Apple Getting "Short Stick" on iPod Battery Settlement?

When the news first broke on the settlement between Apple and several individuals, i.e. the named plaintiffs in the class action lawsuit, we noted that we would have to decide whether or not to stick Apple for $50 each on the iPods we've purchased over the years. Our iPods' batteries have behaved more or less like lithium ion batteries are supposed to behave in losing their charge over the years down to 3-5 hours today. We are sure that some batteries have completely given up the ghost but certainly not all. If ours had, $50 would not be enough. The plaintiffs' lawyers, of course, are not getting the short end of the stick with a $2.8 million fee and neither are the named-plaintiffs as we noted previously, i.e. at $1,500 each.

We think that reader Bill Teawell summed up our view very well with his note,

I think Apple has gotten the "short-stick" on this issue. I received paperwork because I had purchased a 3rdG iPod without dock (in November 2003) and nowhere does it say what constitutes a fully charged battery. When I first got mine I put in on the charger and four or five hours later the "lightning bolt" had stopped moving indicating the battery was "fully" charged. But when I looked at the battery charge indicator in the upper right-hand corner of the screen, it was only about a quarter of the way. So, I put it on the AC charger again and four or five hours later the "bolt" stopped moving. I looked at the battery charge indicator again and now it was about half-way across. So I repeated the process several times more. Finally it looked like it was fully charged.

Like all new batteries, it immediately started losing its charge. ( I have a battery powered edger that the instructions say should be left on the charging stand whenever not in use to maintain a full charge.) If my iPod sat on the shelf (or dresser) for a few days it usually lost half its charge. I called Apple support on this and was told (and I believe rightly) that this is normal behavior due to the new battery standards and design. They ask if I would fully charge the battery and let it play for however long it would. I did and it went past eight hours. Spend a day recharging the battery and again ran the test. Again, the battery played for eight hours. So, before I used my iPod I made sure it was charged.

When I got the settlement papers I tried the test again. After making sure it was fully charged, I let it play. Again it played for the minimum eight hours. I don't believe that Apple fraudulently claimed that the iPod would play for eight hours. I do think that Apple can be faulted for not creating better battery management software. When it takes several attempts to fully charge the battery, users that are inattentive may not realize that the battery is not fully charged when the moving "lightning bolt" stops moving. I always charged mine in the "Off" state with the AC adaptor.

How do you feel about this? [Bill Fox]