iPod Video 5G — Replacement Battery (Thick — 60/80GB)
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iPod Video 5G — Replacement Battery (Thick — 60/80GB)
New · Model A1136
$35.90
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We are not selling this part at the moment.
- Condition: new replacement part
- 1-year limited warranty · 30-day returns from delivery
- Free pry tool in the box
- Completed repairs aren't refundable. If a part we fitted fails within a year, we repair it again.
Part details
About this part
Overview
Thick-case iPod Video 5G / 5.5G battery for 60GB / 80GB models only. Use this when runtime is weak, the pack is swelling, or the iPod still loses power after the cable, iPod Video charger, dock connector, and drive load have been checked.
Fitment snapshot
Thick-case 60GB / 80GB only; thin-case models use the thin battery path.
Product Overview
Use this iPod Video 5th generation 60GB 80GB battery replacement page when you have a thick-case iPod Video: the 60GB original 5G or the 80GB Enhanced 5.5G. It is the 616-0232 brown-latch battery path for thick 60GB/80GB cases, not the thin 30GB battery.
If a known-good battery, cable, and power source still do not restore stable power, the problem might be the dock connector, battery connector, or something on the board, not just the battery.
Choose Your Option
This part comes in multiple variants. Confirm your iPod's capacity, case depth, and order number before ordering.
Use this linked battery option only for 30GB thin-case iPods and the order numbers shown here.
View this option →The iPod 5th Generation Video comes in thin (30GB, 0.43") and thick (60/80GB, 0.55") cases. This battery fits the thick case only.
You're viewing this optionUse this linked battery option only for 2000mAh custom thin-case iPods and the order numbers shown here.
View this option →What Is Included
Condition: New replacement part. Quantity and exclusions: The listed part, set, pair, or configuration above is supplied with exactly one plastic pry tool. No other parts, tools, adhesives, or materials are included unless they are explicitly listed above.
Quick Buying Check
Buy this when
- Runtime is poor or the iPod shuts off early after checking the cable, iPod Video charger, dock connector, and storage load.
- If the pack is swollen, treat it as a safety problem first: stop charging, do not puncture or compress it, and work in a ventilated area.
Diagnose first when
- Unlock Hold and press Menu + Center for about 8 seconds, or until the Apple logo appears.
- Try a known-good cable, iPod Video charger, and USB port before opening the iPod.
- Inspect the dock connector for debris, bent pins, or corrosion.
- Check whether it works while plugged in but dies when running from the battery.
Do not buy for
- 30GB thin models, including U2 variants, need the thin battery path.
- Sad iPod, clicking, or restore failure points first to the hard drive or flash mod path.
- Display-only or Hold/input-only symptoms belong on separate screen or click-wheel paths.
- A known-good battery that fails the same way points next to the dock connector or board.
Fit and specs
Specifications & Fitment
Part Details
| Detail | Value |
|---|---|
| Model Number | A1136 |
| EMC | EMC 2065 |
| Condition | New replacement battery |
| Capacity | ~850 mAh (community-attested; Apple did not publish a figure) |
| Chemistry | Li-Ion |
| Voltage (Nominal) | 3.7V |
| Connector | Brown slide-up FPC latch |
| Soldering Required | No |
| OEM Part |
616-0232, 616-0229
|
Compatible Variants
| Order Number | Capacity | Color | Case | Compatible | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| MA147LL/A | 60GB | Black | thick | Yes | — |
| MA003LL/A | 60GB | White | thick | Yes | — |
| MA450LL/A | 80GB | Black | thick | Yes | — |
| MA448LL/A | 80GB | White | thick | Yes | — |
| MA146LL/A | 30GB | Black | thin (0.43 in) | No— wrong case depth | Owner-verified: If your current battery is marked 616-0229, you have the thin 30GB model — this thick battery will not fit. Use the thin 30GB battery (616-0229) instead. |
| MA446LL/A | 30GB | Black | thin (0.43 in) | No— wrong case depth | Owner-verified: If your current battery is marked 616-0229, you have the thin 30GB model — this thick battery will not fit. Use the thin 30GB battery (616-0229) instead. |
| MA452LL/A | 30GB | U2 Special | thin (0.43 in) | No— wrong case depth | Owner-verified: If your current battery is marked 616-0229, you have the thin 30GB model — this thick battery will not fit. Use the thin 30GB battery (616-0229) instead. |
| MA664LL/A | 30GB | U2 Special | thin (0.43 in) | No— wrong case depth | Owner-verified: If your current battery is marked 616-0229, you have the thin 30GB model — this thick battery will not fit. Use the thin 30GB battery (616-0229) instead. |
