iPod 3rd Generation guide

What goes wrong, and the sign that gives it away

• The battery runs down fast, or it only works on the charger

  The sign: After a full charge on FireWire power it dies soon after you unplug it, runs only while plugged in, or falls far short of Apple's 8 hours of music.

  This iPod has no battery-health readout, so playing time is the test. A tired battery can also leave the drive too short of power to spin up, so you hear it click and try again, or the Apple logo appears and it switches off; if a long FireWire charge calms that down, the battery is most likely the cause. One new battery suits every 3rd Gen, thin or thick, plugs in without soldering, and wants a first charge of at least 3 hours on FireWire power, unbroken. If even a new battery drains while the iPod sits unused, make sure the new cell isn't faulty, then look at the logic board.

  Won't hold a chargeKeeps turning offWon't turn on"Please wait, very low battery"How to test the batteryiPod 3rd Gen battery replacement guide

• It won't charge, or it seems dead on USB

  The sign: On a USB cable, charger, dock or car adapter it stays flat, because only FireWire power charges a 3rd Gen. If another FireWire charger and cable still bring no charge, check the dock connector's pins for bending, breaks or corrosion.

  A FireWire wall charger does the job (Apple's A1070 FireWire iPod Power Adapter is one), as does the 6-pin FireWire port of a computer that is switched on and awake; the little 4-pin kind gives no charge. The port is soldered onto the logic board, so for a damaged one we put in an original Apple board instead of soldering on a third-party port. If it takes some charge but never fills, a worn battery is the first suspect; clean pins plus a new battery that still won't charge point to the board's charging circuit, also fixed with a logic board. Charging but invisible to a computer? Try a different USB port and cable, then look into the dock connector: dirt, corrosion or bent pins there mean a logic board. With clean pins, rule out the drive, then its cable and every latch, and suspect the logic board last.

  Won't charge"Please wait, very low battery"Not showing up in iTunesWon't synciPod 3rd Gen logic board replacement guide

• Swollen battery, or it gets hot

  The sign: Swelling only shows with the case open, as a puffy, rounded battery; a 3rd Gen case hardly ever bulges, so looking flat rules nothing out. Heat: tilt it gently once it is off the charger, and a rattle inside points to the logic board. Heat that returns every time it charges or plays can be the battery, but the board overheats more often, rattle or not, so our free diagnostic tells which.Stop charging and unplug it; never squeeze, bend or puncture the battery, and if it is very hot or smells, leave the battery where it is rather than prying the case open.

  A new battery cures a swollen or overheating cell; tape the old cell's terminals or bag it up, then hand it in where batteries are collected, since it doesn't belong with household waste or recycling. Heat from a logic board fault is fixed with a new logic board instead, and our free diagnostic tells which part is to blame. A swollen-battery iPod can still be mailed to us as normal.

  OverheatingWon't hold a chargeiPod 3rd Gen battery replacement guide

• Clicking, the sad iPod or a folder icon

  The sign: Charge it fully on FireWire first, because a weak battery can also set the drive clicking. Then listen closely: a click-click-whir, a grinding sound, the sad iPod, or a folder icon that won't stay away most likely mean the hard drive.

  These drives were rated for about five years, and an original 3rd Gen drive is now over 20 years old. At start-up, a picture of a disk under a magnifying glass with a progress bar means the iPod is scanning its drive, which takes 15 to 20 minutes; keep it on power and let it finish. If the trouble began after the iPod was opened, check the drive cable and its latch first; otherwise the cable is rarely at fault on this model. A new drive or our flash mod starts out empty, so copy your music off while a computer still sees the iPod; should the drive start clicking or vanish from the computer partway through, quit copying and let our free diagnostic take over.

  Clicking noiseSad iPod faceFolder iconStuck on the Apple logoStuck in Disk ModeNot showing up in iTunesWon't restoreiPod 3rd Gen hard drive replacement guide

• Frozen, or stuck on the Apple logo

  The sign: No lock icon shows, the drive sounds normal, and a reset clears it and keeps your songs: keep Menu and Play/Pause pressed together for 5 seconds or more, until the Apple logo returns.

