iPod ipod shuffle went through wash, AND dryer, still works but won't connect to PB

[biohazard6969]

so yea, i took, my shuffle with me to work and forgot it in my work pants which get very dirty every day, i took them home to get them washed and fergot about my iPod Shuffle in the right pocket

at first i thought it was stolen because i couldn't find it, but when i cleared out the dryer and saw it lying in there in a tangled mesh of headphone wire my heart sank

lucky for me it still WORKS!!!!!! it plays music and all the buttons work and everything but......theres always a but.......it won't connect to my PB this means i can't charge it....


i have about 6 hours left to say goodbye to my beloved ipod shuffle!!!!

 

[wordmunger]

Don't give up yet! I've heard of shuffles returning from the same fate. Give it some more time to dry -- but not in the dryer -- you may be pleasantly surprised!

 

[biohazard6969]

i sure hope so *crosses fingers*

 

[rjphoto]

Give it some time

I'm not sure if I did this right or not but here's a link to a thread.

https://forums.macrumors.com/threads/135247/

It took a couple of days and he had it plugged in but it connected.

Hope it survives.

 

[biohazard6969]

well, its been a couple of days and still nothing....whats weird is that it will charge over the ipod battery backup thing that i bought from the apple store, but i know that it uses different connectors inside the shuffle than it uses to connect to the computer....but yea......R.I.P dear shuffle

 

[joecool85]

well, its been a couple of days and still nothing....whats weird is that it will charge over the ipod battery backup thing that i bought from the apple store, but i know that it uses different connectors inside the shuffle than it uses to connect to the computer....but yea......R.I.P dear shuffle

What are your plans for it? I'll buy it off you for cheap if you don't want it anymore.

 

[wPod]

i think the only thing that woudl cause this is if something internal in the cirutry that transfers data to the computer must have gotten fried in the dryer. im sorry to hear about your loss. but i think this just points out a limit on the durability of an iPod shuffle. mine has been stepped on, dropped and thrown without a case and then finally with a small plastic case and survived a lot. the shuffle is durrbale, but at some point i think it finally has to cry uncle.

 

[gwuMACaddict]

but i think this just points out a limit on the durability of an iPod shuffle.

haha- i wish all of my electronic equipment could survive a washer/dryer combo as well as the shuffle did!

 

[SpaceMagic]

Do CPR on it... push the button up and down

Perhaps the battery kinda exploded, or something, or perhaps it shortcircuited in the water and blew one of the circuits. It's a shame you could just keep charging it and listen to the same music over n over again until you yourself are put in to wash/dry/die.

 

[iDM]

I'm interested to hear if your headphones still work? I am not on my 4th pair of headphones. The first pair got a drop of rain in them and one headphone completely blew. The next pair I got from my girlfriends iPod because they "hurt" her ears and they blew after a much longer time. The third pair my dad gave me from his mini but they blew after wearing them to the gym, not sure if maybe sweat go into them or if i just had my music to loud but not one of these lasted me more then 6 months. If yours went through a wash, spin, rinse, spin cycle and still worked i'm going to be pissed.(Happy for you though)

Edit: I'm not one of those audiophile elites that think they are missing the beat of a background cymbol played buring Beethoven's 9th symphony, or that the sound is not reproduced right, i mean these speakers were blown as in ever hint of bass rattled in one ear.

 

[erickg]

What worked for me when a glas of water was spilled over my shuffle was to format it with Disk Utility and then run the iPod updater software to restore to factory settings. Mine wasn't charging or showing up on the desktop before that, but now it works perfectly again. Worth a try before casting in the towel. Then again, it may have been that it just dried out and started working on it's own...

Good luck!

 

[biohazard6969]

firstly, i may be interested in selling it, that is if i can't get a replacement from future shop (not tellin them it went through the wash )

secondly yes the headphones still work, they work great. crappy sound though but they are only those $20 sony ones you can get at best buy

and thirdly, how can i reformat it with disk utility if it won't connect to the computer

 

[Xeem]

My sister washed her shuffle, and it seemed completely dead for two days, after which it started working perfectly again. Its been two months and it still runs perfectly.

 

[matix]

disk utility might be able to see it (like if it was showing up but not mounting)... then you could format it again

just a possibility

 

[erickg]

disk utility might be able to see it (like if it was showing up but not mounting)... then you could format it again

just a possibility

That's exactly what happened for me. The shuffle didn't mount, but it was recognized in disk utility.

 

[rjphoto]

Lights?

and thirdly, how can i reformat it with disk utility if it won't connect to the computer

Do the lights come on when it is plugged in to the USB?

 

[saunders45]

Oh God I hope you guys are right about it coming back..... I just accidentally washed mine last night. Have yet to plug it in to my PB though.... will try when i get home from work.....

 

[evoluzione]

is it completely dry by now?

my shuffle survived 24hours outside in the freezing snowcovered driveway, and i think i may have even driven over it... it still worked, then a while after that, it went through the wash, but not the dryer. i let it sit for 24 hours, pressed the little button on the back, and it lit up! i then pressed play, and the green light came, so i plugged it into the computer, and it was absolutely fine.

i'm thinking maybe the dryer heated it up just a tad too much...but definitely try and see if disk utility will see it....they're hardy little buggers!