| MA002LL/A | 30GB | White | thin (0.43 in) | No— wrong case depth | Owner-verified: If your current battery is marked 616-0229, you have the thin 30GB model — this thick battery will not fit. Use the thin 30GB battery (616-0229) instead. |
| MA444LL/A | 30GB | White | thin (0.43 in) | No— wrong case depth | Owner-verified: If your current battery is marked 616-0229, you have the thin 30GB model — this thick battery will not fit. Use the thin 30GB battery (616-0229) instead. |
Install and repair
Repair considerations
Run these checks before replacing the battery — they confirm the battery is the right fix and not a nearby fault:
- Let alcohol or liquid cleaning dry before power-up
- Swollen or damaged batteries require safety framing
- Try known-good cable, charger, USB port, or computer
- Replace battery
Install Overview
Try the force-restart pre-check
Unlock Hold and press Menu + Center for about 8 seconds, or until the Apple logo appears, before opening the iPod.
Protect the brown FPC latch
Lift the brown battery connector latch only 1-2mm upward. Never push it sideways; if the latch breaks or the board-side socket lifts, the repair usually becomes a professional connector replacement.
Release the rear-panel ribbons first
Do not fully separate the front and rear halves until the battery and headphone/Hold ribbons are released.
Lift the pack from the top edge only
A thin orange Hold-switch ribbon runs under the battery. Lift the battery from its top edge only; peeling the adhesive sideways tears that ribbon and locks the iPod into Hold permanently.
Treat swelling as a safety issue
If the pack is swollen, stop charging, do not puncture or compress it, and work in a ventilated area.
Disassembly Guide
Disassembly guide summary: iPod 5th Generation (Video) Battery Replacement.
Show all 11 installation steps
Before opening the iPod, confirm that the hold switch is locked. With the iPod screen-side down and facing you, the slider should sit all the way to the right.
Do not get discouraged if the iPod takes several opening attempts; work slowly until the case releases. Release the first bottom retainer clip with the plastic opening tool. Point the tool edge toward the metal rear case to avoid scratching the plastic front.
Use these retaining clip locations: four along each side, one on top, and two along the bottom. This helps avoid frustration and reduces the chance of scratching the plastic cover.
Each side of the iPod has four retaining clips. Use a plastic opening tool to separate the plastic front from the metal rear case. Slide the plastic opening tool into the iPod's left side with the tool edge pointed toward the metal rear case. A small guitar pick can help with opening. Place it in the seam and slide it around the case to release the clips more smoothly. Gently enlarge the existing crevice by wiggling the plastic opening tool and moving it to the left. Keep working this way until the entire side of the iPod is loose. Then slide a plastic opening tool to the right of the Hold button. Work very carefully while inserting the tool because the display is fragile.
Gently glide the plastic opening tool on the top of the display, making sure to release the retaining clips. The other sides of the iPod should now release easily. If they do not, work plastic opening tools along the right side the same way you did on the left side. In this step, separate the front of the device from the back about an inch (or a couple of centimeters). The iPod casing is now open, but do not fully separate the two halves yet. Two ribbon cables still connect the back panel to the remaining iPod assembly.
With angled tweezers or a plastic opening tool, slide the brown connector latch upward where it secures the orange battery ribbon cable. Pull from both sides of the latch. Lift it only about 1-2 mm to release the cable; do not lift farther or remove it, or the white connector may come with it. Do not raise the assembly very far; lifting too high could pull the battery connector out of the logic board. Move the brown connector straight upward. It is fragile and can break if shifted to the side. Hooks at the bottom hold the cable in place. If an arm breaks, reinstalling the battery cable becomes difficult; put the cable in the slot and press the brown holder into place to stop the cable from slipping out. Take the cable out of the connector.
At this stage there should be one orange ribbon cable still attaching the front housing to the back. At this stage you are able to take out and replace the blue rubber bumpers, or keep going with separating the case. You can replace the battery without separating the case, but opening it farther can make the work easier. Doing so requires one extra cable removal and adds some damage risk.
