Repair guide · iPod Video 5th Gen
iPod Video 5th Gen hard drive replacement
This guide covers the hard drive, its ribbon cable and the rubber bumpers around it in the iPod Video 5th Gen: the 2005 model and the Late 2006 5.5 Gen, all model A1136. Once the case is open the drive simply unplugs from its ribbon, and the ribbon plugs into the logic board, so no soldering is needed. A replacement drive starts out empty: you restore the iPod afterwards, and a restore erases everything on it, songs included. So copy your music off first, while the old drive still shows up on a computer. We also fit flash storage in place of the hard drive, as a mail-in service.
Which drive, cable and bumpers fit?
The depth of the case sets the drive height. The thin 30GB case (0.43 in deep) takes only a 5 mm drive; the 8 mm 60GB and 80GB drives need the thick case (0.55 in), and a thin-to-thick change also needs the thick back, battery and headphone jack assembly. Measure the depth rather than trusting the engraving: backs get swapped. An 80GB drive goes into a 2005 60GB, but only the 80GB Late 2006 board runs the stock 80GB drive, so keep to like for like. The Toshiba and Hitachi cables don't swap, so the cable must suit the make of drive going in: check the ribbon's printed number or the drive's label. Our drives are Toshiba: if your old drive's label starts HT, order the Toshiba cable as well. Pick the bumpers by the drive you fit, not by the capacity on the back. Not sure which you have? Identify your iPod
Before you start
- Check for a swollen batteryDark marks on the screen, a screen that lifts or bows, or a bulging case usually mean the battery is swelling (a seam that opens on its own is more often bent clips). If so, unplug it, stop charging it and replace the battery first (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 dry sand close, let it cool and contact us.
- Copy your music off firstIf there's no sign of swelling and the iPod still shows up on a computer, copy everything you want to keep off it now. The songs don't move to a replacement drive by themselves, and the restore at the end erases the iPod. If it clicks or drops off the computer while you copy, stop and contact us before you go further.
- Make sure it's the driveA worn battery can be too weak to spin the drive up, so it clicks and retries: check the iPod stays on, unplugged, before you blame the drive. Diagnostic Mode gives a firmer answer. Reset it (Hold off, then Menu and the center button until the Apple logo shows), and the moment the logo appears hold Previous (the left of the wheel) and the center button. Open Manual Tests, then IO, then Harddrive, then HDSpecs: it names the drive the iPod sees. Garbled or missing characters there point to the drive's ribbon rather than the drive.
- Then run the battery low, but not flatIf there's no sign of swelling, and once your music is safe, play it until the battery icon is low, but not empty. A cell with little charge is less dangerous if a tool slips, but the replacement drive needs power to spin up and restore: a weak battery can make even a good drive click.
- Bench and staticWork on a hard, non-flammable surface with the cloth or anti-static mat, dry sand within reach. Wear the wrist strap or touch bare metal first, and leave the replacement drive in its bag until you fit it. 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.
Tools
- Plastic opening tools (two or three)One comes with each part. A second keeps the seam open as you go.
- Thin plastic picksFor releasing the clips along the seam.
- Angled tweezers or a small plastic toolFor the latches on the ribbons. With metal tips, touch only the latch, never the ribbon's contacts.
- Anti-static wrist strap or matProtects the logic board and the replacement drive.
- Soft clothThe polished back scratches easily.
- Computer and USB cableFor the restore: the Finder on a Mac with macOS Catalina or later, or iTunes. A FireWire cable only charges this iPod: syncing and restoring need USB.
Step by step
New to opening this iPod? How to open an iPod Video 5th Gen (12 steps)
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Step 1: Open the case
Unplug any cable, then switch the iPod off and slide Hold to locked. Free the clips with plastic tools: both long sides, then the top (shallow beside the Hold switch, where the screen sits close), then the bottom. Raise the back only about an inch, because two ribbons still join the halves. Our guide to opening the iPod Video covers this in detail.
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Step 2: Unplug the battery
The battery's orange ribbon plugs into the logic board toward the bottom end. Raise its small brown latch straight up by 1 to 2 mm, evenly at both ends, and slide the ribbon out.
Never push that latch sideways or pull it off: the connector can lift away from the board, and our fix for that is a replacement logic board.
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Step 3: Free the back
Lift the drive by its edges and tip it back toward the bottom end, supporting it so it never hangs by its ribbon. The headphone jack ribbon plugs in underneath it: flip that connector's brown tab up (it swings about 90 degrees) and slide the ribbon out. Set the back aside, polished side down.
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Step 4: Take the drive off its ribbon
Tip the drive up on its ribbon so you can see where the ribbon enters the connector on the end of the drive. Flip the black hinge on that connector up, a quarter turn toward the logic board, hold the ribbon down with a fingertip and slide the drive away from it. The ribbon stays plugged into the board. Before you set the old drive down, note which way up it sat, or take a photo.
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Step 5: Look the drive ribbon over
While it's free, check the ribbon: creases, a latch that won't stay down, or dirty or discolored contacts are reasons to fit a replacement. If it looks fine, leave it where it is.
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Step 6: Fit a replacement drive cable (only if it needs one)
At the logic board end, flip up the brown clamp (it swings about 90 degrees, toward the screen side) and slide the ribbon straight out. It can be lightly glued to the board: ease it up gently rather than pulling. Slide the replacement ribbon fully into the board connector, routed the same way, and press the clamp down.
Use the cable that matches the drive you are fitting. Toshiba and Hitachi cables look alike but don't swap.
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Step 7: Move the bumpers and the foam pad
A replacement drive comes bare. Peel the blue rubber bumpers off the old drive's sides and the blue foam pad off its face, and fit them to the replacement drive in the same spots, the same way round, so both sides of the drive sit snug. If the bumpers are torn or hard, fit a replacement set for the drive's height: thin for 5 mm, thick for 8 mm.
