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gipod

macrumors newbie
Original poster
Jun 28, 2008
2
0
How do you know if your iPod is dying and it is time for a new upgrade? My iPod is a 4th generation classic (it's the colored screen version with pictures, but no video). I noticed recently that it is rebooting every time I try to listen to songs. Usually my iPod will play the song exactly where it left off from but I noticed recently that every time I use my iPod it has to reboot (the Apple logo appears on the screen) and I have to start the playlist from the beginning. When I first bought my iPod the only time the Apple logo would appear is when my iPod had not been used in a long time. I am using my iPod on a daily basis so I know that is not the problem. I went to Best Buy and asked them about it and they said this means that the iPod's hardware is about to die and that I should upgrade soon. I just wanted to come online and see what other people thought. Is it really time to upgrade?
 
I went to Best Buy and asked them about it and they said this means that the iPod's hardware is about to die and that I should upgrade soon.

HAHA, did they then point you towards their iPod display and show you the 32 gig iPod Touch?

But seriously, I have an old mini and mine doesn't do that, so I guess its a possibility. If possible, I would take it to a real :apple: store not Best Buy...
 

mosx

macrumors 65816
Mar 3, 2007
1,465
3
How do you know if your iPod is dying and it is time for a new upgrade? My iPod is a 4th generation classic (it's the colored screen version with pictures, but no video). I noticed recently that it is rebooting every time I try to listen to songs. Usually my iPod will play the song exactly where it left off from but I noticed recently that every time I use my iPod it has to reboot (the Apple logo appears on the screen) and I have to start the playlist from the beginning. When I first bought my iPod the only time the Apple logo would appear is when my iPod had not been used in a long time. I am using my iPod on a daily basis so I know that is not the problem. I went to Best Buy and asked them about it and they said this means that the iPod's hardware is about to die and that I should upgrade soon. I just wanted to come online and see what other people thought. Is it really time to upgrade?

Have you tried restoring it?

Sometimes an old iPod needs a good old fashioned restore, along with a good deep cycle on the battery.

If you can, run the battery out to dead. Then charge it up. Once its fully charged, hook it up to the computer and restore the software and resync your music (you will loose the music thats on it, so you should have it backed up).

If that doesn't fix anything then your HDD might be dying.
 

!on

macrumors member
Jun 14, 2008
49
0
it's when you hear the hard drive making horrible noises, scraping, high pitch noises, or constant loud spinning (not like the usual quiet high pitch spinning / powering up sounds).

if you get sad face icon it could just be the connector is loose inside, same for battery icon. don't panic 'til you hear the drive actually dying!

keep it away from strong magnetic fields, that may adversely affect the delicate workings of the hard disk.
 

kymac

macrumors 6502a
Nov 4, 2006
677
0
portland
but I noticed recently that every time I use my iPod it has to reboot (the Apple logo appears on the screen)

this happens to my fifth gen ipod a lot nowadays too.. im just going to wait it out and only upgrade when this thing drops dead completely. well see.
 

Marvin1379

macrumors 6502
Jun 25, 2007
337
3
New York
i agree with the above, although i never tried the slapping thing. Definitely try the battery cycle and restore first. are you hearing the bad hard drive sounds? (very fast spinning for no apparent reason, "click, click"). i had a ipod photo also and this happened to me after about 12-15 months. good thing i go applecare with it bc they handed a brand new one. this also happened to an original ipod video. my just be my luck, but i see people with 2G ipods and 1G Minis on the subway and they are still rocking!! who knows. just try to save it for as long as possible. then when the sad ipod never goes away, or u can't get through an entire song, Steve J has a great iPod he would like to replace your old one with! :p
 

Dino451

macrumors 6502
Sep 12, 2006
263
0
"How do you know if your iPod is dying"


When Steve Jobs announces the new generation:)
 

heatmiser

macrumors 68020
Dec 6, 2007
2,431
0
Definitely when the drive starts clicking. One of mine went to hell after that. The drive must have been bad, because I had it for less than a year before it went bad. I didn't know about warranties and all, so I never sent it in to Apple.

My current iPod's been with me since March '07 though, in comparison, and it still works well. I hope to keep it for several more years, and replace the battery when it drops below three or so hours of play.
 

JML42691

macrumors 68020
Oct 24, 2007
2,082
2
The most common sign which others have pointed out is the clicking of the Hard Drive, but other common ones are when your battery barely holds a charge (although this will be repaired by Apple if under AppleCare), but the price to replace it would be enough of a dent in your wallet that you might want to consider a brand new iPod which would last you longer. But most noticeable signs relate to a Hard Drive failure.
 

dukebound85

macrumors Core
Jul 17, 2005
19,123
4,096
5045 feet above sea level
The most common sign which others have pointed out is the clicking of the Hard Drive, but other common ones are when your battery barely holds a charge (although this will be repaired by Apple if under AppleCare), but the price to replace it would be enough of a dent in your wallet that you might want to consider a brand new iPod which would last you longer. But most noticeable signs relate to a Hard Drive failure.

not so, you dont have to have applecare for battery issues
http://www.apple.com/support/ipodtouch/service/battery/
http://www.apple.com/support/ipod/service/battery/

with that said. what qualifies as "diminshed ability to hold charge"?
 

dukebound85

macrumors Core
Jul 17, 2005
19,123
4,096
5045 feet above sea level
I meant it would be a free repair under Apple Care, to pay for it would put enough of a dent in your wallet that you might just want to invest in a new iPod, at least I would.

you do know that when you pay to have apple fix the diminished battery, they simply send you a new one right?

in other words, 70 bucks for a new ipod
 

JML42691

macrumors 68020
Oct 24, 2007
2,082
2
you do know that when you pay to have apple fix the diminished battery, they simply send you a new one right?

in other words, 70 bucks for a new ipod
No, I didn't know that, thanks for cluing me in. Why do they do that? Is it too much work/time to actually replace it?
 
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