Repair guide · iPod Video 5th Gen

How to open an iPod Video 5th Gen

  • DifficultyModerate
  • Steps12
  • SolderingNone
Quick answer

Every repair on the iPod Video 5th Gen begins with getting the case open: here is how to open the iPod Video safely, and how to close it again. It covers the 2005 original and the Late 2006 update, often called the 5.5 Gen or Enhanced: all are model A1136, in the thin 30GB case or the thick 60GB and 80GB case, and all come apart the same way. The plastic front snaps into a polished metal back on eleven clips. No screws keep it shut, but once the clips let go, two ribbon cables still join the halves: you open it a little, unplug those two, and only then lift the back away. Each of our iPod Video repair guides links back here for this part.

Before you start

  • Check for a swollen battery firstOn this iPod the battery lies behind the screen, so swelling shows from the front: dark pressure marks on the screen, a screen or front that lifts or bows, a case that bulges (usually near the top) or a seam that opens. An open seam on its own is often just bent clips. If you see the other signs, unplug it from any charger and stop charging it, and never press, bend or pierce the battery; then replace it (our battery guide shows how, and how to recycle the old one). If the iPod is very hot or smells, don't open it: unplug it, put it on a non-flammable surface away from anything that can burn, keep a container of dry sand close by and leave it until it is cool. Then contact us.
  • Try a reset firstOpening it because it froze or stopped responding? Slide the Hold switch off, then press and hold Menu and the center button for about 8 seconds, until the Apple logo appears. A reset keeps your music, and it can save you opening an iPod that had only locked up.
  • Run the battery downIf there's no sign of swelling, play the iPod until the battery icon is low before you open it (these iPods show no percentage): a cell with little charge left is less dangerous if a tool slips. For a battery swap, run it nearly empty. For a drive swap or a logic board swap, stop at low, not empty: the iPod needs charge to start and restore afterwards, and a weak battery can make even a good drive click. If the iPod won't turn on at all, skip this.
  • Set up your benchWork on a hard, non-flammable surface with the soft cloth or the anti-static mat under the iPod, and keep a container of dry sand within reach. If your repair goes further in, have a small dish ready for screws. If the battery smokes, sparks, hisses, pops or suddenly puffs up, cover it with all the sand at once, then get out of the room and air it out; stay away for 30 minutes. If it's still burning or you can't smother it, call the fire service.
  • Ground yourselfStatic can kill the logic board. Wear an anti-static wrist strap, or at least touch bare metal before you start, and leave any new part in its bag until you fit it.

Tools

  • Plastic opening tools (two or three)Every part we sell for this iPod comes with one. A second one keeps the seam open while you move along it.
  • Thin plastic picksGuitar-pick thin. Slid along the seam, they release the clips with less force.
  • Angled tweezers or a small plastic toolFor the two ribbon latches inside. With metal tips, touch only the latch, never the ribbon's contacts.
  • Anti-static wrist strap or matThe logic board is bare as soon as the case opens.
  • Soft clothThe polished back picks up scratches and dents easily.
  • Masking tape (optional)A strip on the metal back where the tool goes in protects the finish if the tool slips.
  • Phillips #00 screwdriverNot needed to open the case. Repairs further in use it for the frame screws and the headphone jack screws.

Step by step

  1. Step 1: Switch it off and lock it

    Unplug any cable, then turn the iPod off (hold Play/Pause for about 2 seconds, until the screen goes dark) and slide the Hold switch to locked so it can't wake up while you work. Lay it screen down on the cloth, back on top: it stays that way while you open it. In our guides, the top means the Hold switch end and the bottom means the dock connector end.

  2. Step 2: Know where the clips are

    Eleven metal clips inside the back hold the plastic front in place: four along each long side, a single one in the top edge and a pair along the bottom edge. You free them from the seam, the thin line where the front meets the metal back.

  3. Step 3: Start on one long side

    Work the tip of a plastic tool into the seam partway along one long side, its edge angled toward the metal back so it doesn't mark the plastic front, and twist it a little to open a gap. Slip a pick into the gap and work along that side toward each corner until its four clips let go. Take your time: force bends the clips and chips the front.

    Use plastic tools only, and never lever against the polished outer face of the back. It dents and scratches easily, and a bent clip keeps the case from closing flat later.

  4. Step 4: Then the other side, the top and the bottom

    Repeat along the second long side. Next release the clip at the top, keeping the tool shallow beside the Hold switch: the screen sits just below the top edge and is easy to damage. Finish with the two clips at the bottom.

  5. Step 5: Open it only an inch

    With every clip free and the iPod still screen down, raise the back away from the front by about an inch (2 to 3 cm), no more. Two ribbons still link the halves: the battery's, and the headphone jack's, which also carries the Hold switch.

    Lift slowly and stop the moment a ribbon pulls tight. Separating the halves now tears them.

  6. Step 6: Unplug the battery ribbon

    Look into the gap for the battery's orange ribbon, where it plugs into the logic board toward the bottom end. A small brown latch holds it in. With the angled tweezers or a plastic tool, raise the latch straight up by just 1 to 2 mm, lifting both ends evenly, then slide the ribbon out of the connector.

    Never push the latch sideways or pull it right off, and don't pry on the connector itself. The connector can come away from the logic board, and our fix for that is a replacement logic board.

