how to (not?) fix an ipod problem

keegan — Wed, 20 Feb 2008 08:35:38 +0000

So I sort of bought Zach’s old 4G 40 gig iPod from him, and as soon as I got it, it started having problems. I think it may have started when I connected it to my firewire port, but not sure. Anyway, the symptoms I was having included: locking up Windows XP, not loading songs in iTunes, not showing up in iTunes, not showing up in Windows, not being recognized as my iPod (just a generic “iPod”) in iTunes, etc… Also I was getting the little folder and exclamation point icon (). After searching for a while about the problem, I came to two conclusions: the hard drive was DEAD or DIEING, or the iPod’s main board had a inherent problem (I was reading that some of the earlier models had the problem where the main board would cut off the power to the hard drive after a short while). I thought it was the main board one because when I listened to the hard drive it would make a whirr-up sound, then turn off, then spin up, then click, etc. BUT THEN I came accross an article were the guy basically had the exact same symptoms I did. The cure seemed a bit extreme: shake the hard drive outside of the iPod, and Many, MANY people replied saying how it miraculously worked for them. Well, I had tried so many resets and restores that I was ready to do anything. I didn’t want to open it up at first, even though I read it didn’t really work unless you removed the hard drive from the device, so I just kind of shook it in my hand a bit, then shook a bit harder. Then kind of lobbed it on the floor. AND IT WORKED! The hard drive was MUCH faster! Everything seemed to be good. I plugged it in and it was able to read the songs and everything. I was really exited! …For like an hour or two. When I got home and plugged it in to my computer, it started having the same old symptoms, plus a new one! I got the the sad iPod icon (). So I knew what I had to do. OPEN UP THE IPOD. Lets watch:

So basically the reason shaking the iPod is what to do is because the head of the hard drive gets stuck and shaking it “unsticks” it. I think my hard drive was just bad because as you can see from the last pic the hard drive’s probably dead…. :(

Yay!

I used something thinner to get in at first, actually…

WOAH!

Compared to a quarter

Compared to a laptop hard drive

Compared to a lot of things

<< Insert shaking here >>

DEAD.

…so we think it’s either the HD or the board. I’m hoping I can get it switched by apple for 60 bucks (that would be sweet).

So advice for readers: shaking your iPod probably works for some, maybe even most, but the hard drive is probably still making it’s way to the grave. I want to mention that a few technicians posted on that thread saying how shaking a hard drive is never a good idea, which is true, but if you are at then end of your ropes, why not give it a shot? Even if it does work, though, some people said they had to every-once-and-a-while hit their iPod or shake it a bit when they started having problems again, so shaking and iPod probably isn’t a smart long-term solution. But like I said before, if you’re at the end of your ropes? Maybe give it a shot? THAT IS MY TWO CENTS ON THAT OKAY

DIGITAL Letdown » diy ipod music pictures

how to (not?) fix an ipod problem