Apple Begins Sending Out Replacement iPod nanos

Apple has begun replacing customers’ affected iPod nanos (1st gen) after acknowledging a dangerous flaw with the players’ batteries earlier this month. Customers who applied for a replacement are now receiving identical units that look brand new.

The players are likely refurbished units, but customers should have nothing to complain about (unless they had a personalized iPod), as this person explains (via MacRumors):

“I wanted to pass along some info about the iPod Nano exchange program Apple started over the weekend. I just received the replacement and it is an exact replacement. No upgrade. Same capacity and everything. The only upside is that it is ‘new’ (probably refurbished), so it's clean in comparison to my old one.”

The replacement unit is warranted to be free from defects for 90 days from the date of service. Those who believe they have one of the affected models and didn’t get a chance to apply for a replacement can still do so.

 If that’s you, access this web form where Apple will ask for your iPod's serial number.

They’ll check to verify that it’s eligible for the program and, if eligible, you will be asked to sign in with your Apple ID to proceed with the next step.

The reason why Apple is replacing iPod nanos sold between September 2005 and December 2006 is that “in very rare cases, the battery in the iPod nano (1st generation) may overheat and pose a safety risk.”

Apple confirmed earlier this month that said issue had been traced to a single battery supplier that produced batteries with a defect.

“While the possibility of an incident is rare, the likelihood increases as the battery ages.,” Apple warned. The company also noted that this particular issue is specific to the first-gen iPod nano “and does not affect any other iPod.”