Raise the hard drive so the headphone jack ribbon connector is exposed. If the hard drive bumpers come loose, put them back with the notch seated in its original orientation.
With the plastic opening tool, gently raise the brown tab of the headphone ribbon cable connector. The tab can rotate up 90 degrees, releasing the ribbon cable. With your fingers, draw out the headphone jack ribbon cable.
The front and rear case halves should now be fully separated.
During this step, take care not to damage any headphone or battery ribbon cables. Slide a plastic opening tool between the metal case and the battery. Gently wiggle the tool while pressing it farther between the battery and back case. The battery adhesive should give so the battery can be removed from the rear panel.
Product-specific placement, reassembly, and check
- Prepare and access. Confirm the exact model and listing fit first. Use the existing steps as a disassembly guide, gather the specified tools, disconnect power where applicable, and keep screws and cable positions organized.
- Place Replacement Battery (Thick — 60/80GB). Seat the battery in the original battery location, route its lead or ribbon without a pinch, and reconnect it squarely.
- Reassemble without force. Reverse only the access steps needed for this repair, keep cables clear of case edges and screw posts, and close clips in stages.
- Validate before final closure. Before final closure, confirm boot and charging behavior and stop immediately for swelling, heat, odor, hissing, smoke, or leakage.
Stop condition: Stop if a connector, latch, screw, clip, housing edge, or the replacement part resists normal alignment. Recheck model fit, orientation, cable routing, and trapped hardware instead of forcing it.
After This Repair
| Check | What to do |
|---|---|
| Calibrate the new battery | Charge to 100%, keep it charging for 2 more hours, use the iPod until low-battery shutdown, then charge uninterrupted back to 100%. |
| Check for pressure | Reopen the case if the screen shows pressure marks, dark spots, or bowing after the battery is installed. |
| Verify USB charge and sync | Confirm the iPod charges and syncs over USB. On Windows use iTunes for Windows, or the newer Apple Devices app, for the sync check. |
| Still not working? | If the new battery behaves like the old one, inspect dock connector seating, the battery connector, and the board-level power path. |
Battery Safety & Shipping
⚠️ Lithium-Ion / Li-Po Battery Safety. This product contains (or is) a rechargeable lithium-ion/lithium-polymer battery. Charge only with a compatible charger and unplug once fully charged. Avoid charging or storing in direct sunlight or other high-heat environments. Stop using and stop charging immediately if the battery swells, bulges, gets unusually hot, hisses, smokes, or leaks. Do not puncture, crush, bend, short-circuit, or try to "deflate" a swollen cell, and never press a lifted screen or case back down — it can rupture the cell. If electrolyte contacts your eyes, flush with clean water for 15 minutes without rubbing and seek medical care; on skin, wash with water and soap. Battery service should be done by a trained technician. Recycle through an electronics or universal-waste recycler, not household trash.
Shipping. A refurbished iPod shipped with its battery installed is handled as lithium-ion batteries contained in equipment (UN3481); a loose replacement cell is handled as a lithium-ion battery (UN3480). Carrier, packaging, and destination restrictions can vary, so follow the current checkout and shipping instructions for the offered route.
Troubleshooting
Failure Signs / When This Battery Helps
Use this section like a bench check: start with the symptom, check the easy power and fitment problems, then decide whether the thick battery is still the likely part.
Most people arrive here when a thick 60GB/80GB iPod Video will not hold a charge, shuts off early, or gets stuck on Please Wait / Very Low Battery after the basic cable and charger checks. A battery that sat fully discharged for months or years may not recover even with extended charging.