  7. Step 7: Unplug the headphone jack ribbon

    The hard drive rests on the logic board, held by its own ribbon. Lift the drive by its edges and tip it back toward the bottom end, without unplugging it. Underneath you'll see where the headphone jack ribbon plugs in: flip that connector's brown tab up (it swings up about 90 degrees) and slide the ribbon out. Support the drive while it is tipped up; never let it hang by its ribbon.

  8. Step 8: Separate the halves

    The back is free now. Lay it polished side down on the cloth, with the battery and the headphone jack assembly still fixed inside it, and lower the drive back into its place. You now have the back and the front half, with the drive still on its ribbon; the front half holds the logic board, screen and click wheel on a metal frame. Your repair guide takes it from here.

  9. Step 9: To close: headphone ribbon first

    Closing is the same steps in reverse. Bring the back alongside the front, the way it lay beside the front after you separated them, so the headphone jack ribbon reaches its connector. Tip the drive back again (support it, never letting it hang by its ribbon), slide the headphone jack ribbon fully into its connector and press the brown tab down. Lay the drive flat in its place with its rubber bumpers on.

  10. Step 10: Battery ribbon last

    With the brown latch still raised, push the battery ribbon fully into its connector: only a thin line of its metal contacts should still show. Then press the latch back down. If it won't go down, don't force it: lift it, straighten the ribbon, push it fully in and try again.

  11. Step 11: Test it before you snap it shut

    Rest the back loosely on the front without pressing it closed, hold the two together and turn the iPod face up. Slide Hold off and connect a charger. Check that it starts, the screen is clear, the scroll ring and all five buttons respond, the Hold switch works and there is sound in the headphones. Then unplug the charger: it should keep running on its battery.

    If anything is wrong, switch it off, unplug the charger and release the battery ribbon before you reseat a ribbon; the battery ribbon goes back in last.

  12. Step 12: Snap it shut

    Make sure no ribbon lies across the seam and the drive sits flat. Line the back up with the front, top to top, and press around the edges until every clip clicks into place. It should close with gentle pressure.

    If it closes only when you squeeze hard, stop. A ribbon caught at the edge, a bent clip, a part that sits too high (such as a thick battery or drive in a thin case) or a swelling battery is in the way.

Close it up and test

  • An even seam all roundNo gap along either side and no front lifting at a corner. A gap on one side usually means a bent clip.
  • Everything worksScreen, scroll ring and buttons, Hold switch, headphone sound and charging, and it runs with the charger unplugged.

If it doesn't work afterwards

It won't turn on after closing
Check that Hold is off, then leave it on a known-good charger: a very flat battery can take up to 30 minutes before the screen comes on. Try a reset. Still nothing? Unplug the charger, open it again and reseat the battery ribbon: all the way in, latch down. Not working after a repair
No sound, or it stays on Hold
The headphone jack ribbon also carries the Hold switch. If it isn't fully in, or its tab was left up, both stop working. Switch it off, unplug the charger, open it and release the battery ribbon, then reseat the headphone jack ribbon with its tab pressed down. Battery ribbon back in last. iPod Video headphone jack and Hold switch
The wheel or buttons stopped working
Reset it first. If the controls still don't respond after the case was open, the click wheel ribbon, its latch or its ground tab may have been knocked loose. Those sit inside the front half, and the wheel ribbon itself is reached only with the logic board off the frame: see our click wheel guide. Click wheel not working
The case won't close flat
Switch it off, unplug any charger, open it and release the battery ribbon, then the headphone jack ribbon, so the back comes free. Look along its inner rim for a clip bent out of line and ease it back gently with a small flat screwdriver, on the clip only, keeping the tool off the battery and the ribbons; reconnect as in steps 9 and 10. Also check for a ribbon caught at the seam, a part that is too thick for the case, or a swelling battery. Never force it shut.
It gets very hot or smells
Unplug it and don't open it again. Leave it shut on a non-flammable surface away from anything that can burn, and contact us. If it starts to smoke, spark, hiss or puff up, use the sand as in the bench setup above. After a repair, a pinched ribbon or a part pressing on the board can cause it.
The battery connector came off the board
A new battery won't fix that. Our fix is an original Apple logic board in place of yours, rather than a soldered-on connector; a free repair quote tells you what it involves. Free repair quote

Questions

How do I get into an iPod 5th Gen without breaking it?

Use plastic tools, angle the tool's edge toward the metal back so it doesn't mark the plastic front (never lever against the back's polished face), free the clips one side at a time, and open the halves only about an inch until both ribbons are unplugged. Never pull the back away while a ribbon still joins it.

Do I need a screwdriver to take apart an iPod Video?

Not to open it: the case is held by clips. A Phillips #00 is needed only for jobs further in, such as the six screws, three along each side, that hold the frame in the front panel, or the screws on the headphone jack. If screws go missing, our screw set replaces them. Keep them sorted by where they came from: don't assume they are all the same length.

Does the 5.5 Gen open the same way?

Yes. The Late 2006 model looks and opens just like the 2005 one, and the thin 30GB and thick 60GB and 80GB cases differ only in depth.

Is the iPod Video the iPod Classic 5th Gen?

Not by Apple's name: Apple first used the name iPod classic in 2007, for the 6th Gen. Apple calls this one the iPod (5th generation), or iPod with video. Plenty of people call it a classic too, and this is the right guide if the back reads A1136.

Can you open it for me?

Yes. Choose We Fix It on the part's page and mail your iPod in. We fit the part and send it back, typically within 3 to 5 business days on our bench, with a 1-year limited warranty.