::grumble:: Mac won’t help me restart my iPod without paying them $60 so i’m hoping someone here might be able to help.
My iPod’s software thinks that it is on hold (even though the slider at the top says otherwise). It fell under this magical state in the first week of April. I web-searched and someone on the web said to let the battery die to nothingness. I did this. To no avail. Whenever i plug it back in to power, it’s still on hold.
There’s no way to do the restart via the three buttons because it’s on hold. Isn’t there a manual restart somehow? Like one where i can erase the whole disk and get it to restart?
I have to admit that i’m *really* cranky with Mac about this one. You’d think that a noticeable defect in the software (documented by others on the web) would mean that they’d support you in fixing it. I’m a bit resentful by being demanded to pay $60 to fix it when i was thinking of upgrading at the end of the summer. Now i’m just questioning whether or not it’s worth upgrading because my iPod has been broken for half the time that i’ve had it.
WOW…The Heather fix wasn’t working for me, and I was getting frustrated as hell. i was about to give up. It had been more than an hour. Then, as a last ditch effort, I started whacking the shit out of my iPod on my desk.
When I say whacking the shit out of it, I mean just by rotating my wrist. Kind of like playing rock, paper, scissors, but with your iPod in your one hand and the desk acting as the other hand. Exactly that same amount of force, I would say. Not too much arm, more wrist.
But really, when I was doing this, I was at the point where I didn’t care what happened to the iPod. I figured it was already busted, so I had nothing to lose by smacking it on the table. I whack it a couple of times, AND I HEAR THE CLICK. AHHHHHHH!
Oh shit! I almost screwed myself over. I put the iPod back on hold, just to see if it still worked…and the FRICKIN THING DID IT AGAIN. But this time all I had to do was slide the hold button REALLY hard toward the un-locked position.
Wow…never putting this on hold again. Well, just one more time…
someone tell me how to do heather’s thing i can’t get this shit unstuck
well. this isnt working. i almost ruined the switch by peeling the shit off. rawr.
yeah. im getting it replaced tomorrow cuz my ipod was messed up to begin with so whatever.
you guys are a bunch of losers. if your too poor to buy the extended warranty in case your ipod breaks then maybe you shouldn’t own one .stop being such losers on the internet talking to eachother and get a life
hey you know what michael. I like the fact that i don’t have a life. I am pretty sure that so does everybody else that is on this website. right guys. Hey maybe we should all meet up somewhere and play some mario brothers and have a jerk fest
^pwnage. =]
Hard to believe, the following worked for me, thanks so much! Apple will never get another dime out of me, this hw/mechanical bug could have totally been prevented.
Posted by: Nicky at January 10, 2005 05:47 PM
“Turn the ipod on its side and push on the silver side hard until you hear a click. That should unlock it…I know that sounds weird but it worked for me.”
I got a stunner; moving the �hold� switch from lock to unlock cause the Ipod to lose all power. When I press on the �select� button to start again, it starts without a problem, but in �lock� mode. I currently have the Ipod case open and sitting on my desk.
It started acting this way after it got wet. Water bottle, 7 hour flight, me sleeping, you get the picture. Anyway, I need help, I really do, please help. Thanks-
Another Heather-guided iPod unlocking success…what a pleasant and unexpected surprise! (FYI I didn’t hear a click, I don’t think.) Thanks.
i’ve tryed all these comments and they r not working!!!!!!!!!!!
i was playin music quiz and it froze its doing my head in coz i’ve gt a new c-d can some1 help me plz !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
My ipod won’t respond when I press the menu button. Everything else seems to be working fine… what’s up???
omg yads2k1 thank you so freakin much!!!! holdin menu and select for a few seconds un froze my nano im so happy!!!your my new best friend!!!!!ahhh im so happy…. whew!!
So basically apple sucks
ended up having to open the sucker to unfreeze the hold – it was an easy choice: either a not quite pristine paperweight or a slightly less pristine ipod
however much apple may suck, the ipod is still the BEST invention since sliced bread!
thanks everyone for useful ideas posted here.
just open your ipod and you see that on the top where the screen is,there is a attachment that is unpluged just plug it back and it should be unlock.
“just open your ipod and you see that on the top where the screen is,there is a attachment that is unpluged just plug it back and it should be unlock.”
thats exactly what i did before when i had this problem. its a springy attachment, and you’ll notice it plugs in a little slot. just do that, and that should help.
🙂
I have a 5g ipod photo.
I let my brother use it and he completely depleated the battery.
Since then I have charged it in the wall outlet and copmuter.
I have used the ipod update on in.
I found that as I switch the Hold button on, the drive begins to spin. It goes into the apple logo and then into Language.
When i turn the Hold button off, the display fades away and the drive stops.
I dont know what to do.
I do not want to open it. It is too new and too expensive for any risks.
What should I do?
When plugged into the wall, after 10 minutes it shows a green battery and says CHARGED.
