I dropped mine on a concrete floor and it landed on a rock. The back has a dent in it, but thats all that was wrong with it. It didn't even skip, it just kept chugging along. I've read alot of reviews on every generation, and I've never heard of them "always breaking." I have a hard time believe that the screen smashed and the hard drive mounts are broke from dropping it less than a foot. I dropped mine from probably close to 4 foot off the ground and nothing is wrong with it. It still plays just fine. In fact, I trust mine enough Im gonna go drop it on my counter top from a foot, just to see and my counter is the only thing harder than a hardwood floor in my house.