I'm pretty sure my iPod needs a new battery. Several years old, not holding a charge.  As I understand it, they will wipe it clean so I need to get everything off of it.

 

I have about 800 songs on it.  I have more than twice that many songs in my iTunes (I don't have them auto synch when I plug in the iPod to charge it on the computer). 

 

I don't know how to get the songs on the iPod squared away somehow so that I can easily put them back onto the iPod when I get it back.  I can select all the songs but then I can't drag them anywhere, or copy/paste. I tried making a new playlist in iTunes but it wouldn't let me put them there. I tried dragging them to a USB drive but they wouldn't go.

 

Anyone have any idea how I can do this short of printing out some list of 800 songs and then having to manually put each one back on the iPod when I get it back from my list of 1800 songs?

I've never done this before, so another response in this thread is needed.  But what I'd do is export your current library in iTunes

 

Then click and hold shift and then press delete.  It will remove all the songs from your library, but not your hard drive.  Plug in your ipod and sync it to your library.  It will create a new library with all the songs that are only on your ipod. 

 

FYI, If songs exist on your ipod that don't on your computer, a new folder will be created on your hard drive with that song.

 

Export the new iTunes library (we'll call it the reduced version) that contained songs that were on your ipod.

 

You can then either keep reduced version up or simply import the extended version back to your iTunes while you wait to get your new ipod.  Just be sure the reduced version is imported when you get your ipod back

 

FYI, here's the inside of my ipod classic.  You can see the battery to the left, and the flat grey and blue rectangle is the hard drive.  The white frame to the right protects the hard drive if the ipod is dropped.  Typically if the hard drive requires replacement, the entire device is replaced.  The battery is easily removable however.  Still runs great after all these years, though I'm now already on my second iTouch.  I sold my first which was pretty much in perfect condition

 

Wait. Export all the songs in my iTunes? To where?

Install MediaMonkey (www.mediamonkey.com) if you're on a PC.  It will let you do everything you SHOULD be able to do with your iPod.  Then you will be able to copy just the songs on your iPod directly to a playlist in MediaMonkey, then just resync that playlist back to the iPod later.

 

You MAY be able to do this in iTunes as well (copy iPod songs to a playlist) but I don't really know as I don't use iTunes.

I've been having off and on iPod problems for years. I bought mine refurbished from the Apple store in 2006 (it's a fat 40 GB click wheel model with black and white display), but it recently has had trouble holding a charge. I only get about three hours out of it. In the past, it seemed to go for eight. It also has had numerous hard crashes, and then it won't mount on my computer. I finally got it to mount one day and wrote zeros to the hard drive. Since then, it has worked, but I'm worried the problem might come back. It also requires lots of manual restarts during use (problem that has existed for years). It will be playing music on my stereo fine, and then it cuts out and gives me the upside-down smiley face.

 

Any idea what the problem is? This model is only probably six years old, and it seems too young to be screwing up like this. It has been one of the least reliable electronics I have ever owned. I spent $200 bucks on this thing! I'm starting to think an old laptop might be the smarter way to go. I only bought the iPod because I sold my Powerbook G4 and replaced it with a G5 for video editing. I mainly use iPods connected to stereos, not so much on the street. I could probably pick up a used laptop for not much more than a new iPod classic. But of course I want to avoid that. Are there any quick fixes for these iPod click wheels? Is it still possible to replace batteries in them?

C-dawg. I'd try the battery first, looks like the replacement kits are around $10-$15 on the ineternet for the 4th gen with tools to open the case. The batteries on those just have a plug so the hardest part is opening the case.

 

 

I have a refurb 5th gen Video ipod still going strong since Christmas 2006. And a 1st gen Touch that I won at a conference in 2007? 2008?

 

Six years old is ancient in ipod years. They age only slightly better than cell phones.

