I was able to find a seller with a handful of 3rd generation headphone assemblies at a reasonable price. Also, while the tape held the connector if treated gingerly, once the connector was inserted into the plug, the slightest movement pulled it free of the cable. I considered soldering the legs in place, but given the very small size, I suspected solder would stretch across and short the legs together. I hoped the connector’s legs would make satisfactory contact once the case was securely closed, but that was wishful thinking. I first tried gluing the 10-point connector in place using 1mm double-sided tape. I was now ready to address the broken headphone connector. 3rd generation adapter and iFlash installation Trimming the iFlash card to fit comfortably within the 4th generation enclosure Completed 4th generation card installation So, after confirming no traces were impacted, I trimmed the top of the iFlash card. Unfortunately, the diagonal on the iFlash card went the wrong way to accommodate the conflict. With the adapter installed, the card rested on the iPod’s internal battery connector. However, the 4th generation’s fit was more complicated. The iFlash card was easily installed in the 3rd generation enclosure. 3rd generation battery replacement New 4th generation battery installed The 3rd generation hard drive connection cable had to be removed from the logic board to access the battery, while the 4th generation pin connector remained attached. Opening the 4th generation iPod Clean on the insideĪfter removing the hard drives, both batteries were easily accessible and replaced. Both units were clean and had the same 20GB 3.3V Toshiba MK2004GAL ATA-100 series hard drive running at 4200 RPM, but they were housed in somewhat different blue protective bumpers. The 4th generation unit opened fairly easily and without damage. After getting the top and bottom apart, I discovered the headphone connector had separated from its cable. While I was careful and used plastic picks and multiple tools to slowly work the clips free, it seems I was not careful enough. Opening the 3rd generation iPod was not particularly challenging. Prying open the 3rd generation iPod case. iFlash.xyz offers an inexpensive iFlash-CF card, but I also needed an adapter to interface with the pin connector used on the older model iPods. I selected 64GB SanDisk Extreme Compact Flash cards. A few months ago, I installed an SD card in a 6th generation iPod, but for these older models, I decided to use Compact Flash. Regardless of the drive condition, I planned to replace both spinning drives with solid state options. I visited iFixIt and picked up new batteries for both. At first I thought the battery was completely dead and would not take a charge, but I later learned this model can only be powered via Firewire, and I was connecting it to a USB charger. The 4th generation model was in decent shape with a functioning hard drive, but I was uncertain about the 3rd generation’s drive. To begin this restoration, I knew the batteries needed to replaced. This generation was also the base for the iPod Photo, with its 60GB hard drive and a 220 x 176 display providing 65,536 colors. In October 2004, a “Special U2 Edition” was released in black and red–providing the first non-white iPod option. This generation launched in July 2004, with an updated but similarly spec’d display, increased battery life, and was available in 20GB or 40GB configurations. The 4th generation iPod was the first with the iconic “click wheel” interface and the last to come with a grayscale display. First offered in 2003 and revised in 2004, this iPod has a two-inch grayscale 160 x 120 display, 8-hours of battery life, and was available in 10GB through 40GB configurations. By replacing the Firewire port, the new dock connector enabled connections via USB to PCs. This iPod was my daily companion for many years, allowing me to enjoy custom playlists and introducing me to a steady rotation of podcasts.Īpple’s 3rd generation iPod was the first to come with the soon-to-be ubiquitous 30-pin dock connector and the second with a “touch wheel” interface, though its glowing red control buttons makes it unique to this day. A gift from my wife given shortly after we were married. The 3rd generation iPod belonged to a good friend who insisted on only including full albums from different genres and shuffling between them with abandon. If you have more than one pocket, why not have more than 1,000 songs in each? After building confidence restoring the 6th and final version of the iPod Classic, I was ready to take on a dual restoration of a 3rd and a 4th generation iPod.
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