 

[biohazard6969]

the lights don't come on when i plug it in. i think when it went through the dryer it got bumped around a little too much

 

[joecool85]

Well, if you can't get it replaced I'd still be interested in buying it for cheap. Worst case when my battery goes I have a spare!

 

[biohazard6969]

ok, well if it doesn't work, i will sell it, that is if i can't get a replacement. i'll get back to you in a week, i'm goin to camp lol

 

[Nermal]

i took them home to get them washed and fergot about my iPod Shuffle in the right pocket

Should've had it in the left pocket.

 

[pvman]

ok, well if it doesn't work, i will sell it, that is if i can't get a replacement. i'll get back to you in a week, i'm goin to camp lol

Well, I just went through a washing/drying of my A1112 Shuffle (512 MB, First Gen, to you newbies). My experience has been that after ample time for allowing it to dry out (a couple of weeks), it would not respond to using the power switch, any of the buttons, or the "battery charge status/level" button. I assumed the battery was probably dead.

I then connected it to my WinXP, Dell Latitude D620. The mount light started blinking. I "ejected" the disk drive and the amber, mount LED went solid, indicating it was charging. I let it charge until it changed to green (about 4 hours). I then did the whole WinXP "Safely Remove USB Hardware" thing and unplugged it from the computer.

It still didn't respond. After reconnecting it and verifying there were files on it, I went through several iterations of plugging/unplugging trying several things. Eachtime it connects I get the blinking amber LED. At one point I noticed that if I only slightly plug it in, the green LED comes on for a second or so and then goes off. I guess it's far enough inserted to get power but not far enough for a data connection.

After removing it from the partial insertion, VOILA, it worked!!!!!

But here's the kicker. It will work as long as it does not go to sleep. So, if I pause it and wait too long 15 or 20 minutes I think. It doesn't respond anymore. If I turn it off and come back later (after 15 or 20 minutes), it doesn't respond. But a quick partial insert into a powered USB port and it works just fine.

I ran the latest iPod updater and upgraded the firmware from v1.1.3 to v1.1.5. It's still doing the same thing.

Anybody got any ideas? My guess it some component can't energize from the juice of the battery, but the power from a USB 2.0 (I haven't tried a slower USB port yet) port is just enough.

I'm wondering if anybody has an idea of what could be bad and if it is repairable.

pvman

 

[acrobaticrabbit]

My iPod 30gig 5th gen went through the wash...and lived!

I accidentally washed my ipod video 30 gig 5th gen. upon realizing what i'd done, i took it out - luckily it was in cold water. i think hot water would have been too much of a shock to it. i tried turning it on only to realize i shouldn't have done that. but no matter. I put it in a bag of rice to help absorb the water and put it on a window sill where the sun hits all day. i left it there for a good 2 weeks. i plugged it in and tried to turn it on after one week and nothing happened. so i let it dry out some more. another week i plugged it in and it works! the battery was really low but after a couple restarts on the ipod (hold Menu and middle button til the little Apple logo came on) it connected to my itunes and started charging! and above all that, my songs are still there! these things are sturdy little things....i am impressed. the key is to let it dry out completely! the only bad thing about it now is it makes funny noises... almost like a computer trying to read a floppy disc. it's not real loud, but it's noticeable. but hey, at least i still have my 30 gigs of music!

 

[pvman]

I accidentally washed my ipod video 30 gig 5th gen. upon realizing what i'd done, i took it out - luckily it was in cold water. i think hot water would have been too much of a shock to it. i tried turning it on only to realize i shouldn't have done that. but no matter. I put it in a bag of rice to help absorb the water and put it on a window sill where the sun hits all day. i left it there for a good 2 weeks. i plugged it in and tried to turn it on after one week and nothing happened. so i let it dry out some more. another week i plugged it in and it works! the battery was really low but after a couple restarts on the ipod (hold Menu and middle button til the little Apple logo came on) it connected to my itunes and started charging! and above all that, my songs are still there! these things are sturdy little things....i am impressed. the key is to let it dry out completely! the only bad thing about it now is it makes funny noises... almost like a computer trying to read a floppy disc. it's not real loud, but it's noticeable. but hey, at least i still have my 30 gigs of music!

Well, as sturdy as it is, I'd start making plans on replacing/repairing it. My Shuffle is still plugging along, but it does have a few logic problems. If it goes to sleep, it won't wake up and I have to do that partial insert thing I described before.

In the meantime, I came across an XtremeMac AirPlay for the shuffle on eBay (for a very, very low price, I might add). Man, this is the best thing for the first gen. Shuffles since sliced bread! I have not come across any web sites anywhere talking about a mod for the shuffle that allows one to charge it while playing it and get the sound out of the USB port. All the mods I've seen require one to use the headphone jack for sound.

The AirPlay plays gets the sound from the USB port and then FM transmits it to my car radio. It's not perfect; there is a slight, high pitched noise in the signal. I think it is the electronics in the Shuffle's charging circuit. At any rate . . .

The point of me mentioning that is, when the Shuffle goes to sleep, I can just fully plug it into the AirPlay to wake it up. I don't need to "jack around" with inserting it to just the right point on my computer's USB port. Since most of what I use it for is listening to podcasts on my 45 min. + commute (one way), I just leave it in the car (unless it's a hot day ) until I need to re-sync it.

So for now, I'm pretty happy, but the end result is: KEEP 'EM OUT OF THE CLOTHES WASHER!!!!

pvman