I've been having off and on iPod problems for years. I bought mine refurbished from the Apple store in 2006 (it's a fat 40 GB click wheel model with black and white display), but it recently has had trouble holding a charge. I only get about three hours out of it. In the past, it seemed to go for eight. It also has had numerous hard crashes, and then it won't mount on my computer. I finally got it to mount one day and wrote zeros to the hard drive. Since then, it has worked, but I'm worried the problem might come back. It also requires lots of manual restarts during use (problem that has existed for years). It will be playing music on my stereo fine, and then it cuts out and gives me the upside-down smiley face.

 

Any idea what the problem is? This model is only probably six years old, and it seems too young to be screwing up like this. It has been one of the least reliable electronics I have ever owned. I spent $200 bucks on this thing! I'm starting to think an old laptop might be the smarter way to go. I only bought the iPod because I sold my Powerbook G4 and replaced it with a G5 for video editing. I mainly use iPods connected to stereos, not so much on the street. I could probably pick up a used laptop for not much more than a new iPod classic. But of course I want to avoid that. Are there any quick fixes for these iPod click wheels? Is it still possible to replace batteries in them?

 

You can probably replace the battery yourself for cheap.  I've done it without any problems.  Sometimes the sadface though could be hard drive issues.  If that's the case, the device is done.  You can't replace the hard drive

You can replace an iPod HD. There's tutorials online. Check e-bay for components if you need 'em. Don't ever listen to Apple. Ever. They want you to send stuff in and pay 800 bucks for a repair, then wait around for 2-3 weeks. They told me I'd fry my MacBook Pro if I took it apart myself to look at my cd/dvd drive that wasn't ejecting. Naturally, I didn't listen to them and took apart the casing, got to the drive with nothing but a screw driver set, shook the drive a bit and come to find out the d@mn culprit was an SD card stuck in there. Ironically this SD card had a bunch of sensitive transcripts - something I wouldn't have wanted in the hands of a technician. Sometimes big problems have simple solutions and sending your device in to the manufacturer is a complete waste of time and money.

Sending your device in to the mfgr is a waste of money just like taking your car to a repair shop - if you don't have the knowledge and the skills to make the repairs, you pay through the nose to have someone else do it. 

 

I will try the Media Monkey thing but if that doesn't work, I don't know what I'll do. It's only $60 for a battery replacement, a lot cheaper than a new iPod. I know mine is "ancient" but I like it.

R&R get your husband to look at the tutorial and do it. Ha! Tell him to know his role!

 

C-dawg. I'd try the battery first, looks like the replacement kits are around $10-$15 on the ineternet for the 4th gen with tools to open the case. The batteries on those just have a plug so the hardest part is opening the case.

 

 

I have a refurb 5th gen Video ipod still going strong since Christmas 2006. And a 1st gen Touch that I won at a conference in 2007? 2008?

 

Six years old is ancient in ipod years. They age only slightly better than cell phones.

 

I don't think 6 years is ancient for an ipod. Despite .mp3 codec being extremely outdated now, people still listen to them all the time. Like Apple's high resolution difference on the new iphone hardly being detectable to the eyes, most people can't tell much of a difference between mp3 and large AAC files.

 

Here goes my ADD but did you know used cell phones, no matter how old they are, are worth 2 bucks a pound if you recycle them? A lot of this value comes from Gold, Platinum and Silver that is used for connection points as it doesn't corrode or tarnish, making it a more reliable conductor than copper. Think about how many cell phones people go through and how much they weigh. Everyone has a bunch of them in a junk drawer in their kitchen because they don't want to throw away toxic components full of mercury and lead. 99.5 percent of the materials in the cell phone get re-used; in other words, when you recycle a phone, you're effectively creating an entire new one. I wouldn't be surprised if new devices contain used components - computer manufacturers get away with that all the time. iPods and other MP3 players might not yield as much re-use for their components since they're more like computers but I'm still surprised that they don't have great recycling programs for them. People go through mp3 players just as quickly as they do cell phones. It's kind of sad. I hate how hardware in general gets outdated and thrown away so quickly for the sake of buying a slightly better device. Hell, the magnets used in any old hard drive are powerful enough to break fingers; it's made from an extremely rare earth metal that's 10x as powerful as the next strongest magnet. You can literally make homemade electric generators with them. The possibilities with old junk are endless.