| Symptom | What it means & what to check |
|---|---|
| Symptom remains after basic checks |
What you may see: The iPod still points back to Replacement Battery (Thick — 60/80GB) after cable seating, battery stability, and nearby connector checks. Check first: Retest with known-good cables or adjacent parts where practical before ordering. Check next: A nearby cable, connector, battery, storage device, display path, audio path, or board path can mimic a bad battery. |
| Power, charging, or runtime symptoms |
Start with this check: Confirm the case is thick 60GB/80GB, then try a known-good cable and power source. Sign this part may help: Yes, if the iPod only behaves on external power and the cable/dock checks are clean. |
| Sad iPod, clicking, restore, or storage trouble |
Start with this check: Listen for drive clicking and compare whether the symptom changes in disk mode or restore. Sign this part may help: Maybe; keep hard drive, hard-drive cable, and flash mod paths in the comparison. |
| Battery ribbon, connector, or contact path |
Start with this check: Inspect the brown-latch battery connector and nearby ribbon paths before ordering another battery. Sign this part may help: Maybe; the battery helps only if its own flex or connector path is damaged. |
| Symptoms changed after repair or reassembly |
Start with this check: Reopen only far enough to inspect the areas touched during the repair. Sign this part may help: Maybe; check seating, latch position, and variant fit before replacing a second part. |
| dead iPod, Please wait Very Low Battery, boot loop, low battery boot loop, very low battery please wait, new battery but very low battery sign still on | Charge from a known-good source long enough to separate deep discharge from a failed cell, then confirm the case-depth battery path. |
| only works when plugged in, battery won't hold a charge, battery dies fast, only works plugged in, dies as soon as I unplug, dies after 5 minutes, battery drains in 2 minutes but is fully charged | Check the USB cable, charger, dock connector, and storage spin-up load before ordering a replacement battery. |
| iPod gets hot then dies, overheating, battery swollen, battery is swollen | Stop charging and treat these as battery-safety symptoms. Do not keep testing a swollen, puffy, hot, punctured, or leaking lithium pack. |
| battery drains quickly, short battery life, battery drains fast, battery bulging, shuts off randomly, battery drains when off, won't start after repair, dropped in water and now shows low battery please wait, stops at the Apple logo but is recognized in iTunes, replaced battery and now shows the apple.com/support screen, run the iPod without a battery | Use this as a battery clue only after the iPod matches this listing's thick-case battery fitment. |
| Related checks |
|
Diagnostic walkthrough
Primary battery symptoms
- What you may see: The iPod runs briefly, shuts off under load, shows Very Low Battery, gets stuck on Please Wait, or only works while plugged in.
- Check first: Try a known-good cable and power source, then note whether the iPod stays on only while connected. Confirm the case is thick 60GB/80GB before ordering.
- Look elsewhere when: The same symptom appears with a known-good battery, the dock connector is damaged, or the drive clicks and stalls during startup.
Overlap symptoms
- What you may see: Sad iPod, clicking, restore loops, disk-mode trouble, or power drops when the drive spins up.
- Check first: Reseat the hard-drive cable and check whether disk mode or restore behavior changes before treating the battery as confirmed.
- Look elsewhere when: Storage behavior is the clearest symptom, especially after a drive, cable, or flash adapter was just installed.
Post-repair symptoms
- What you may see: Power behavior changed after opening the iPod, replacing storage, or disturbing nearby flex cables.
- Check first: Inspect the battery connector, latch, cable routing, and the exact areas touched during the repair.
- Look elsewhere when: A connector, ribbon, or wrong-variant part explains the new symptom better than the battery itself.
Do Not Buy This Battery Yet If...
| Situation | Start here instead |
|---|---|
| 30GB thin model, including U2 variants | Use the thin battery path. |
| Sad iPod, clicking, or restore failure | Start with the hard drive or flash mod path. |
| Display-only problems | Start with screen replacement or display-ribbon checks. |
| Hold or input-only problems | Start with the click wheel or Hold-switch route. |
| Known-good battery fails the same way | Check the 30-pin connector for lint, bent or corroded pins, then the board's power path. That port is soldered to the logic board, so a damaged one is board-level work rather than a trim part. |
| Charger or cable is the problem | Check the cable and port first. |
Worth Knowing
- Thick battery OEM part: 616-0232 (~850 mAh, community-attested; Apple did not publish a figure).
- 60GB is original 5G (Oct 2005); 80GB is 5.5G Enhanced (Sept 2006). The thick battery is identical between the two.
- Charges over both FireWire and USB; syncs only over USB. If the USB port is damaged, FireWire power can still charge the iPod for testing.
- Lift brown connector latch only 1-2mm upward. Never sideways. If broken, the logic board battery socket usually requires professional connector replacement.
- After install: charge to 100%, keep charging 2 more hours, use until low-battery shutdown, then charge uninterrupted to 100%.
- If screen shows pressure marks, dark spots, or bowing after install, reopen and inspect battery thickness and cable routing.
