That's interesting, I didn't realize that! I think it may have, because I've been using my Cuisinart one that I picked up pretty cheaply at Marshall's a few years back and it's been pretty solid—no chipping at all. I had been wondering myself why I would shell out for a higher end one if the cheaper one is working, but that makes sense if the cheap ones used to be worse.
I do have a Le Creuset French press that I splurged on that I enjoy, but that's neither here nor there.