Man orders 40GB iPod - receives shrinkwrapped box of soap and some batteries

Update from Merry Christmas 2006. I called Apple at 9:01am only to be told to call Target where I bought the Ipod...(since according to Samuel at Apple, there was NO WAY it could have happened from Apple). Target was really good about all of it....we left with new Ipod which we opened at the store in front of the security manager !!
PJ

Merry Christmas 2006 ! Yesterday, my daughter opened her SEALED 30G Ipod only to find a broken watch taped into the box with black electrical tape, some cardboard pieces AND 3 blank DVDs ! Apple's 800 number opens in 5 minutes..........I'll let you know what happens !!
(hmmm....come to think of it, maybe I'll check out those DVDs and see if there is anything on them !)
PJ

This happened to me, too, some 5 years ago, with a much more mundane item -- a $20 humidifier was replaced with 18 copies of a $20 book. What gives?
http://pinds.com/articles/2000/12/08/a-humidifier-by-tom-wolfe

The "password recovery" feature of the OS X install DVD is designed to assist people who forget their passwords. Yes, all that you need is an OS X install CD or DVD; boot into it, go to the Tools menu (I think that's what it's called - don't have a system at hand to test) and choose "password recovery".

A common concept in computer security is that if you have physical access to a machine, no amount of software-based security can prevent someone from compromising it.

Just wondering about the second part of the story...

You can change a user password just by inserting the OSX DVD? So, all you need to access a mac is the install DVD? Makes the password seem kinda worthless...

Not directly related, but I feel like sharing.

I bought a 2G iPod nano at CompUSA a few weeks ago. It was a return and $10 off - what the hey, $10 is $10. When I got it home and fired it up, it was LOADED with the previous owners stuff: songs, pictures, and CONTACTS (with phone numbers and addresses). I was tempted to call the guy and ask why he returned it.

- Jasen.

UPS, tisk tisk. Why am I not surprised. I'd never ship anything with them. They once damaged something in shipment then it was sent back to them for inspection then they lost it. Then it showed up on the doorstep of the original person that it was shipped to again. Then it was shipped back for inspection then got lost for good. Then they had the audacity to fight us on claiming the insurance on it. Also, knew people who worked for UPS, robbery, corruption, and destruction. The Irish Spring is a nice touch. I remember once getting a computer that was returned to our store and the box was sealed up and had bricks in it. Classic.

I once returned an item to Tiger Direct, They refused it saying the item was unidentifiable and returned the box to me. In the box was a six inch piece of pipe. The shipper was UPS. It took PayPal to retrieve my money.

I work for a major electronics retailer. As part of our return procedure we open up all packages for inspection, even if still in vendor sealed or shrink-wrapped condition (we can always reshrink them)

A few weeks ago some kid came in to return a brand new iPod nano. This was in the cardboard box, not the new clear cased ones. It had a perfect shrink-wrap seal, and the box was strapped to prevent people from ripping open the box.

We proceeded to process the return and started to open the box for inspection. When we started to do this, the kid suddenly had "left something in his car" and went out the door.

When we opened up the package, there were 2 neatly cut-to-size pads of post-it notes inside. That kid never did come back.

Brant:

In college I had a roommate that ordered a G5 and they left it in the hallway, in an apartment building with no external locks and a full glass front to the stairwell. I was amazed that it was even there when I opened the door and almost ran right into it when I was leaving for class. It makes me feel all the better that I was home when my MBP arrived.