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Breathe New Life Into Your Dead iPod
FreakyControl writes "Popular Science is running an article this month about how to change that dead iPod battery, along with links to sites that have other cool iPod hacks. It looks like Casey Neistat figured out how to do it for them, after ruining his own during a similar attempt: 'A few weeks later, PopSci gave him another third-party battery, this time from pdasmart.com ($60), and another iPod from a staffer with the same problem. That one survived and went back to its owner. And Casey ended up spending $400 on a new one.' Looks like all you iPod people may still have hope!"
All generations of iPods can be affected by this.
By the way, it seems like some batteries are more susceptible than others. My first iPod worked fine, but it was replaced on warranty for unrelated issues and the replacement's battery started to go in just a few months. You might get lucky and have a long-lasting battery, or you might get screwed.
P.S. You have a 3rd generation iPod. The second generation added a touch-sensitive scroll wheel, the third is entirely touch-sensitive.
refurb with your own backplate from what I have seen, They ask you if you have a engraving on it when you send it
"Slashdot, where telling the truth is overrated but lying is insightful."
My battery works just fine. However, it seems that iPod firmware 1.3 has broken my contrast. I have to turn it all the way up to see anything under the best of lighting conditions. When I turn the backlight on, the contrast inverts or something, such that it's only usable with the contrast all the way down. I know that my screen isn't broken because after reflashing to 1.2.6 and rebooting about a dozen times, it booted with normal contrast. However, the next time I rebooted it, the contrast problem was back. Perhaps a loose connection, but when I opened my iPod, everything seemed fine. Got it for Christmas over a year ago, so no warranty for me (I was 3 days out of warranty when I first called it in), but this problem didn't start until after I put firmware 1.3 on it.
Anyone else have this problem? I heard from a bunch of 3G iPod owners that the latest firmware for them does something similar.
Anyway, although I don't have any problems with my iPod battery, I can't honestly recomend Apple's products to people anymore. If this issue isn't fixed, I'm going to have to tell people not to buy Apple hardware because they'll be left out in the cold when Apple breaks it with an update.
Any electric device with a rechargeable battery will be affected. The iPods are no more vulnerable than most, though.
Apple offers to replace the out-of-warranty battery for $105.95 including shipping. You can buy your own battery for less and replace it yourself, but you assume the risk of breaking it. Apple doesn't even say that it's easy to do it yourself.
I could have bought an entire working automobile for $800.
That's right, and if you try to perform repairs on that car yourself without really knowing how to, then you'll probably have to spend another $800 on another car.
Concept of the day: your choices carry consequences.
As for the "sane" devices you mention: Looking at my Palm Tungsten T - there's no way to (easily) replace the battery in there, nor can the same be said about the other PDAs (Palm and Pocket PC) I see around me in my office.
Your rationale leaves something to be desired.