- US order numbers shown; regional variants share the same base prefix; U2 5G models were 30GB thin and do not apply.
- Owner-verified failure mode: installing a thick-case part in a thin 30GB case compresses the LCD panel against the internals — dark pressure marks or permanent panel damage. Thin and thick batteries, headphone jacks, backplates, and side bumpers are NOT interchangeable between case variants.
- Can it run with no battery? Keep a working battery and a sound connector as the repair route. Owners report a 5th-generation board and display lighting up from a FireWire source with no battery fitted, but that is not normal use: do not feed power to the battery contacts to work around a dead cell, and do not treat bypass wiring as a repair.
- Printed battery code is not a capacity guarantee — aftermarket cells recycle these codes; match by case thickness first (thin 30GB vs thick 60/80GB).
Swollen Battery: What Owners Actually Run Into
How to tell a pack has swollen, before you open anything. Set the iPod face-up on a flat table and press one corner: a swollen pack makes it rock or sit proud instead of lying flat. Look along the seam in raked light for the plastic front lifting away from the metal back, and run a fingernail round it — a lip you can catch is the case being pushed open from inside. On this build the pack lies in the rear case directly behind the display, so the screen is the other tell: a dark blotch, a bright or discoloured patch, or a bowed panel is the cell pressing on it from behind. The click wheel is not the tell on this model — that belongs to the older 4th-generation and Photo layout, where the pack sits behind the wheel. When the old pack is out, lay it beside the replacement: a healthy cell is flat and stiff, a swollen one is domed and gives under a light press.
A swollen lithium battery is the most common reason a stored iPod Video comes back to life with case problems. Owners describe it as a "bloated" or "puffed up" battery — repair communities call it a "spicy pillow." Here is what it looks like in practice on the 5th generation, drawn from real owner reports.
Anecdotal owner reports (not a guarantee or authoritative proof): - An owner revived a 30GB iPod Video that had sat in a drawer for years: the battery had bloated enough that it needed replacing before anything else, and the case would not sit flush until the swollen pack came out. - Another owner charged an old unit overnight on a high-wattage iPad charger and noticed the rear panel starting to lift — a depleted pack fed by an oversized charger is a classic swelling trigger on these units. - A third replaced a bloated battery, then found the click wheel had stopped working afterward. On the 5G that is almost never the swelling itself — the pack lies in the rear case directly behind the display, not behind the wheel, so a swollen cell presses the screen rather than the controls — it is usually the Hold-switch ribbon or wheel flex cable disturbed during the repair. Lift the battery from the top edge only and recheck both ribbons before blaming the new part.
How it usually progresses: - It usually announces itself in stages: runtime drops from hours to minutes, then the rear panel starts to feel tight or sits proud at the seam, and in advanced cases the swelling presses the LCD from behind — dark pressure marks on the screen are the late warning.
What typically causes it: - The common triggers we see: years of storage with a fully drained pack, and charging a deeply discharged unit unattended on a high-wattage charger. If a stored iPod is coming back to life, charge it supervised on a standard USB port the first time.
Handle it safely: - A swollen, hot, or discolored pack is a fire hazard first and a repair question second: stop charging immediately, never puncture or press the pack flat, and never reuse a cell that has swelled or been deformed — replacement is the only safe path. - Keep sharp and conductive metal tools away from the battery and its board connector during removal — the colored wrapping on the pouch is structural, not packaging, and piercing it can short the cell.
Owners searching for this describe it as: ipod video swollen battery, ipod 5th gen bloated battery, ipod battery puffed up, ipod back cover bulging, spicy pillow ipod, ipod video back panel lifting.
Won't Charge: What Owners Describe
On the iPod 5th Generation Video, Won't Charge can describe more than one observable problem. These paraphrased owner reports are anecdotal starting points for diagnosis, not proof that any single part failed.
- One owner reported that the iPod still synced after a repair but drew no charging power.
Owners searching for this describe it as: iPod 5th Generation Video Won't Charge, iPod won't charge, replacement battery won't charge.
Won't Turn On: What Owners Describe
On the iPod 5th Generation Video, Won't Turn On can describe more than one observable problem.
- One owner reported that the iPod remained on the Very Low Battery screen, would not boot, and was not recognized after days on charge.
