I reckon you've had US-made iPods then.
My daughter bought one (top of the range model, about three-four years ago). It died after a few weeks and they refused to replace it. It was "repair or nothing". After some more weeks, it came back "fixed" and lasted another few weeks before it died again. Same process. Some weeks after that, she got it back again and it lasted ten months. She moved on from the iPod experience.
I bought one. A week later, it stopped working. I got the same "send it in and we'll repair it". I got stroppy (remembering daughter's experience) and insisted I didn't want this dud one repaired - Apple could send me a new one or my money back. After some discussion of the Sale of Goods Act and my good solicitor friend, they replaced it.
It works, but once in a while refuses to start and I have to do the "press buttons and switches in coded sequence" thing.
All of those were made in China. No idea if that's the difference.