After trying the “whack”, the reset, sweettalking and general man-handling of my ipod, the damned thing still isn’t working right. I believe the problem is due to my scroll wheel. I can get it work once every few days but it suddenly stops scrolling and won’t let me click back or forward to get to the menu. I’ve let it die, etc etc. PLEASE HELP! i’d open it but it’s a 4th gen and I can get it to crack anywhere!?
When people keep saying the hold button is “stuck” do you all mean physically stuck? Mine I can move back and forth but it still has the little lock symbol displayed and I can’t operate at all. Push on the silver side? I’m confused, can anyone elaborate or give any advice to get mine going again? All my music is on there with no back-up. Thanks!!!
Hello,
I have an ipod photo 20gb. I dropped in water two days ago where it remained for 2-3 seconds before I pulled it out.
I freaked out a bit and pushed the click wheel and switched it to hold (as I know I should not have done with water inside of it). Since then, I have let it rest, taken it apart, blow dried it, reassembled it, charged it, reset it (menu/select) restored it through ipod update, and loaded songs onto it. The ipod will charge, and I can sync with itunes and manage songs (load and erase) when connected to my mac and itunes. It will turn on when I switch it to hold and the light will come on when I switch hold off. It will respond to a simultaneous menu and select button pressing. It will not respond to scrolling or clicking to view the music files or play music. There is no audible when the click wheel is pressed. The only response from the click wheel is when I reset (with menu/select). I feel like I am so close to a revived ipod. How can I get my click wheel to respond?
Thank you,
I had the same problem. I did let it to discharge fully, and it did hardware restart when it was fully discharged. I got it as easy and safe solution.
This problem that I have got is a bit wierd and I desperately need some help.
I have a 2G Nano and I love it. The other day, I turned it on and it appeared with a thick patch of white across the screen which I can’t get rid of. It blocks the middle section and reseting it, banging it and draining it dosen’t work.
HELP ME PLEASE!
I had the same problem with my nano being on lock and I’m so glad that I found this. For me, putting the hold switch on unlocked and holding down the menu & middle button worked to fix it.
But jeez. That was a major panic moment.
I just got my iPod about an hour ago, and it’s stuck on the lock button, but it alternates between the orange & white states just fine, the hold button isn’t stuck, it’s just permanently locked. what do i do:( 🙁 i’ve always hated apple, and now this happens with the brand new ipod and i’m really not convinced. i want to return it right now argh
well i used the method of sliding it back and forth really fast and that worked… i have a mini, and somehow the top right corner got dented in like mad, and the hold button was affected, so now it seems like i cant go back into hold or else i wont be able to turn it on… thanks for the great advice
I had an ipod mini. The battery wore out so Apple replaced it free of charge. One week later it gets stuck on hold. Incredible bullshit.
where is the silver side… i have an ipod mini
Ive had my Ipod (4th Gen 20gb) for about 1 year 3 months now. But lately it has started to become more and more broken. First of all the battery power is basically nil, although i think that is to be expected, and the hold button doesnt work at all. It also has a tendency to pause alot whenever you put any headphones or anything in the jack. I want to return it to Apple so i can exchange it for a new one, but i dont have any warranty at the moment for it. I dont want to buy a warranty for this ipod because im probably going to get a new one relatively soon anyways. If i buy the Applecare plan does it carry over to a new ipod? If i get the new ipod and it breaks, can i just send it in and pretend it was the one i bought the warranty for originally? Basically, whaty should i do?
I’ve been wigging out for about the last hour with this problem. My nano was stuck in the lock position. While the button would move back and forth the lock symbol wouldn’t go away. However, after trying almost everything on this thread, the following solution posted by Azrial above worked for me.
“I had the same problem with my nano being on lock and I’m so glad that I found this. For me, putting the hold switch on unlocked and holding down the menu & middle button worked to fix it.
But jeez. That was a major panic moment.”
Also had the same problem with hold switch not unlocking. After reading what everyone had tried, I eventually ended up SMACKING the thing in the back.
IT WORKED…
But it’s time for a new one anyway – down to only 20 minutes of battery time. How does apple get away with selling something that only worked well for about 10 months and then expect you to buy a new battery so it can run out soon too. Most products with such a record would be deemed crap!
My Ipod froze while it was locked… I got frustrated trying various ways to try and reboot and then I held down the center button and pushed on the top of the wheel… The Ipod rebooted… Hopefully this comment is helpful
I have a week old 2 GB nano and i have the “oddly” popular problem where it is permanently stuck on hold—For the entire day, i have tried solutions like the ones described on this forum but to no avail—-If anyone has anything else to try i would appreciate it—I am continuing to try the already provided methods but am not convinced one of them will succeed for me…Has anyone had an actual conversation with the Apple people? Seems like a problem this big should have more concern from their side (Got to Love Big Business Corporate America)
ok here’s are poblem are ipod nano is locked on the itunes it has a lock it wont let me upload my songs at all it still plays songs it just wont let me put more songs on it please help me im totally clueless when it comes to an ipod
CARL, YOU ARE A GENIUS!!!! BUT NOW MY CAPS LOCK KEY SEEMS TO BE STUCK. OFRDHUID… Oh there it goes. Seriously though, I read the quoted post below to try to fix my girlfriend’s iPod Nano and it worked… sort of. All I had to do was hold the ‘menu’ and ‘select'(a.k.a. the center button) for five seconds. The Apple logo appeared, I held my breath, and -boom!- All was well again in Nano-land. 🙂
Kevin
“Posted by: carl at April 28, 2005 01:44 PM
Locking has happened a number of times. Here’s what I did to fix.
