I'm gonna go to Cedar Point later this summer. I love coasters, but hate the lines. I was gonna bring my iPod classic 160GB to listen to in the lines, but then i thought, "can an iPod withstand the forces of a coaster?" With forces from 0 to a couple G's, will that destroy my HD?
I'm not sure if it'll destroy the HD outright but it certainly can't be good for the internals to be jostling around like that. You would probably be better off just leaving it on the platform before you get on the ride. I know many people prefer to leave things like glasses, jewelry, etc. with the attendants until the ride is over.
Most roller coaster's have cubbies that you can put your valuables in. And I am pretty sure that a couple G's wouldn't hurt it, but if you are going on any kind of intense roller coaster (5 G's) i would leave it behind.
Never mind if the Gs will destroy the iPod, how about "Will my iPod flying out my pocket destroy someone head!?"
If iPods can survive in space (1,2) then I don't know why being on a roller coaster would hurt them, so as long they aren't subjected to any hard thumps.
As long as the hard drive is not spinning/powered on i say it will be fine. I have snow boarded with an iPod, and have gone trail riding on my dirtbike with my iPod. Now i wouldn't take the iPod to the racetrack. But i think the hard drives can take a good beating. Which is interesting. Because people's laptop hard drives go out all the time! But i still have an iPod photo from early 2005 that has been dropped dozens of times, fell into the toilet, and stepped on/sat on over and over. Same hard drive. Although the backlight doesnt work anymore. Haha
Lolzz, the same thing has happened to me. At the same exact amusement park, Cedar Point. I love my iPod too much to leave it behind. Just make sure it is really secure in your pocket and the hard drive isn't spinning. It also depends on the roller coaster. Just make sure that you turn it off a few minutes before you get on and put it on hold.
As long as the iPod is powered off during the ride, then the hdd heads should be OK. Those drives can withstand something like 500Gs. http://www.toshibastorage.com/main....dDiskDrives/MK6028GAL/MK6028GALSpecifications