How do I charge a completely dead Apple iPod?

How do i charge my Ipod when it's fully dead? My ipod died completely where it is showing a dead guy thing and i have a cord to connect into my computer. I plug it in and it doesn't do anything but show the dead thing over and over and i even have itunes on my computer!

Dave's Answer:

Hmmm.... I don't know what you mean by the "dead guy thing", but I would encourage you to start by reading Apple's helpful article on Charging your iPod battery. Indeed, Apple also has an article where they show all the iPod charging icons: none of 'em look like a dead guy to me. :-)

What you really need to read, however, is this article: iPod's battery doesn't charge. Of course, it does end with the phrase "If this did not resolve the issue then your iPod needs to be repaired."

If you can't get your iPod to work after reading all that information from Apple, then I would recommend you take your iPod into a local Apple Store if there's one close. You can use Apple's Retail Store Locator to find one. Start by just showing it to a clerk, but they'll probably recommend you queue up for the Genius Bar. That can be a long, long wait, so you might want to read my avoiding long waits at the Apple Genius Bar first.

Finally, if you do need to replace the battery, there are a number of third-party solutions out there. On one of my old iPod units, I took it into my local Mac repair shop (MacShack) and they popped the unit open and swapped out the battery on the spot. Total cost, about $45.

I don't have first hand experience with them, but Small Dog Electronics has been around the Mac community for years and they have replacement batteries for less than $20, and MacResQ's subsidiary business iPodResQ can do all the work for you, doubtless for less than Apple charges.

I hope that helps you out. Please do come back and let us know how you fared trying to fix your iPod!

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Categorized: iPod, Sony PSP and MP3 Player Help (Article 6437, Written by Dave Taylor)
Tagged: apple ipod, dead ipod, ipod battery
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Reader Comments To Date: 11

Charles Biscotti said, on March 23, 2007 3:46 PM:

Dave,

Hey there. Came across your page today and wanted let you know that you can also buy a great ipod battery for your mp3 player from www.ipodjuice.com. they have kits so you won't trash your ipod in the process but if you are leary about opening up your baby they can do it for you for a nominal fee. Cheers.

plz help me said, on May 25, 2007 12:41 PM:

yo dave,
plz can you help me i dont know how to stop my songs on my ipod because all i can do is pause them thx.

davion said, on August 3, 2007 8:25 PM:

dave i am in some serious danger i well i got this ipod and it was in my garage for about three days and when i pick it up[ and put it on the charger it wouldent charge nothing came up what do i do?

Daniel said, on February 10, 2008 5:20 AM:

A similar issue happened to me. In my case the ipod was not used for an extended amount of time until the batteries completly died- no response when plugged into PC or anything.

Solved this issue by plugging the ipod into a wall charger, rather than a computer, for about 4 days. It initially turned on/off/on/off for a while then charged a small amount, not enough to use. It just took time to get the ipod charged enough to return to normal functions. But I think plugging it into a constant power source like the wall socket is important.

Cate said, on October 10, 2008 7:14 AM:

Hi, I've always thought I'm techno-savvy until my iPod had gone dead and wouldn't budge! According to apple.com charging the iPod directly to the socket will charge the dead battery faster. When charged, next step is to reset it by toggling the hold/unhold switch and then pressing menu &the middle button together for 6-8 seconds until the apple icon appears (this is for iPod classic, look up apple.com for other models but they're all pretty much the same). Saved me a trip to the apple shop :o) If this fails you can always restore but all files will be lost, so it's good backing up your files every now and then. You can learn more by going to their webby -- look under battery charging. Ciao!

Tpm said, on July 8, 2009 5:02 PM:

I left my I-pod in my back pack for a while and it looks like it's died. It's currently plugged into my desktop in hopes that it'll come back to life. The computer doesn't recognize it at all. I'm going to leave it plugged in for a while and see if anything happens I'll let you kknow.
Tom

tony said, on July 17, 2009 9:52 AM:

I'm pretty sure the "dead guy face" is the sad ipod. It's an iPod screen of death, and it should be looked at by one of the apple genius guys.

Emma said, on September 5, 2009 7:13 AM:

my ipod cannot charge, it has also frozen

user said, on March 15, 2010 10:29 PM:

apple suxx 5th generation ipod = charging problem still not resolved !!!!!

rahul gulia said, on September 11, 2010 3:31 AM:

rahul gulia is saying that how to charge an apple i pod

nabia said, on November 30, 2011 4:55 PM:

hi whenever i charge my ipod it charges for like two seconds then stops and the computer is always turned on and there is always power what do i do?

I do have a lot to say, and questions of my own for that matter, but first I'd like to say thank you, Dave, for all your helpful information by buying you a cup of coffee!

I do have a comment, now that you mention it!

How do I charge a completely dead Apple iPod?

Reader Comments To Date: 11

I do have a comment, now that you mention it!

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