damage from sweat

Pretty sad that you have to pay 350 bucks and go thru so many Nanos for this product to do what it is advertised to do in the first place. Urbanvoyeur thanks for the info on a waterproof one but in the future I will be buying any other brand other than an Apple product. Never again apple or anything related to this company. They just dont stand behind their advertising or products.

@Drago

I agree with you, and I think you're making the smart move.

Fortunately for me, all the warranty replacements were $0. It did cost me 4 trips to the Apple store. That's not the case for many others here.

The reason I stuck it out with the 6th gen Nano this long is that all my media (50k songs, all legit) is in iTunes and my workouts are at Nike+ (6 years). I like the way the both apps work and I really don't want to use another system. But if push comes to shove, I will.

If this last water proof 6th gen Nano doesn't work, I'll either go back to my old 2nd gen Nano (no heart rate) or try the Motorola Moto.

Apple has left a sour taste in THIS mouth. My 6th gen bit the dust yesterday while running and perspiring. I've had mine for 8 months so I guess I should be thankful it lasted this long. What's even worse is that when I called into support, they basically coaxed me into stating that I was perspiring when using it. They were kind enough to send me an email with the case number, where I'm sure it is thoroughly documented.

It's disappointing that this thread is over a year old and no solution has come from it. Funny thing though, the way I came about getting this device. I bought a nano 1st gen back in 2006 I think. It worked great for playing music while exercising and running for all those years. Then in 2011, Apple determined that there was a safety issue with the battery. They emailed me (and others), asking that I should return it so they could send me a new one (http://www.apple.com/support/ipodnano_replacement/). That was very kind of them, standing behind their product due to a safety issue, but replacing it with another flawed device?.....Not so nice! I wish now that I hadn't sent it in as it would still be working.

What really stinks is that just last month, I bought my wife a MacBook Pro and myself a new iPad. We love those devices, but I just don't like 'em at the moment. I still have a sour taste in my mouth. It'll make purchasing four iPhone 5's (the family is ripe for new phones) that much more difficult later this year. Not that it'll matter much, considering that they'll be selling tens of millions of them.

I am lucky my nano 6th gen is 4 months old and has seen a few good running sessions without fault 🙂 Normally run most days with it thinking you can just clip it on and go that why I bought it as friends raved about it the sales person talked it up and Nike promote it **** yeah sign me up!!!!

But like many people I was unaware of the dislike to sweat and moisture that eventually killed it. After endless research I found my local "Mac Doctor Townsville" (thank you for your help guys very appreciated) who looked at it telling me that the liquid indicator had tripped and they couldn't look at it as it was apples policy.

Deciding to contacted apple support as I have no apple stores up in north Queensland to be told I have dropped my nano in water or missused it if an Apple repair agent said the indicator had tripped there is nothing they can do. Being totally honest I am 36 and not a child(no offence kids) if I had stuffed it I would have just gone and bought a new one. They put me on to several people taking over 3 hours to get told they will look into it by a customer relations supervisor who said to get back to her with what other apple products my partner and I have at home and she would see what she can do telling me it would take 3 days to my suprise I never heard back after all her concern never once telling me that there was this amount of faults and problems putting it back onto me making me feel I was the only one and that the ipod was misused.

Hopefully Nike running which is an amazing get fit and tracking tool will not suffer with being aligned with a poorly designed ipod I have had no problems with all my past ipods and the have seen some serious runs and humidity and sweat over the years.

Designers at Apple need to focus on the little things and design an ipod that delivers what they advertise!!

I'm too fed up to even post what's on my mind. Like everything else in life I wish I could of saw this BEFORE spending my hard earned money from a $9/hour construction job. This thing was advertised for fitness. How the --- was I supposed to know it isn't meant for runners in a humid city like Houston? I'm done... loved it while it lasted. Oh f'ing well....