Owners searching for this describe it as: iPod 5th Generation Video Won't Turn On, iPod won't turn on, iPod has no power.
What Owners Report
These are anecdotal owner reports, not guarantees or authoritative proof that a particular part will fix a symptom. Use them as a troubleshooting starting point: confirm the symptom, run the quick checks, then match the fix.
Won't charge, won't hold a charge, or only lives on wall power
Owners describe it as: drains fast after a full charge; runs only on wall power, never from a computer; the charger is not noticed at all; stuck on "Charging, please wait"; dies the moment the charger is unplugged; a sad face with a low-battery sign; got wet and went silent.
Check first. Toggle Hold and hold Menu + Select 6–10 seconds; half an hour on a wall charger, and test a computer from its own port rather than a keyboard's; clean the 30-pin connector; swap the cable; then confirm the brown battery latch is closed — on a flash build, re-check the adapter ribbon too.
What fixes it. A battery matched to your build, thin for the 30GB and thick for the 60/80GB. A connector torn off the board is soldering work, and a unit that passes every check above ends at the board's charging circuit.
Caution. Lift that latch 1–2 mm straight up, never sideways, and never feed power to the battery contacts to work around a dead cell. Dry a wet iPod and clean corrosion with 90%+ isopropyl alcohol first. Swelling here presses the display, so replace a swollen cell. Reported by 41 owners.
Brand-new battery installed — and it still won't charge
Owners describe it as: fresh battery, same dead iPod; charging on a wall or car charger but never from a computer; syncs but will not charge; the new battery runs hot; a "constant state of charging" that never completes.
Check first. Suspect the new part: shelf-aged and dead-on-arrival cells are a repeat report here. Then re-check the install — flex fully home, brown clip down. A technician who works on these is blunt about it: most trouble after a disassembly is a cable not seated properly. Swap the USB cable too, because one that syncs can still have a broken charge line.
What fixes it. Return a dead-on-arrival cell. If several known-good batteries behave identically with a clean connector, the board's charging circuit is the standing suspect — board-level work.
Caution. A hot battery is a stop-everything event: disconnect it, do not reuse it. Oversized custom packs can make the charge icon misreport — judge by runtime. Reported by 23 owners.
New battery is in — now something else is wrong
Owners describe it as: drains within an hour; "Very low battery" refuses to clear; the screen flickers; the back cover no longer snaps tight; the sad-face support screen appears; controls stop responding; a squeal from the board.
Check first. Re-seat everything the job disturbed — battery flex home with the clip down, drive cable straight and latched, display ribbon locked. Flicker points at the battery connector making partial contact or at the display ribbon; a sad face at the drive cable; dead controls at the wheel ribbon and its ground tab.
What to expect. Apple's original 2005 rating for the 30GB build was up to 14 hours of music; the 60GB build and the 2006 Enhanced models carry their own separate ratings, and no replacement cell is promised any of them.
What fixes it. Connection re-work, usually, with no parts; straightened retaining clips or a new backplate for a cover that will not snap; a second battery, then a board check, if a stuck "very low battery" survives. Reported by 15 owners.
Completely dead — won't turn on at all
Owners describe it as: no response to any button; dies the moment external power comes off; the battery measures a healthy 3.8 V yet the iPod stays dark; drains overnight while switched off; boots to the Apple logo for a second and gives up.
Check first. Toggle Hold and hold Menu + Select 6–10 seconds, then an hour on a wall charger before trying again — a deeply drained cell cannot talk to a computer at first. This model charges over FireWire but never syncs over it, so a FireWire charger is a useful power-source test. Check the 30-pin connector for lint and bent or corroded pins.
What fixes it. A replacement battery first, as the cheapest known-good starting point. Still dead on every source with a clean connector and a good battery, and the question moves to the board — same-model troubleshooting puts a logic-board fault at the end of exactly that ladder.
Caution. A resting voltage says nothing about a cell under load, and both the overnight-charge rescue and the overnight-drain board verdict are single owner reports. Reported by 14 owners.
Battery-side diagnosis — the brown connector, a stuck "Very Low Battery", and safe opening
Owners describe it as: dead after work near the battery; stuck on a faint "Please wait, Very Low Battery"; looping on the start-up screen; hot, then dead; a battery that will not physically come out; a connector visibly off the board.
