Zen And The Art of Nomad Hacking

securitas writes "ExtremeTech just published a step-by-step how-to guide on hacking the Nomad Zen and Nomad Jukebox to upgrade the hard drive in each type of MP3 player. So if a 60 GB hard disk isn't big enough for you (20 GB on the older models) here's how to mod your Nomad."

Comments

Tools you'll need:

[1s44c]

Tools you'll need:

Small Phillips-head screwdriver
Flat-head jeweler's screwdriver
A small finger bowl (a place to put the tiny screws while you're working)
A clean table with good illumination so you can see what you're doing.
A new 2.5" slim laptop hard-drive (9.5mm high).


Enough cash to buy a new one once you f**k up the LCD screen.

Re:Tools you'll need:

[cpt kangarooski]

Feh. The LCD screen is not particularly impressive. Ancient Palms had better screens. I disliked the Zen enough to return mine to the store. Not enough codec support, not enough metadata support, crappy ass program to put music onboard, and a lousy UI.

Maybe the iPod is better, but having done my own work on mp3 players (canceled before production, the bastards) I have very high expectations.

What would

[frodo from middle ea]

be really cool, is if some one hacks Nomad Zen/ iPod so that they can use 3rd party rechargable batteries once the inbuild ones expire.
As I understand the current models can't be replaced once the battery expires in 2-3 years.
And when I spend > 400$ for anything I expect them to last for quite some time.

Re:What would

[sklender]

There are do-it-yourself replacement batteries for the iPod. For example, the iPod 1500mAh Replacement Internal Battery Kit costs around $60 online.

And according to the site, they'll replace your battery via a mail-in for an additional $9 fee if you are uncomfortable cracking open your case.

I've not had to replace mine yet, but knowing this made the original decision to purchase an iPod easier. BTW, I do not work for or know anyone at PDASmart.com -- just passing along something I ran across in research. :-)

-S

Re:What would

[2nd Post!]

Um, why can't they be replaced?

If an iPod can be disassembled, then the iPod's battery can be replaced...? Yes?

Gimme that screwdriver

[Faust7]

We were careful. We took our time. And we still damaged the unit.

Ah, but damaging is part of the fun. It's all about taking an electronic device and turning it into something totally unrecognizable that does something totally different. For example, I modded my Xbox to play Commodore 64 games, my digital clock to be a sundial, my microwave to be an anti-salesman irradiation device, and my toaster to be a sexual aid.

Re:Gimme that screwdriver

[Realistic_Dragon]

my toaster to be a sexual aid

If you ask your local A&E docs (or ER for the Americans) they will tell you that plenty of people use a toaster as a sexual aid in it's unmodified form.

Re:Gimme that screwdriver

[bongobongo]

my microwave to be an anti-salesman irradiation device

hopefully you also modded your electric toothbrush to be an anti-litigation device

Re:Gimme that screwdriver

[Realistic_Dragon]

Yup, in the UK A&E is where they do triage and emergency treatment. Roughly the same as the ER in American hospitals, but the rate of lawsuits to patients is lower ;o)

The answer:

[bj8rn]

from the does-this-have-the-buddha-nature dept

Mu.

Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance

[deander2]

FYI, the title is referencing a classic book:
Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance

So they changed the drive?

[codework]

Hardly a hack is it?

Open device.
Change drive.
Close device.
Reload software.

Wow! And they still bust the screen..

Hacking nomads?

[koi88]

Why do we have to hack nomads? By hand?
Doesn't Pentagon have bombs and missiles that do this job much better?

Its interesting however, that...

[gotr00t]

With the Nomad Zen and all its empty spaces and much larger volume and mass, it seems to be much easier to damage than the Apple iPod, which is twice as light, much smaller, and has a lot less empty space.

I've seen people take apart their iPods with nothing more than a thin, stiff, flat piece of plastic, and putting it back together totally unscathed. Heck, I've even heard of people accidently putting their iPods in the washing machine and then the drier and still turning out fine after leaving it out to dry for a few hours.

So, this should say something about the quality of the devices. Sure, the iPod is more expensive and holds a lot less (10 gb for about $300 compared to 20gb for the same price), but in my opinion, its built a lot better than Creative's player, Nomad Zen, as can be compared from the article above, and this one

Surgical Procedures

[Ateryx]

Brain surgery looks easy when broken down into little steps. That still doesn't mean everyone can do it... well.

"...it's a good idea to remove the battery so that the patient doesn't inadvertently "wake up" in the middle of the operation."

-Brad

Woo, that looks hard.

[mrseigen]

So they overtightened a couple of screws and bolloxed the LCD screen. Big deal. I'm more intrigued by the paragraph on how to disconnect the IDE data cable from the back of the disk. ExtremeTech, indeed.

Re:Nomad Jukebox 2 ?

[u38cg]

Yep, similar approach. The forums at Creative's site (at least the European ones) are (or were, it's a while since I frequented them) quite helpful, and Creative turn a blind eye to this kind of discussion, beyond pointing out what nasty things it does to your warranty (pah). See also Nomadness.net for more.

And for those of us with an Archos...

[Cyno01]

Here's a mod for the Archos Jukebox. It seems to be the same basic idea, and is probably doable with any HD based MP3 player. Also for archos owners who may not have it yet, Rockbox is a great replacement for the crappy firmware that came with the thing.

Track Limits

[Madeleine Williams]

A warning to wannabe upgraders: all of Creative's players have a limit on the number of tracks you can load onto the player. (The limit isn't actually a fixed number, but a problem arising out of the space allowable for file tag data. If you have a lot of tag data in your files, you'll hit the limit a lot sooner than someone who has barely any tag data.) The Nomad Jukebox 3 and the original Zens both topped out at around 9,000 - 10,000 tracks. The new 60GB Zens have upped the limit to around 16,000 tracks. A future firmware upgrade is rumored to give the older players the same limit as the new Zen, but there is no ETA yet for that upgrade.

Did anyone else read this...

[Psx29]

and think the headline was talking about the now defunct sega nomad?

don't throw away your PC...

[joebeone]

There's no Mac support for the higher-capacity Nomad products due to a tiff between Creative Labs and Apple people... and it all started going sour right around the date of release for the iPod. Anyway, if you are a OS X nerd that buys one of these things myself and a few others are trying to get either Gnomad2 or GnomeDAP up and running under Gnome 2.0 using libnjb (current cvs). Wish us luck...

mod availability

[SilverStreak]

that's why it is called the Nomad, and not the NoMOD hehe...

You do know that

[Colin Smith]

Zen and the Art of Motorcycle maintenance had absolutely nothing to do with motorcycles?

Sometimes you can almost hear the whoosh as it passes overs someone's head...