We thought that maybe exploding iPods were a 2008 phenomenon, but evidently not. An 11-year-old girl’s iPod exploded in England, and Apple reportedly tried to get the entire family to sign a confidentiality agreement in order to get a refund.

Ken Stanborough, 47, from Liverpool, dropped his 11-year-old daughter Ellie’s iPod Touch last month. “It made a hissing noise,” he said. “I could feel it getting hotter in my hand, and I thought I could see vapour”. Mr Stanborough said he threw the device out of his back door, where “within 30 seconds there was a pop, a big puff of smoke and it went 10ft in the air”.

Mr Stanborough contacted Apple and Argos, where he had bought the device for £162. After being passed around several departments, he spoke to an Apple executive on the telephone. As a result of the conversation, Apple sent a letter to Mr Stanborough denying liability but offering a refund.

The letter also stated that, in accepting the money, Mr Stanborough was to “agree that you will keep the terms and existence of this settlement agreement completely confidential”, and that any breach of confidentiality “may result in Apple seeking injunctive relief, damages and legal costs against the defaulting persons or parties”.

She’s only the latest customer to report an iPod catching fire or exploding, and Apple was happy to keep the story quiet until the past few weeks. A Seattle TV station filed a Freedom of Information Act request with the CPSC, and received 800 pages of information on iPod incidents involving explosions, burns, or fire in the U.S.

This could just be because the devices are so ubiquitous. Or maybe the iPods are plotting to take us all out in a series of tiny, tiny fiery blasts.

Apple tried to silence owner of exploding iPod with gagging order [Times of London]
Apple Downplays Fiery iPod Incidents [KIRO]

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iPod Nano Explodes While Charging
Apple Agrees To Replace Exploding First-Gen iPods After Japan Demands Action

(Photo: Joe Hastings)

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