Up to 2.3 million Apple customers in the US who bought iBooks and PowerBooks could be eligible for refunds on their power adaptors after claims that they were prone to spark. Apple could also offer store credit to Canadian customers that were misled by iPod battery claims.
Customers in the US that purchased iBooks or PowerBooks with the faulty adaptors could be eligible for refunds of between US$25 to US$79. After a class action was filed in 2006, a Judge in the San Jose US District Court has granted approval of the refund scheme. Final approval of the settlement scheme is scheduled for September 8 this year.
This isn’t the first time Apple have had problems with their power adaptors. In 2001 they recalled around 570,000 adaptors that came with PowerBooks after claims of the laptops overheating surfaced. Apple offered free replacements for consumers who were affected by the adaptor problem.
Meanwhile, customers in Canada could be offered store credit of up to US$44.75 if they bought an iPod before June 24, 2004 and can prove that the battery life has dropped to a minimum of four hours or less (depending on the generation of their iPod device) while continuously playing music.
Apple had claimed that the batteries were capable of 8-10 hours of continual music playback. Apple has agreed to the settlement terms and final hearings will take place on June 11 in the Quebec Superior Court and June 20 in the Ontario Superior Court of Justice.
As with the power adaptor issues, this isn’t the first time Apple has found itself in hot water with its iPod batter life claims. The company settled a class action lawsuit in the US in 2005. In that case Apple agreed to refund between US$25 and US$50.
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