iTunes 9 has corrupted my iPod Classic

So here is my sorry story - please let me know if you have had similar symptoms and if you have found a solution.

I have a MacBook Pro, running Snow Leopard. I recently upgraded iTunes to iTunes version 9.0.2 and attempted to synchronise my iPod Classic (not sure which version I have - it's about 2 years old if that) whereby I was sent down all sorts of nonsense alleyways by Apple as iTunes told me that my iPod was corrupt and needed to be restored etc.

I have uninstalled every aspect of iTunes 9 from my mac and have installed iTunes 8 instead, as I didn't seem to have any problems with that before (lucky me? or better software?). I have verified and erased my iPod then restored it in iTunes.

I then thought perhaps I ought to manually manage my music as the auto-sync was what seemed to start this whole nightmare in the first place. This all goes well until I reach around 12GB when the iPod starts crunching and iTunes freezes to transfer. I am then unable to stop the transfer and unable to eject the iPod from Finder.

All that I can assume from this and from reading these discussion boards is that my iPod has been irreparably damaged by iTunes 9.

There are theories being expounded on these boards that this is all an elaborate ploy by Apple in order to capture the Christmas market - what more incentive do you need for a new shiny iPod than the fact your perfectly good one is not defunct? I'm not sure I buy into that as the negative publicity is surely more damaging than a few iPod sales. However this is massively negligent on Apple's part if iTunes is in fact the cause of all of this destruction.

Whilst the software licence agreement purports to exclude all liability for any damage caused by such software, in the UK this is overridden by the Unfair Contract Terms Act 1977 and the Sale of Goods Act 1979 which restrict the degree to which a company can exclude liability for loss caused and which imply a term into the contract which states that the goods must be of satisfactory quality. Whilst Apple could potentially have limited itself by clearly pointing out that the software is not suitable for iPod Classic owners they have not done this therefore to my mind there is a clear case for asking Apple to provide its now disillusioned and iPod-less customers with adequate compensation for their loss.

I am going to progress this with Apple and will post back here as to how I get on. Meanwhile, if any other UK customers would like to add anything please do as it seems that the voice of millions may be what Apple needs to do something about this.