape frequently, but at least I have ended the frustrations of having the thing go completely haywire shortly into my workout.

OK. I went to the Apple Store and told them my issue. So happens the sales person had the same problem. We went to the manager, and he suggested the standard things. So I told him I would like to try the shrink wrap solution, and if it screwed it up, would he still honor the warranty? He agreed if I told him if it worked.

I haven't worked out with it yet, so I can't say if it succeeded or failed, but here are some issues with it so far.

Shrink wrap gets really hard when it shrinks. Pressing the buttons is pretty hard now. Also, I couldn't get a piece that would shrink enough in one try (probably should have gone with the black vs clear (it shrinks better), so I had to add a second piece higher up.

Also, be careful, to shrink temp is higher than the melt temp on the rubber coating on the wire.

I am very upset with this Ipod. I own already four iPods, three Macintosh computers and all was fine till 2009.
But then, first it was my Macbook top case and bottom case that cracked. Now my iPod does not work when I workout. You know what? APPLE IS NOT THE SAME ANYMORE.

wow didn't know sooo many had the same problem i was dissheartened as all of you i only cared because it was a gift from my son #1 while wearing keep as dry as possible hi up on collar pointing down is good keep all wiring outside of clothing just bear the dangling it helps keep it dry. #2 let fully dry after workouts keep in warm airy area don't put back in case. #3 the biggie! salt deposits!!! thank the usarmy for teaching me communications and to keep connections clean... inside the shuffle and on the insert you will find a white residue look closely it is salt deposits here's the fix... QTips and rubbing alchohol dip a qtip in rubbing alchohol and dip and turn frequently into hole use a cloth with rubbing alchohol to clean insert. a small gasket would waterseal this connection. to keep control dry use two strips of scotch tape. if this doesnt work immediatley it's soaked let it dry let it dry...goodluck

Well, it's been almost a year and they still refuse to publicly acknowledge this issue. They continue to plead ignorance at the stores ("we've never heard of this issue") and even have the gall to refuse to honor some peoples' warranties, citing "exposure to moisture". Yeah, no sh*t, Apple. Moisture actually comes out of the human body when you're working out, though of course sweat is unsightly and absolutely contradicts their clean lines and minimalist fetish. I've now had the shuffle replaced once, the headphones replaced 6 times. I sweat as much as anyone who runs 3 miles a day. It's not like I'm scuba diving with the thing, or running across the Sahara in 120 degree heat. I am a stockholder in this company, and I think it is a disgrace -- and absolutely unforgivable -- that they have refused to acknowledge or handle this problem. Truly disgusts me.

I've posted on a similar thread that dealt with the sweat issue as it related to the Shuffle's headphones. While the headphones may be affected by sweat too, my problem has been with the unit. It just stops working after about 20-25 minutes of working out as soon as sweat infiltrates the unit.
I do not use the Apple supplied headphones because they fall out, so I used other headphones with a Scosche Tapline. Even covering everything in electrical tape failed to stop the problem.
I sent a detailed message to Apple through it's technical support website. Never heard anything.
This is it in a nutshell to me: the Apple iPod Shuffle is simply a complete and utter design failure. The headphones are a failure, the unit is a failure, everything about it stinks including Apple's response, or lack thereof.
About 4 years ago my wife won a 30 GB Classic through work. I'd never owned an Apple Product and this was our first mp3 player. I thought the iPod was a work of art and that the designers at Apple were nothing short of geniuses. Not any more unfortunately.
I've given up on the Shuffle - it was an Xmas present that lasted less than a month. More importantly, I've given up on buying future Apple products. I've strapped the old 30 GB in its smelly armband back on for my workouts - still works great.

This is a **** product and apple should be embarrassed to still have it out in the market. I have already went through two of them and getting ready to get this one replaced. It was a terrible idea to put the controls on the ear bud wires. You can't keep from sweating that is why you workout apple engineers. I know they check this board, so listen to your consumers and fix the problem. It gets really old taking this in and getting a new one. It is one thing to replace it, but what about the time and gas wasted involved in the process. If apple wants to make this right they will come out with a new one and replace all the old ones. We are talking about an inexpensive fix, take a lesson from Toyota Steve.

posted this simple solution that worked for me ,get a sealing healing style ban aid there the rubbery type cut it to wrap around the head phone control obviously over the open edges flush with top and bottom then take some liquid band aid to the top and bottom where wires goes in to the control , works for me no problems seals it up and the bandaid is flexible hopefully apple will solve the problem soon.

Why should we even be talking about purchasing an adapter or using saran wrap? Bottom line is the 3rd generation shuffle is a piece of crap that does not perform the function that most of us purchase it for: excercise. Apple should be making this right. Yes, a recall is expensive, but Apple has made billions from ipod products. This design flaw is huge and renders the product virtually useless. We are making big issues right now with the problems Toyota is having. This should be just as big. Look at the sheer numbers of people on this support board who are experiencing the same difficulties. Apple, get off your a**ss and fix this problem or recall the product entirely.