I actually did get a free iPod from freeIpods.com. I also know of two other people who did as well.

The caveat? It's not easy and takes forever. It would probably be easier to buy it.

Oh did I mention I had to sell my soul and those of my 5 best friends as well. We'll probably get junk mail for the rest of eternity, but other than that, I came out unscathed.

Here's an account of someone getting a free iPod mini.

I also got one from freeipods.com and it was absolutely worth it. I started at the Wired story, too. The only personal info Gratis collects from you is your name and e-mail address (until it's time to ship the iPod, then they need your mailing address), so it was pretty much risk-free. I used a disposeable e-mail address, knowing it would be flooded with spam (and it was). I did the AOL trial and only spent a few minutes here and there getting friends to sign up and checking on my status. I warned all of my referrals about the spam and they were all happy with the trial offers they chose, so although none of them followed through with the deal even after seeing me with my free iPod, nobody lost.

you could always try marking the spam mail envelopes "refused" then dropping them back in the enarest postbox. At least here in england, apparently that means the sender then gets charged for the return-post of the mail to them. So they get their own junk back, and have to pay for the privelege!
But it looks like you've learned a lesson many pay a much higher price to learn. 99.9% of the time, if it sounds to good to be true, if it looks like you'll be getting something for nothing, the chances are, you've missed some important fine print.
And these are the nicer scams out there. At least they're run by semi-reputable companies. And you DO have the option to return that spam mail straight away.
There're plenty of scams where you have to pay before you can be sure it's a scam. And they consistently hook many poor souls.
Also, alarm bells always ring for me if someone wants to give me something supposedly for free but then wants a credit card numebr before i can get it. I have taken a brief look (pun unintended) at one or two of those less-dodgy looking porn offers, for example, and it surprises me that they're allowed to claim an offer as being free when you have no option to refuse the "3-day trial at 99 cents" or whatever. And yes, it's one that subsequently will be charged at $99/month from the fourth day after they have your details, unless you specifically cancel it in writing (i.e. not over the phone or by e-mail)
The non-porn magazine ones tend to be a little more forgiving. And more honest too, so I don't have a problem with them. Whether specific comapanies give the customer a poor service or not is a separate matter, and i've only tried one, so can't really compare them.

Don't get me wrong, I believe that some people get their iPods. I've also seen the many sites and blogs where people proudly display their free iPod. Until I personally know someone who got one, though, I'm not going to fully trust it.

hmm, porn or iPod? I have to say I am a fan of both. however, I also have both.

i would like to say that the freeipods.com is stupid there is nowhere to insert BRITISH addresses in the boxes they are all US states,even thought it mentions UK.

I know for a fact the gratis offers are legit. I also found this site where you can post your referral link for 24 hours and every single one of their visitors that signs up for that particular product during the 24 hour period counts towards your referrals..Its easier than evver!

i'm not so sure about free ipods. I live in Canada and all the offers require my credit card and need me to pay like $10. Sounds risky, because i thought the offers were suppose 2 be free trials!

It's not a question of are the offers legit, or are they not?

The fact is: some are legit, some aren't. Anybody can put up an ad promising you an iPod, even if all they plan to do is charge porno to your credit card.

I susbscribe to the no such thing as a free lunch idea. Those who did get their iPods had to work for them.

Since many of the offers involve signing up for credit cards and the like, I stay away from the whole thing. Be careful who you give personal information to.

I live in Canada too. There is an offer right now for a 1$ trial. I only started researching this after I saw 3 people I know from school receive their Ipod. Found those 2 links:

http://people.bu.edu/jbrock/ipod_analysis.htm
http://www.wired.com/news/mac/0,2125,64614,00.html

If you want to help me out:

http://ipods.freepay.com/?r=25062434

Many users find that after having successfully signed up their 5 people one of their referrals is placed on hold at the last minute thus rendering all of their efforts useless.

A good way of expressing disapproval at freeipods misleadng "on hold" con is to:

a) make a complaint to the services that you signed up to via freeipods

b) cancel the services that you sign up to, mentioning that freeipods are the reason

PS If you post this comment on 5 blogs I will send you a free ipod.

how can i get a free ipod without signing up for other things?

in theory,

when you register your 5 friends couldn't you just create 5 email accounts (with aol mail) and register them.
then when they all fill up with junk mail, just delete them?

I find it funny that this guy is saying it's not worth it while he has and add for free Ipods on his site

Yeah, the consensus seems pretty much as follows.

- Anyone who goes round writing "DEFINITELY NOT A SCAM" (almost always in upper case, as if this makes the point better somehow) is always posting a referral link.

- Some people do get free stuff.

- Many people don't get free stuff despite following the rules.

So, if you got something for free, chill out and stop trying to convince the world that free stuff like FreePay is not a scam, because tons of people do get ripped off. Think yourself lucky you actually got it, because many don't.

Too many of us have been scammed by people like FreePay to go round saying "DEFINITELY NOT A SCAM" or whatever else you want to shout.

It's all in the marketing model - FreePay wins when it gets referrals, and loses when it pays out. So, it gets as many referrals as possible, and pays out as little as possible. Just enough to keep the rumours going, but no more than that.

Check out my blog for more info on their tactics and other people's stories (and no, it's not a site with my referral link to trick you into signing up!!!). Just some info to help us avoid being scammed by FreePay!