You can replace an iPod HD. There's tutorials online. Check e-bay for components if you need 'em. Don't ever listen to Apple. Ever. They want you to send stuff in and pay 800 bucks for a repair, then wait around for 2-3 weeks. They told me I'd fry my MacBook Pro if I took it apart myself to look at my cd/dvd drive that wasn't ejecting. Naturally, I didn't listen to them and took apart the casing, got to the drive with nothing but a screw driver set, shook the drive a bit and come to find out the d@mn culprit was an SD card stuck in there. Ironically this SD card had a bunch of sensitive transcripts - something I wouldn't have wanted in the hands of a technician. Sometimes big problems have simple solutions and sending your device in to the manufacturer is a complete waste of time and money.

 

ipod classics don't have solid state hard drives, they are conventional disks with moving parts.  That's the issue.  There's really no point in retrieving a new hd on ebay.  The repairs to reconnect it are difficult even with the right tools.  Though ipods are expensive, they aren't THAT expensive.  Having one for 4 years, you basically assume the thing is at the end of it's life, you've gotten your money's worth it and its time to save up for a new one.  No one should ever attempt to pro-long the life of a hard drive unless you have a very good reason too (repair after fire or flood) 

 

Finally, making the technology jump is worth it as well if you go with an itouch

I don't think 6 years is ancient for an ipod. Despite .mp3 codec being extremely outdated now, people still listen to them all the time. Like Apple's high resolution difference on the new iphone hardly being detectable to the eyes, most people can't tell much of a difference between mp3 and large AAC files.

 

I don't think six years is too old either. I'm still rocking a computer from 2005, and yeah, it's slow, but I can still get things done. If I land a sweet new job, then I'll replace the computer. This whole "replace every three years" crap is bullocks and can become a big financial drain. For professional workstations at your business, I can see the argument. For your home (usually a secondary workstation) computer, it's fine to run "ancient" equipment.

 

My gen iPod does play AAC, which is great IMO. I do think it's quality is superior to mp3. I can't tell the difference between 256k AAC and the original CD. I doubt anyone can. But to be fair, I couldn't really tell the difference between LAME mp3 and the original CD either. The mp3 encoder in iTunes sucks though.

 

I expect my iPod to last a long time, because it is expensive, and Apple has a good reputation for longevity and reliability. It does what I ask of it, and I see no reason to upgrade unless it bites the dust.

 

ipod classics don't have solid state hard drives, they are conventional disks with moving parts.  That's the issue.

 

True, this is true of older laptops as well. Conventional disks only make sense in systems that don't have the added burden of portability. I wouldn't expect a conventional disk in an iPod or laptop to last as long as it does in a desktop. Solid state should be a reliability upgrade.

I think you'll find the itouches last far longer than the classic ipods.  Solid state hard drives that can handle abuse and better displays that are more resistant cracking and extreme temperatures.  Heck, wouldn't be surprised if these devices have ballistics ratings in the future.  Iphones have already saved lives lol.

Wait. Export all the songs in my iTunes? To where?

 

Sorry rockandroller, I got caught up in other discussion lol. 

 

Again, I'm not sure if this is how to do it.  You know what, at some point very soon, I will have to do exactly what you are trying to do so I may as well get it over with soon.  I'm tired of iTunes trying to cram 40,000 songs on an itouch, and leaving out the songs it thinks I don't like.

 

Go to File > Library > Export library.  Name it the file name you want like BigLibrary.xml.  Now you can highlight all the songs in iTunes and then press delete.  Why do you need to delete them?  Well, when you plug in your ipod, it will see a blank library and re-populate it with only the songs on your ipod.  Once you've done that, you now have to export the library that was on your ipod.  Export the library as ipodlibrary.xml or whatever file name you choose.

 

Now you may want to bring back the library you had before.  Go to File > Library > Import Playlist.  Not sure why they call it "playlist."  They should keep their terminologies consistent and they fail to do so.  Navigate to the first .xml file you created and it will restore it to the library you had before.  Remember when you get your ipod back, you must have the ipodlibrary.xml file loaded or else it will put Biglibrary.xml on your ipod.