iPod Classic 6th Generation 160GB Hard Drive Replacement

Yes — as our flash mod service, fitted by mail: a 128GB build (the 6th Gen's limit on Apple's software). The thick 160GB needs the thin ZIF ribbon instead of its CE-ATA cable 821-0546; we include that ribbon at no extra charge.

Measure case depth: 13.5 mm / 0.53 inch is thick and fits this listing. 10.5 mm / 0.41 inch is thin and uses a different drive and cable. MB145LL/A or MB150LL/A identify the original thick 160GB. If the serial decodes ambiguously, identify the case, not the paperwork: Apple's figures are about 162 g for the thick 160GB and 140 g for the thin 80GB and 120GB; on a unit with a swapped back or new drive, trust the case depth: 10.5 mm thin, 13.5 mm thick. Refurbished units often wear swapped backplates, so trust the internals — the drive class and the code printed on the battery — over the engraving or the seller's title.

A1238 covers iPod Classic models from 2007 through 2009. Match your order number and case depth because A1238 alone does not identify capacity, thickness, or cable. Every Classic says A1238 on the back, so the model number alone cannot tell you which one you have — owners who bought the wrong part once usually matched A1238 and nothing else. Capacity narrows it: 80GB and 120GB are always thin; a 160GB is either the 2007 thick model or a later thin one. Apple's serial lookup names the release (a plain "iPod classic" is a 2007 unit), but a serial describes the unit as it left the factory — the case depth settles it (10.5 mm thin, 13.5 mm thick), and Settings > About shows the model. Across the thin 80GB and 120GB, rear panels, batteries, drives, cables and headphone jacks interchange; the 2007 thick 160GB keeps its own rear panel, battery, drive, cable, bumpers and headphone jack. Faceplates and click wheels fit every 6th/7th Gen. Screens are one-way: a 6th Gen needs a 6th Gen screen (a 7th Gen screen shows white in it); a 7th Gen can use a 6th Gen screen. A1238 identifies the Classic family; for the Video model, see its own pages.

No. The original 2007 160GB 6th Generation model is thick, but the Late 2009 iPod Classic 160GB (MC293LL/A or MC297LL/A) is thin and uses a different drive and cable.

The original hard drive capacity is 160GB. Our flash mod service fits 128GB, the 6th Gen's limit on Apple's own software.

You can try Disk Mode and a restore after checking battery stability and the CE-ATA cable; a restore erases everything on the iPod, songs included, so if it still shows up on the computer, copy off anything worth keeping first. If the iPod repeatedly clicks, fails restore, or cannot detect storage after those checks, replacement becomes more reasonable.