sorry to hear that man...
but give them a little break, they do a really good job with support of an EOL'd product. Most companys don't do that at all. Maybe with the sudden growth of owners they weren't able to keep up the supply with the demand.
in the mean time...I re-read the thread and you said you did open you case and asked about the hot glue...Did you try making sure it was crimped tight? That kept mine running till I got the new cable. And mine didn't stop wroking again with the bad cable until I was transfering it between home and work...when i didn't move it much it was fine.