a) CE failure rates are 15% so the ipod is under the industry norm. i'm not saying 14% failure is good, just that apple shouldn't be held to a higher standard than the rest of the industry.

b) your personal anecdote is irrelevant. my first gen ipod (bought the day it was released) still get 6 hours of playback and works like a charm, despite being dropped, scratched and taken around the world twice. just because mine still works doesn't mean i think everyone else's ipod should still be working.

c) what's the failure rate of portable hard drives period? what's the break down of failures on each ipod model?

d) microsoft? you mean the company who suffered highly publicized failure's of their xbox 360 at launch? the company who has suffered a from a string of embarrassing security flaws? the company that is now 3 years late in shipping their next gen OS? yeah there's a company you buy in to for their top notch quality.

seriously you need to stop propagating the FUD that crops up online, as a blog pertaining to the stock performance of a company it's irresponsible to post spurious information.

Microsoft has a real chance with the zune, because it shares the same target audience as the xbox

There is no way Natalie Kerrie said that an iPod is designed to last four years. Perhaps, she said the iPod is designed to last FOR years.

Apple legal would never allow a year to be disclosed. That would open a can of worms for any iPod failing before that. Moreover, the batteries alone do not last for four years. Finally, I doubt Apple even thought about the years the product would last. When have you ever heard a company announce how long a product ws designed to last? My answer is never. Kerry's quote was obviously misinterpreted.

You could argue that a shorter lifespan for IPods actually means opportunity to sell more of them in the future -- improving future revenue potential for Apple. With the innovations being made in IPods (video, increased storage, smaller size), and Apple's commitment to ensuring future IPods are compatible with existing peripherals such as Bose's SoundDock, high discretionary income consumers (the most desireable ones) are likely to just replace their worn out IPods with the newest version without even thinking about it. They'll have too much invested in accessories, ITunes software learning curve, stored libraries, etc. to consider changing.

With Wi-Fi sharing and compatibility with PCs running Windows Media Center and Xbox360; Zune will have take a decent chunk of market share from Ipod. But how much only time will tell.