Last week news rolled in of some iPhone 5s having scratches, dings, scuffs, etc. out of the box. That is to say, brand new iPhone 5s with (minor) physical damage. A loyal but upset customer e-mailed Philip Schiller, Apple’s Senior Vice President of Marketing, informing him of the issues, asking what customers should do, and if Apple has any plans to fix it. Schiller’s response? It is “normal”.

According to dear ole Phil:

Any aluminum product may scratch or chip with use, exposing its natural silver color. This is normal.

While what Phil says is true, he completely ignores the problem at hand — new iPhone 5s are coming with scratches and chips out of the box. Brand new iPhone 5s, not used ones, have this damage. One can expect such wear and tear on used iPhone 5s but brand new ones should be physical-damage-free. What Phil doesn’t understand is, as one commentator puts it, “you don’t buy a new car if there are scratches on it. You don’t buy a new TV if there are scratches on it. Therefore, anything brand new should never have any physical damage to it. If there is damage to it AFTER buying it, that’s your own damn fault.”

Way to pull a Jobs, Phil.

[via BGR]