  Stuck on the Apple logo with a flat battery? Leave it on its FireWire wall charger, since a flat one may reboot once or twice before it comes up. If it freezes again after the reset, restore it for fresh software; that wipes the whole iPod, your songs included, so save your music to a computer beforehand while one still recognizes it. On this model the restore may halt on a plug picture: connect its FireWire wall charger and it completes. Restore errors can come from the connection, so plug straight into the computer, not a hub, and try another cable. A restore that fails, or a freeze that comes back after the restore, points to the hard drive.

  FrozenStuck on the Apple logoWon't restore

• Only some songs skip or won't play

  The sign: The same few tracks skip, stop or stay silent every time, while the rest of the library plays.

  Most likely those files are damaged, or they are WMA files, which these iPods never play. Check them on the computer, take them off the iPod and sync them over again; if the fault stays, save any songs found only on the iPod, then restore it (restoring wipes everything on it, songs too) and sync your library back.

  Skipping songsWon't play music

• A flash-modded iPod loses its music or crashes

  The sign: Songs disappear, or it wants restoring again after you load a lot of music: the usual cause is a counterfeit or failing memory card. Sudden restarts, skipping on long playlists and sluggish menus with a huge library mean the library has outgrown the iPod's memory.

  Each card we fit is tested first, and the card, the adapter and the cables all fall under our 1-year limited warranty, so contact us instead of opening it. The song limit comes from the iPod's built-in memory and how much the library records per track, not from the card size, so trimming the library settles it.

  Flash mod problems

• The screen is dark but music still plays

  The sign: Music still plays, or a computer still lists it, but nothing shows on the screen. Hold a flashlight to it: a menu you can barely see means the backlight is gone; a fully blank screen means the screen or its cable.

  When the menu is faintly visible, try Settings > Contrast first. The light is built into the screen on this model, so a dead light and a dead screen both mean a new screen, which fits every capacity. After a drop or a repair, a screen cable that isn't fully in the logic board, or its latch left open, darkens the screen too; reseating it means opening the iPod but needs no new part. If a fresh screen behaves the same way, suspect the logic board.

  Black screenBacklight not workingiPod 3rd Gen screen replacement guide

• Lines, dead dots or a white screen

  The sign: Lines, dead dots, inky spots or a white picture that stay put while the iPod works most likely mean the LCD itself; lines that shift as you press on the front most likely mean the screen cable.

  A damaged LCD, often from a fall or a squeeze, needs a new screen, and inky spots can grow. A screen that stays lit and white but shows no picture, with no damage you can see, can be a loose screen cable, or one left half in after a repair: open it and check that it sits all the way in with its latch closed.

  Lines on the screenWhite screenBroken screeniPod 3rd Gen screen replacement guide

• Cracked or scratched front window

  The sign: The crack or deep scratch is in the clear window, and the picture under it looks fine.

  That window comes with the front panel, so a fine picture under the crack means the screen needs nothing, and light scuffs often polish out. A replacement panel arrives with the touch wheel, its center button and all four touch buttons fitted, and suits every 3rd Gen, thin or thick.

  Broken or cracked screenScratchesiPod 3rd Gen front panel and touch wheel replacement guide

• Scratched or dented back

  The sign: The marks are only in the polished stainless steel back; the front and the picture are fine.

  Polished steel marks easily, and a new back is purely cosmetic. Pick the right depth, thin or thick, before the capacity: a same-depth back from another capacity fits but carries that capacity's engraving. It comes bare, without the headphone jack or screws, unless you order the version that has the jack in place.

  ScratchesiPod 3rd Gen back panel replacement guide

• Touch wheel or buttons not responding

  The sign: The wheel or any of the four buttons ignore a light touch, with no lock icon on the screen. Free check: if you touched them just as Hold went off, wait about 30 seconds, then switch Hold on and back off.

  They work by touch, with no click, so pressing harder won't help. Faults are rare on the 3rd Gen, which is why we suggest the free diagnostic before you buy a part. Check in this order: the touch wheel cable (seated all the way, if the case has been open), then the front panel that carries the wheel and buttons, then the logic board.

  Buttons not workingWheel not workingiPod 3rd Gen front panel and touch wheel replacement guide

• Only the center button fails

  The sign: The wheel and the four buttons respond and no lock icon shows; a press in the middle does nothing.