Check first. The brown latch is a slide-up type: lift it 1–2 mm straight up, never pry sideways. The Hold-switch ribbon runs under the battery, and the battery guide warns about the headphone and battery ribbons at that step. For a stuck faint low-battery screen, leave it on a wall charger, then reset with Hold off and Menu + Select.
What fixes it. The battery itself when it is worn or stuck down with old adhesive. A connector that has come away from the board is soldered to the logic board, so that is board-level work rather than another battery.
Caution. Stop charging anything that has run hot, and have the battery, its connector and the board inspected before further powered tests. Reported by 12 owners.
Display blank, glitched, or always lit after battery work
Owners describe it as: the screen glitches immediately after a battery replacement; the display sits crooked or unanchored; the screen never turns off; fine lines run across the panel.
Check first. The display ribbon. Flip up the black plastic tab that holds it on the board-side connector, re-seat the ribbon square, and close the lock again — a ribbon that looks home can still make partial contact. Then check what went in: a thick 60/80GB battery closed into a thin 30GB case does not sit properly, and a technician on this model traces "won't close, presses the screen" straight back to the wrong-build cell.
What fixes it. Re-seating the ribbon, most often. The correct battery for the case is the other half. Order a panel only once the ribbon, the latch and the battery fit are all cleared — a screen that is being pressed is not a failed screen.
Community signal. Reported by 4 owners.
Runs fine but won't sync — dock-connector and recognition checks
Owners describe it as: music plays but no computer sees the iPod; it boots to the restore screen now and then; recognition faded as the battery got weak.
Check first. Another cable and another USB port — a repair technician's first move on this family. Clean the 30-pin connector and look for lint and bent or corroded pins. Then reset (Hold off, Menu + Select) and, still connected, hold Center + Play/Pause until the Disk Mode screen: an iPod the computer's own disk tools can see is a software problem rather than a port one.
What fixes it. The 30-pin port is soldered to the logic board, so a damaged port is board-level work, not a trim part. A tired battery is the cheaper suspect when charging works and recognition comes and goes.
Caution. Reading an intermittent restore screen as early drive failure is one owner's interpretation, not a rule. Reported by 4 owners.
Bigger battery? Thin and thick fit rules, and custom packs
Owners describe it as: wanting the thick build's battery inside a 30GB thin case, or a bigger pack in the space a flash conversion freed up.
The rule is case depth. The 30GB is the thin case and the 60/80GB the thick one, and the cells are listed separately by build for that reason. The documented mistake runs one way: a thick cell in a thin 30GB case — a technician on this model traces "won't close properly" straight back to a battery bought for the larger-capacity iPods.
The other direction is not settled. A thinner cell in a thick case is a clearance and retention question rather than a proven prohibition, and no test we have covers every custom pack. Measure the pack, its connector and the clearance you actually have — a flash adapter stack changes it — and order the battery listed for the build you end up with.
Community signal. Reported by 3 owners.
Torn or broken Hold switch — what the repair actually is
Owners describe it as: the Hold-switch ribbon tore during a repair; the switch itself is loose or broken; debris fakes a Hold state.
Check first. Look into the switch slot for grit and work the slider several times. Then check the ribbon where it runs under the battery — that is where it tears, which is why so many of these start on a battery job.
What fixes it. The switch is part of the headphone-jack assembly and is serviced by replacing it, matched to your case: thin for the 30GB, thick for the 60/80GB. Accounts of running with the flex unplugged, or of debris alone locking a unit, stay owner reports rather than repairs we recommend.
About the later Classic. A different family with its own pages. One owner reports a thick Video jack-and-Hold assembly working in a thick Classic; that is a single account, and we promise interchange in neither direction — order the assembly listed for your own build. Reported by 3 owners.
After a board or screen transplant — what to re-check, and what a restore does
Owners describe it as: the support-site screen on boot after a board or screen transplant; a blank screen after a board swap; a freeze with a brand-new drive; a sad face immediately after a replacement board went in.
Check first. Everything the swap disturbed: release and re-close the brown clamp on the drive ribbon, re-seat the display ribbon and its lock, and confirm the battery flex is home with its clip down. A board swap disturbs the drive cable by definition.
