iPod Resurrection

Perhaps you remember that a few months ago my red iPod Nano decided to go for a swim with the help of my four year old and was ruined because I have the patience of a four year old. I have since purchased a new Nano and I'm getting used to it, especially since I finally found an armband that fits it with the sensor for my Nike Sport Kit, thanks to a useful article at iLounge.

Meanwhile, my old, red, dead iPod has been sitting around on the kitchen counter. Some, like my husband or the Fly Lady, might call this clutter. Others, like me, might call it a talisman against further gadget disasters.

So, you can imagine my iSurprise when I returned home from a run and found my old iPod playing in our iGroove.

Me: How did you make it work?

Marco: I plugged it in and turned it on.

It turns out that everything but the screen works just fine. Now it's basically a big iPod Shuffle that's not quite as user friendly. I feel pretty stupid assuming it was broken because nothing appeared on the screen when I tried to charge it. So, my plan now is to take it to an Apple store and plead my case to them to fix it for free. I only bought it in February of this year, but the warranty doesn't cover accidents.

Any iPod experts out there have a better idea?

Comments

[MiloBloom]

Is it too late to buy the apple care package for it? That warranty covers accidental damage.

might be worth the $90 or whatever they are charging to get it covered.

[Barbara]

Apple Care doesn't cover accidents either. However did you know you can recycle your iPod at the Apple Store? They will actually give you a discount off a new one. If it's ever officially dead, recycle it and get a discount!

[Adam]

Hi!
I have taken iPods apart before, mostly fixing them for friends. Purchased the replacement parts off of eBaY. I have replaced a hard drive and a battery, the screen can't be that much harder, although it might require some soldering. Although, since you have all those kids now, it might just be easy and less time consuming to just take it in and get it fixed. I wonder if something like those car head unit adapters that can control and show the ipod screen on them would work. I wonder if another company makes a product that isn't for a car...
Good luck and glad that it still works... I love my new first iPod, didn't want to join Apple for the longest time, but couldn't resist the 250 price tag. I enjoy reading your blog and still remember you from TechTV. Enjoy and good luck with the iPod and family.

[Stephen]

Don't bring it to an Apple store, the turn around is usually 14 days.

I prefer to send my stuff to iResQ.com. Their turn-around is usually 24 hours. I just looked it up, and if you can spare $99, they can have a working iPod in your hands in 3 days. You could spend a little less for non-overnight shipping though, I suspect. :)

(And no, I'm not an employee of iResQ, just a fan)

[Keith Roddam]

The big question is if you had the applecare protection plan on it. If you do then I would take it in for repair. My first Ipod died due to a mishap with a toilet. 5 days later it came back to life minus a working Play/Pause button.

They repaired it no questions asked. If you don't have the plan then you could take it in and see how much it would cost to replace the screen.

Since the Nanos are flash based I don't know how hard it would be to remove the chip and move it to another Nano with a bad Flash chip. Might could find a cheap one of those on Ebay too.

Just an idea,

[Mrs. Flinger]

You had me at Nike+. I so adore my Nike+ it's a bit silly. I run JUST for the sole purpose of seeing the graph. Hi. I'm a nerd.

I'm tempted to toss my own nano in the toilet, blame the three year old, and go get a new video nano. Just in time for Christmas!

[MrPresident]

Megan,
If you plan on taking it into the Apple Store, your best bet might be to make the drive to the mini-store in the SR mall as its the closest to where you are. Rob Downard is the local business manager for that store and if you REALLY plead your case, he goes the extra mile to keep folks happy and he's a good guy. (Especially if you drop a hint about your influence in the blogosphere) Since it is claustrophobic in there, just pick a time when the staff is less likely to be too overwhelmed and you''re likely to get the attention you need.

On that note: Rob told me last week that they're shuttering the boutique store in SR next year in order to open a new full sized store somewhere in downtown SR - to include a full genius bar and presentation theater - by holidays '08. Just thought you'd wanna know. Let Leo know since he'll probably be a regular there - and notoriously doesn't check his email. ; )

Love the podcast. Keep up the great work.

-Jon

[Suzanne]

I know of three instances of iPod/iPhone meet toilet. In each, the genius bar just exchanged them. Apple is great on that front.

Personally, I've purchased three refurbs from their website, and all have worked perfectly. I suspect that all three may have met water and the original owners were given new devices. I won't complain. 29.00 shuffles and 99.00 nanos were great gifts.

[DJ McLean]

Hi Megan,

Have you had any success on fixing, free-replacing or other Apple customer service wrt your Nano?

Mike, my husband, dropped his 60 GB iPod. See pix: http://www.flickr.com/photos/mrl/1444219858/

I think he was angling for a newer model. A new iPod Touch showed up this week. Go figure. We still have a 60GB paper weight. I will send him your link. Maybe he too can plead his case.

I love my red Nano, so feel for you.

Also love the podcast and the site. Am doing my bit to spread the word in Calgary. Great work, keep it up. :-)