3G iPod 15 GB dead, now what?

[NatronB]

My baby is dead, Apple store wants $250 to fix her (not gonna happen).

Lemme backtrack: I'd put the poor thing through hell, dropping it multiple times, taking it around the world, swapping out batteries, so I'm certainly not pissed that it's dead. The harddrive spins up, but I soon get the "folder !" icon. The drive shows up on Disk Utility, but numerous attempts to wipe the drive/ reinstall the firmware have failed.

What should I do with my iPod? Paperweight? Doorstop? Or is there some purpose it could be fulfilling? It does come with a dock, for what it's worth.

Thoughts?

Thanks,

-N

[applemacdude]

sell it one ebay

[James Philp]

My 3G 15GB has recently also packed up.
The HHD scan picks up an error really early, which means there's a bad or damaged sector in the system area of the HD - the upshot of this, the thing won't boot, but still works as an external HD. So I use it for that.

You could look at getting a new HD for it if that's the problem, that won't set you back anywhere near $250.
Also, it sounds as if you're used to mucking around with the innards of the iPod, which means a HD replacement won't be too taxing for you!

Check out:
http://www.2guysamacandawebsite.com/article.php?id=588

[raddsigns]

My 3G 20 GB gave me the "folder!" once. After a brief panic as it was exactly one month out of the year warranty, I decided to try some things.

I was able to force it into disc mode (hold down the << & >> buttons) and was able to reinstall/format from the iPod updater.

I've had no problems since - Apple store told me the drive was dead, but it obviously wasn't, and it has never happened since.

Just a thought, at least it won't cost you anything to try it out!

[JupiterTwo]

My 3G 20 GB gave me the "folder!" once. After a brief panic as it was exactly one month out of the year warranty, I decided to try some things.

I was able to force it into disc mode (hold down the << & >> buttons) and was able to reinstall/format from the iPod updater.

I've had no problems since - Apple store told me the drive was dead, but it obviously wasn't, and it has never happened since.

Just a thought, at least it won't cost you anything to try it out!

Yep, this is definetly worth a try. I had a similar problem with my iPod and after a few goes it came back to life and has been fine since. (iPods, iMacs and iSights don't mix well on the firewire bus :( )

[NatronB]

My 3G 20 GB gave me the "folder!" once. After a brief panic as it was exactly one month out of the year warranty, I decided to try some things.

I was able to force it into disc mode (hold down the << & >> buttons) and was able to reinstall/format from the iPod updater.

I've had no problems since - Apple store told me the drive was dead, but it obviously wasn't, and it has never happened since.

Just a thought, at least it won't cost you anything to try it out!

Hmmmm, it's actually running in "disc mode" (sic) but it still won't show up on the desktop, in Disk Utility, iTunes, etc...

I think I might buy a replacement drive, anyone know a good place to get one?

Thanks,

-Nate