Then restore. Owners who rebuilt these got there by formatting in Disk Mode and restoring afterwards, so expect a restore after a board swap — and a restore erases the iPod, so copy anything that exists only on it first.
What we will not claim. Nothing shows that a board swap by itself preserves or destroys your music, and the idea that the drive is paired to the board is speculation rather than an established mechanism. Reported by 3 owners, plus one sad face straight after a board replacement.
Questions
Frequently Asked Questions
Does this fit my thick 5G or 5.5G iPod Video?
Yes, if your iPod is the thick 60GB or 80GB Video. The 60GB version is the original 5G from October 2005, and the 80GB version is the Enhanced 5.5G from September 2006; both use this thick battery. Do not use it in a 30GB thin model, including U2 MA452LL/A or MA664LL/A. If the battery you removed is marked 616-0229, you have the thin 30GB route and this battery will not fit. If your search was ipod classic 5th generation 30gb battery replacement, use the thin 30GB battery instead.
What reset should I try before opening the iPod?
Before opening the case, unlock Hold and press Menu + Center for about 8 seconds, or until the Apple logo appears. A reset will not prove the battery is good, but it can save you from opening an iPod that was only locked up.
Can FireWire help test a dead 5G Video?
Yes. The 5G Video charges from either FireWire or USB, though it syncs over USB only. A FireWire source charging the iPod does not test the USB path or the whole charge circuit: try a known-good USB cable and a port on the computer itself (not the keyboard's) before deciding which part is at fault. An aged battery can still take wall current while refusing a computer's, so a split like that is a clue, not a verdict.
Does the later Classic's battery fit this iPod Video, and the other way round?
Order the battery listed for the build you actually have. Suppliers do cross-list some cells across the Video and the later Classic, and the families use similar thin and thick packs — but a listing that names both is not a measurement of your unit.
Within the Video alone, thickness has to match the case: a technician on this model diagnosed a too-thick replacement simply as a 30GB iPod that had been sent a 60GB battery. Capacity ratings printed on aftermarket cells do not identify case height either.
So: check the case depth, the connector and the clearance you have — a flash adapter stack changes it — and treat a Classic listing as a pointer to that family's own pages rather than a promise of fit. We will not infer compatibility, or incompatibility, for every other iPod from one listing.
What should I check before ordering a new battery?
Try a known-good cable and power source first, then look closely at the dock connector for debris, bent pins, or corrosion. A Please Wait / Very Low Battery loop can be a tired cell, but it can also come from a loose brown-latch battery ribbon, storage spin-up load, or a board-level power path.
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If the iPod is already open, this is the clean time to replace the aging hard drive with an flash adapter/SD setup.
Related: Replacement Battery (Thin — 30GB)Opened a 30GB thin iPod instead? Use the thin battery; this thick cell is for 60GB and 80GB cases.
Related: Replacement Hard Drive (30GB)Use a hard drive only when restoring original-style storage; flash adapters are also a valid upgrade path for 5G/5.5G.
Search terms
Some buyers search for "iPod Video 60GB 80GB battery", "iPod Video battery replacement kit", "iPod Video 5.5 battery", "iPod 5.5G battery", "iPod 5G battery", "850mAh iPod Video battery", "iPod Video thick battery", "A1136 battery", "iPod Classic 5th Generation battery", "iPod Classic 60GB battery", "iPod G5 battery", "iPod 5th Gen Enhanced battery", "iPod A1136 battery", "iPod Video battery kit", "iPod Video extended battery", "2000mAh iPod Video battery", "flash adapter battery mod", "iPod Video battery upgrade", "high capacity battery", "iPod battery calibration", "iPod Video battery life hours", or "My iPod won't charge after battery replacement"; confirm the checks above point to this same part before ordering.
Why people land on this part
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Questions people ask
- how long does iPod battery replacement take.
- is it hard to replace iPod 5th gen battery.
- does iPod Video battery need soldering.
- is 616-0232 the same as 616-0229.
- can I use an extended battery in my iPod Video.
- will a 2000mAh battery fit in iPod 5.5
- Can you replace iPod Video battery yourself.
- How do I know if 5G or 5.5G
- How long does iPod Video battery last.
- How many mAh is iPod Video battery.
- Is it worth replacing iPod Video battery.
- What's difference thin and thick iPod Video battery
- Will iPod Classic battery fit iPod Video
Free diagnostic
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