Follow on from my August 19th post.....After reading that some of you had success with repairs, whether it was with calling Apple or visiting your local store front, I decided to try again, after my epic failure with techical support. I decided to send it in (on my own dime) along with a beautifully crafted letter, explaining the situation. I was very truthful about how I came upon the device as well as the event(s) leading to the iPod's demise. I thought, wow, this is gonna be great. I'll get it back and I'll be back in business. After all, how could they say no? How could the company with the biggest market cap, ever ($650 Billion - that's right, billion! With a B!) turn me away? Several days past, then a week. Then, much to my surprise, I found a FedEx tag on my front door, advising that I had missed a delivery, and that they'd try again the next day. Well, knowing that I would not be home to sign for it, I chose to drive the 15 miles to the to the FedEx depot that night to pick it up. On my way home (15 miles back), I was planning the next days run in my head. I was already thinking about whether I would have to redownload my playlist and which song I would choose as my power song. I finally got it home, opened the box (by the way Apple, nice packing job. Thanks!), pressed the button to turn it on.....AND? Nothing! Nada! Zip! Zilch! Zero! I connected it to my computer, pressed all combinations of buttons to turn it on, reset it etc. Still nothing. Even left it connected for several days just hoping for any signs of life. Can you believe? Not even as much as a note from them either. Boy, if that isn't a slap in the face, I don't know what is. Oh, and get this.....It is supposedly under warranty based on this blurb on an email they sent me during the exchange program:

Our initial diagnosis indicates that because your product replacement will likely be covered by the warranty, an AppleCare Protection Plan, or another Apple repair or exchange program, there should be no charge to you for the service performed. If we have questions or concerns regarding the repair coverage, we will notify you.

I mean come on Apple! Really?

I feel like I didn't do anything wrong. I was just using the product one of the ways it was indended to be used. I hope they come to their senses at some point on this issue.

Thank you.

Tony O

I'm NOT trying to defend Apple, but was this an authorized return? That is, did Apple give you an RMA numnber?

If not, I may be company policy to not work on or replace any device they have not authorized for return.

It was not authorized, you should try again, but this time get an RMA number from them first.

"I was very truthful "

Why would you be anything else?

I am on my third Nano under warranty and now this one failed. They all failed the same way - backlight flickers at the end of my workout then never lights again or is very sporadic to be unusable. They sync fine and I can reboot/reset it and see the screen if I shine a very bright light on it. So it appears to be only the backlight.

The last replacement failed (again, with a non-working backlight) after ONE WORKOUT SESSION after I got it.

Each time (I have another Genius Bar appt on Sat) I am told they have no idea why it failed and in each case the liquid sensor was NOT tripped. So, they just replace it.

I clip it to my waistband. It doesn't seem to get overly sweaty. When I am done the workout my hands are understandably sweaty, and I do use my hands to end the workout (using Fitness), press buttons, etc.

It seems very odd that I would get four defective units that fail in the same manner - after a workout, so I have to assume that this thing is very, VERY sensitive to sweat or liquid. The odd thing is that it appears to be very well sealed.

follow up of my prior post with some pics of my failed nano's internals, http://pinterest.com/pbrieger/ipod-6th-gen-nano-fail/

My nano died after having it for 10 months. Support says that since the moisture sensor is tripped, they will not cover it under warranty. Say that nano shouldn't be exposed to sweat. And yet they have a "fitness" capability. Now they change their design. Hmmmm, wonder why?

I now exercise with my nano in my pocket in a Ziplock sandwich bag.

Not kidding.

I've had two Nanos die the same way. Like you, I figured the clip meant that the device was INTENDED to be worn on the waist band of my shorts (I also tried clipping it to my sleeve or collar, but the clip is too loose to hold securely and the device bounces around briefly before falling off). So, I'm wondering, what is the purpose of the clip? They denied being aware of the problem when I called. Since about 11,000 people viewed on this forum, and nearly 100 commented, that response defies belief. Very disappointing! And, yes, this is why class action suits were invented.

I was going to follow up via a small claims case against Apple, but dropped my nano last night and cracked the case. Yikes! I now have another 6th gen nano that I hope lasts longer. Love the size and functionality, still find it strange that they went to a new design that is bigger for the 7th gen. They must know they have a design flaw, only thing that is logical. If my second nano fails, I'll sue for my $$ and maybe pursue a costlier waterproof nano at waterfi.com.

My three month old Nano gen 6 died last night - it gets so hot when plugged in that it can't be touched. I brought it to the store and the tech desk said the liquid indicator had been tripped. I run with the nano in a case wrapped around my right arm - matter of fact the thing has never left the protector and looks brand new. While its not waterproof, the case does protect the Nano. How in the world can an Apple product marketed as a fitness device die when minimally expeosed to sweat?

For what it is worth the Nike App lieterally says,

Clip your iPod nano to your waist/hip.

The manager at the store clearly didn't want to be bothered by me and told me my only option was to buy another one. I contacted support and they offered to let me buy a replacement for $65 but I have to go back to store and deal with the manager - again! I can honestly say I will NEVER go back to the Ridgedale Minnetonka, MN Apple store when about a billion other stores offer Apple products without the arrogant attitude of this person.