Plug in remote control
Pause/stop play
Hold menu and select buttons for 5 seconds
then Hold menu and play buttons for 5 seconds.
Result, logo appeared and all was good…for now”
Hi, i’ve had my ipod for about 3 months now…recently, i accidently put it through the wash….i let it sit and dry for a while, and within 5hrs it turned back on…i turned the thing off,put hold switch on, and now it won’t turn on….if anyone has a way for me to fix this problem, please tell me through msn (chaosshadows@hotmail.com) Thx 🙂
Seriously skeptical at first; now, greatly thankful.
Thanks Heather! From Japan, we love you!
Steps
1. Put the ipod on the table on its (length wise) left hand side
2. Push down with pressure the right side`s silver and white side(best location: lengthwise, top right hand corner)
3. You may or may not hear a click, just check the screen regularly to see if it`s working or not.
Persistence pays.
Hi i have a ipod nano black 4gb i ve had it for about a month now adn its been working perfectly fine but today i was listening to it for a bit then i turned it off and put it on the hold thing then a couple mins later it wouldnt turn on. I did the reset thing and then it turned on but it was still locked and i kept switching the HOLD button on and OFF but still wasnt working, can someone please help me my email is: Xtremeplaya07@hotmail.com
Holy Crap!!!!
Heather, who are you????????? You are awesome!!!!! I wish I could send you something. Apple should be paying you.
Thanks again.
anybody!! i need help!!!! i bought my ipod video yesterday ….i locked the screen….but now it wont unlock with the right code…i know is the right code..i wrote it down…this is my second ipod in less than two weeks..please..help!!!!!
Pressing on the back with some force seemed to unlock the gen 3 from what seemed like a fatal padlock synrome and it began to work norally again! Thanks for that little bit of knowledge!
If Heather’s method for the stuck hold switch didnt work for you, it may be an internal issue that i can fix. post if youre interested.
I was moving around with my ipod and the screen froze, there are loads of colourded lines on th screen and I’ve tried loads of methods but it’s still frozen!
Hold Menu and the middle button (select) down for 6-10 seconds it resets the ipod and it should be fixed.
i was running and it started to rain, all of a sudden the music stoped and the ipod screen turned white. it froz for a long period od time. then i hit the menu and select and the ipod turned off. now it wont turn back on!!! please help i love my i pod and i want it to work again!
e-mail me at ashnazari@yahoo.com thanks
This is for those of you, who like me, their hold button was REALLY broken. After sitting here about an hour and reading people praising Heather on her method, which simply did not work for me, I grew increasingly frustrated. Anyways, here’s what I did to “fix” my “stuck-on-hold” problem.
Using a knife, with my ipod sideways, I pushed on the hold button towards the unlocked direction as hard as I could. Eventually the HOLD button itself flew off, broken.
While this isn’t what I was hoping for, it’s what led to the fixing.
It’s very dark in the hole after the switch button comes off, but if you put the ipod under some light you can see there’s a little metal switch, which should be stuck on the left side of some base. Simply, using a slim-object like a knife, push the switch to the right, and that should REALLY unlock it.
Obviously, the hold button will no longer work, but I managed to put the switch-hold button back to cover the hole. I can’t put the IPOD on lock anymore but at least it freaking WORKS!
E-mail me @ Luis2101@hotmail.com, if you need further help with this.
Ok, I have just had the frozen hold button problem. I tried the Heather method of lying it on its side and pusing hard on the silver edge and to no avail. I then tried holding the menu and play button down together and lo and behold after 3 seconds the machine reset and no more problem. Thanks.I was beginning to get woried.
Got this 4 GB white nano for Christmas. It was fine until today when the lock icon stayed on and now it doesn’t work at all. I’ve tried the reset and even the restore, but the icon is still on.
Any help appreciated.
Thanks
help!!!i have just recived ipod nano black 4 gig, when today was dropped in water for 3-4 seconds. I had no idea what to do, it was working still, so i wiped off, and kept listening, thinking it was fine. roughly a minute later, screen went blank, then no buttons worked. still not knowing what to do i tried to plug into computer and turn, after trying twice unplugged, and started looking online. i really would love any help whatsoever, this is first ipod. if you have any suggestions you can reach me at mcrlv14@aim.com Thank you!!
*e-mail address is mcrlvr14@aim.com.