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Step 8: Connect the replacement drive
Hold the replacement drive the same way up as the old one. With the black hinge raised, slide the drive onto the ribbon until the ribbon is fully in, then press the hinge down. A drive fitted the wrong way round, a ribbon short of fully in, or a hinge left up are the usual reasons a replacement drive isn't found.
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Step 9: Reconnect the headphone jack ribbon
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 (support it), slide the ribbon fully into its connector and press the brown tab down. Lay the drive flat in its place, bumpers on.
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Step 10: Reconnect the battery last
With its latch raised, push the battery ribbon fully in, so only a thin line of its contacts shows, and press the latch down.
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Step 11: Check the drive before you close
Rest the back loosely on the front, hold the two together and turn it face up. Slide Hold off and connect it to your computer with a USB cable. Go into Diagnostic Mode as described above and open HDSpecs: it should show the replacement drive's model and size in clean text. Then reset to leave Diagnostic Mode.
Garbled text means the ribbon isn't right. Reset to leave Diagnostic Mode, switch it off, unplug the cable and release the battery ribbon; then reseat the drive ribbon at both ends, reconnect the battery ribbon last and check again.
Never reseat a ribbon while the iPod is on or the battery ribbon is plugged in.
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Step 12: Restore it
With the back still resting loosely in place, choose Restore iPod in the Finder (macOS Catalina or later) or in iTunes (on a Windows PC, the Windows version of iTunes). A restore erases everything on the iPod, songs included; on a replacement drive there is nothing of yours to lose yet. Until it is restored, the iPod may sit in Disk Mode, refuse to sync or say No music.
If you ran the battery low, a nearly empty battery can need up to 30 minutes of charging before the screen comes on. If the restore fails, plug straight into a USB port on the computer itself (no hub or keyboard port), try another cable and restore again. Then sync your music back.
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Step 13: Test it before you close it
Check the screen, the scroll ring and each of the five buttons, slide Hold on and off, and play a song through headphones. Then unplug the cable: it should keep running on its battery.
If anything is wrong, switch it off, unplug the cable and release the battery ribbon before you reseat a ribbon; the battery ribbon goes back in last.
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Step 14: Close it up
Make sure the drive lies flat and no ribbon crosses the seam, then press the back on until every clip clicks in. It should close without force.
If it won't close flat, stop: an 8 mm drive in a thin case, a bumper out of place or a pinched ribbon is the usual reason.
Close it up and test
- It restores and syncsThe replacement drive shows its full size and your music syncs back.
- The case closes flatAn even seam all round, with the drive lying flat inside.
- Everything worksScreen, scroll ring and buttons, Hold switch, headphone sound and charging, and it keeps running with the charger unplugged.
If it doesn't work afterwards
- The replacement drive isn't found, or a sad face appears
- Switch it off, unplug the cable, open it and release the battery ribbon. Check the drive ribbon is fully in with the hinge down at the drive end and the clamp down at the board end, that the drive sits the right way up, and that the cable matches the drive's make. Battery ribbon back in last, then check HDSpecs again. iPod sad face
- It says No music, or sits in Disk Mode
- A replacement drive has to be restored before it can be used. Restore it from the Finder or iTunes, then sync. Stuck in Disk Mode
- The restore fails
- Some restore errors come from the connection. Plug it straight into a USB port on the computer itself (no hub or keyboard port), try another cable, and restore again. iPod won't restore
- It clicks
- A weak battery can make even a good drive click as it fails to spin up: charge it and try again. Still clicking? Switch it off, unplug the cable, open it and release the battery ribbon, then check the drive ribbon at both ends (hinge and clamp down); battery ribbon back in last. Clicking noise
- No sound, or it stays on Hold
- The headphone jack ribbon, which carries the Hold switch too, isn't fully in or its tab is up. Switch it off, unplug the cable, open it and release the battery ribbon, then reseat the headphone jack ribbon with its tab down; battery ribbon back in last. iPod Video headphone jack and Hold switch
- It won't turn on
- Check Hold is off, then unplug the charger, open it and check the battery ribbon: fully in, latch down. If everything is seated and it's dead even on the charger, get a free repair quote. Not working after a repair
- 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.
Questions
Can a 30GB iPod Video take a bigger drive?
Not as a drop-in swap: the thin case takes only a 5 mm drive. An 8 mm 60GB or 80GB drive needs the thick back, thick battery, thick headphone jack assembly and thick bumpers too, and an 80GB drive also needs the 80GB Late 2006 board. For more room in the thin case, we fit flash storage as a mail-in service.
Can I upgrade a 60GB iPod 5th Gen to an 80GB hard drive?
The 80GB drive fits the thick case, but only the 80GB Late 2006 logic board runs the stock 80GB drive. A like-for-like 60GB drive avoids the question, and flash storage is the other way to add room.
Will my music come across to the replacement drive?
No. The songs live on the old drive, and the replacement is restored empty. Copy them off first while the old drive still shows up, then sync them back after the restore.
Do I need a replacement drive cable too?
Not automatically. A damaged ribbon can mimic a failing drive, so inspect it while you're inside. If it's creased or its latch is broken, or HDSpecs shows garbled text, fit a replacement that matches your drive.
Can I fit flash storage myself?
Flash storage is a service we fit: we install it, restore Apple's software, test the iPod and cover it with our 1-year limited warranty. This guide covers hard drives only.
Can you do it for me?
Yes. Choose We Fix It on the drive's page and mail your iPod in. We fit the drive and restore it (a restore erases everything on it, songs included, so copy your music off first) and send it back, typically within 3 to 5 business days on our bench.