Yes, I got one. And here is a picture!
March 22, 2006 UPDATE: I am happy to announce that I have also received a free 30GB iPod video from FreePay. Very, very cool.
My Free iPod shuffle from freepay.comMy Free iPod shuffle from freepay.com
March 22, 2006 UPDATE: I am happy to announce that I have also received a free 30GB iPod video from FreePay. Very, very cool.
It was shipped via DHL Next Day. In the shipping envelope were the iPod shuffle, 1 GB version in full retail packaging and a "freeipods.com" T-shirt. (They asked me for my size on the order form after all my referrals were approved.)
The approval of my own offer took about two weeks. I did the BMG 12-cds-for-the-price-of-one deal. So, it wasn't absolutely free; with shipping and handling, those 12 CD's cost me nearly $50 out of pocket. There are other offers than may mean less out-of-pocket. But this worked out well for me, because I ended up with a stack of new music right before I got the shuffle.
The collecting of three complete referrals (that is, referrals who completed an offer) took some months for me. (Three are needed for the iPod shuffle; other items may require different numbers.) I did very low key soliciting of referrals via my website and some message boards. I had many others open accounts as my referral, but they never completed an offer. With patience it worked out. If you are in a hurry for an iPod, just buy one.
One of my first referrals was disqualified, so I had to get four in effect. The disqualified person did something forbidden on their end, but I do not know what. It was not a fault on my end, and did not affect my account other than having to find another referral.
After myself and my 3 referrals completed our offers, I had to request approval manually by making the selection on the freeipodshuffle.com website. There was a 7 to 10 day wait while the freeipod powers-that-be verified that I and all my referrals are on the up-and-up. My actual wait was around 7 days.
When I requested approval, my referral page was cleared of all names. My referral link still works. You can only get one of each offer, so I presume anybody that still comes in via my referral link goes to the direct benefit the corporate office.
After approval, there was another 7 to 10 days while they processed my order and transmitted it to the vendor. Again, my actual wait was around 7 days. But once the order was declared "shipped" it was in my hands within 48 hours. By the way, you can follow the steps of this process right on the website when you log in as a member.
The various wait times are annoying, but hey--it's free. (As I said above, if you are in a hurry for an iPod, just buy one.