iPod and iTunes Hacks

Replace Your Generation 3 iPod’s Battery

It’s not quite as easy as changing batteries on a Walkman, but you can change your generation 3 iPod’s batteries yourself.

The procedure is slightly more complicated with a G3 iPod than it is for a G1 or G2 iPod, but it’s still perfectly manageable.

Warning

For more about why you might want to replace your iPod’s battery yourself and what your other options are, see “Replace Your Generation 1 or 2 iPod’s Battery” [Hack #15] . If you think you want to try the operation yourself, be sure to also read the disclaimer at the beginning of that hack.

Here’s what you’ll need for this hack:

• A thin, flathead screwdriver; I use a 2.5-mm flat blade made by Wiha of Germany (http://www.wihatools.com)

• The PDA Smart plastic disassembly tools

• A guitar pick (the hard plastic kind, not the newer rubberized kind)

• Needle-nose pliers

• A new iPod battery

Far and away, the best tool for the job is the one supplied by PDA Smart, because it’s plastic and won’t scratch or mar the original case. Since I’m of the school that a ding here and there adds character to an item, I just use a screwdriver. A guitar pick is easy to get hold of and will get the job done, but it’s a pain to work with.

The iPod batteries are all standard off-the-shelf units, so it doesn’t matter where you buy them. PDASmart.com (http://www.pdasmart.com) and ipodbattery.com (http://www.ipodbattery.com) are both ...