Horizontal White Line Right Across Screen iPod Classic 120GB

Question

I bought an Apple iPod Classic 120GB 14 months ago. I have looked after it very carefully (it hasn't even left the house) and only used it sparingly. Last week an annoying horizontal white line appeared right across the screen. I have tried all the recommended including resetting it.
Having trawled the internet forums and asked at my local Apple franchise dealer this seems to be a common fault with the screen hardware. I gather I can expect more line to appear over the next few weeks. I followed Apple's online repair procedure and once I ticked the box for 'screen problem' there is another drop down box with about 4 options. One of these refers to horizontal or vertical lines across the screen so Apple must be aware of this fault. At the next stage I was advised that I must pay approx £95 before the iPod could be repaired or replaced.
I subsequently phoned their Customer Services Department in India to ask why I was being charged so much for what was clearly a manufacturing fault and was told that they had no authority to offer discounts for repairs. Having asked to speak to someone who could help I was put through to Apple in Ireland.
The person I spoke to again repeated that Apple would only repair the iPod if I paid £95. He claimed it was a very rare problem but they were aware of it. I suggested that if this was true, surely they would want to replace or repair the iPod free of charge or at least for a reasonable price. The answer to this was no. I asked how long they expected iPods to last as 14 months did not seem very long. He said that he couldn't answer my question. I would have thought that it was reasonable to expect a life cycle of nearer 5 years for an high quality mp3 player. I feel that if an iPod fails after only 14 months it is hardly fit for purpose.
Has anyone else experienced this?

Answer 1

this is the exact same problem as mine (mine is classic 80GB) :[
it started happening out of nowhere, for no reason too. it happened 10 days ago, and ive had it for 2 years 3 months
in addition to the line across my screen, there are some scattered dots above it that move around everytime i turn off my ipod and turn it back on, which is really odd and at first funny but now just very sad.
please please tell me if you find a solution (minus the huge fix cost), and/or email me at [email protected]