Last November I dished out a heaping spoonful of grief, aimed at some class action lawsuits alleging problems with cracks appearing in iPhone 3G casings.  Smugly I said:

“My iPhone 3G is still looking sharp, but I don't (1) drop it, (2) drop it, (3) drop it, (4) put it in my pocket and sit on it, (5) drop it, (6) put it in my backpack and crush it with books, (7) drop it, or (8) catch it with my foot when I drop it and try to keep it from hitting the ground, resulting in it flying through the air and slamming into a brick wall and then falling to the ground.  But that's just how I am with gadgets - overly cautious.

(November 14, 2008 Post.)  Unfortunately, a few days ago, while admiring my pristine iPhone 3G (that lives in a holster at all times, that has a screen protector, and that has never been dropped), I noticed a hairline crack spreading out from the volume mute switch.  I went by an Apple store to discuss this issue.  Much to their credit, after inspecting my phone, the employee acknowledged (1) that there was a known problem with cracking in white iPhone 3G's and (2) that I had maintained my phone in exceptionally good condition, so they knew it wasn't cracking from abuse.  The employee also said that my phone was the first black iPhone 3G that they had seen with the same sort of hairline cracks as the white iPhones.  All of this pleasant service was obtained without any "I'm a class action lawyer/blogger" unpleasantness.  I just showed them the phone, they inspected it, and set up an appointment for a warranty exchange tomorrow (after I backup my phone data tonight).  So, if Apple is honoring the warranty for any non-abuse cracking, what's left to recover in the class actions about this issue?

Now let's just hope that the cracking issue in casing materials is resolved when the third generation iPhone is released this summer (allegedly), since I will likely need to have one of those (uncomfortably referring to it as "my precious").