  A dead center button on its own is very rare on this model. Right after the case was opened, a half-seated touch wheel cable is the first suspect, so seat it firmly; otherwise suspect the cable, the front panel and the logic board in turn, and start with our free diagnostic.

  Center button not workingiPod 3rd Gen front panel and touch wheel replacement guide

• A lock icon won't go away, or Hold does nothing

  The sign: The lock icon stays up and nothing responds, though the Hold switch is off: most often the headphone jack cable is torn or pulled loose, probably the commonest damage from forcing the case open.

  Here the Hold slider rides on the headphone jack part and moves a tiny switch mounted on the logic board, so once the case has been apart, the two have to line up again. If the cable has only pulled out, press it all the way back into its socket and shut the latch; no part is needed. A torn cable or a broken or stuck slider means a new jack assembly, thin or thick to match your case. With a good slider and cable and still no way off Hold, the board's socket for the jack cable may be damaged, and a new logic board fixes that.

  Hold switch not workingFrozenButtons not workingiPod 3rd Gen headphone jack and Hold switch replacement guide

• Sound drops out, crackles or comes from one side

  The sign: Wiggle the plug gently during a song: if the sound drops out, crackles or leaves one ear, the jack is worn.

  The jack, the Hold slider and the little remote port beside them come as a single part, and thin and thick cases each take their own: go by the depth, not the engraving. If the trouble began after the case was opened, seat the jack cable all the way and shut its latch before buying anything. If a freshly fitted jack still plays on one side, the new part is likely faulty. Silence through the headphones and through a speaker dock, or no improvement with a new jack, most likely means the logic board. Playing fine on headphones but not in one dock, speaker or car adapter? Check that the accessory lists your model; a dock or car adapter with only USB power never charges a 3rd Gen.

  Headphone jack not workingOnly plays in one earStatic or cracklingNo soundVolume too lowCar or dock troubleiPod 3rd Gen headphone jack and Hold switch replacement guide

• No sign of life, even on the charger

  The sign: Nothing happens with a known-good FireWire charger and cable; a rattle when you tilt it gently, heat or an odd smell point the same way.Unplug it at once if it feels hot or smells.

  When even the charger brings no life, suspect the board before the battery, and a chip or other small piece has often come off and rattles around. We replace it with an original Apple board, and the same design suits every capacity, thin or thick. Two signs of life point to the board as well: beeping as it starts up to the main menu, unless it is an alarm or Diagnostic Mode (a test mode that beeps when it begins), and shutting off with a good battery and drive.

  Won't turn onDroppedKeeps turning offBeeping or clickingiPod 3rd Gen logic board replacement guide

• It got wet

  The sign: After liquid got in, it won't turn on, won't charge, won't hold a charge or acts up, and the pins inside the dock connector may show corrosion.

  Water can ruin the battery and corrode the logic board and its connectors. Corrosion that hasn't gone too far can be cleaned off; a board damaged beyond cleaning, or a ruined battery, needs replacing, and our free diagnostic tells which.

  Got wetiPod 3rd Gen logic board replacement guide

• Part of it quit after a drop

  The sign: Something stopped working right after a fall or a hard knock, while the rest still works.

  A knock can jolt the battery plug, the hard drive cable or another connector out of its socket, and opening the iPod to press it back in fixes that. A drop most often hurts the hard drive, so listen for clicking as well. An iPod that is completely dead after a fall, above all with a rattle inside or heat, most likely needs a logic board.

  DroppedHow to open the iPod 3rd Gen guide

• It stopped working after a repair

  The sign: The trouble started right after the case was opened, whatever the symptom.If it gets very hot after the repair, keep it closed, unplug it and contact us.

  Usually a connector you handled is not pushed fully home, or a latch is open, so open it again and seat each one; a hard drive put in upside down won't be found either. A brand-new drive needs a restore before any music plays, so Disk Mode or "No music" is expected until then, and a fresh battery can turn out faulty too. Static or a tool that slips can also kill the logic board, leaving it dead even on power.

  Not working after a repairHow to open the iPod 3rd Gen guide