Third Generation IPOD Battery Support

On this page we have gathered our most often asked support-related questions on the 3rd Generation IPOD. If you do not find your answer here, contact us and we will get right back to you.


I am having trouble opening up my 3rd Generation IPOD - any suggestion beyond what's included in your detailed instructions?

The white top half of your 3rd Generation IPOD sits inside the silver bottom. Don't stick the sharp tip of the iOpener directly into the side of the IPOD, or it will simply hit the edge of the white top that continues down into the silver bottom and you cannot see at this stage if the installation. Instead, push down on one of the two long edges of the white top near the center, where there is more flexibility. This should "pucker out" the silver bottom just enough so that you can slip the sharp edge of the blue tool into the gap. If the tip is no longer sharp from your previous, unsuccessful attempts, you can use some sandpaper to sharpen it back up - just make sure none of the dust gets in the way of your project! A file will also work to sharpen up the tip of the tool. Remember, you want to pry the white top up and away from the silver bottom. Here's a short video to illustrate this technique:




Why is the 1100 mAh battery a “tight fit” on certain models of the 3rd Generation IPOD?

Because the 20GB and 40GB hard drives inside the 3rd Generation IPOD only are a little thicker than the other size (10GB, 15GB, and 30GB) hard drives, you may have to do an extra step in order to get the white top and silver bottom to close back up if you install the slight-thicker 1100 mAh battery. But relax – the process is very easy and won’t harm anything. All you need to do is cut a bit of the blue rubber pad (not the silver shielding) out using a standard pair of scissors to lower the height of the hard drive a tad. Just take a look at the following video to see how it’s done.



If you are still having problems making it fit, or don’t want to cut the blue padding, please contact us and we can replace your 1100 mAh battery with a thinner (but still long-playing) 850 mAh battery for your Third Generation IPOD, with a prepaid return shipping envelope so you can send us the 1100 mAh battery back. We will refund your credit card the difference in cost when we receive the 1100 mAh battery back from you.



I am getting a file folder symbol on my Third Generation IPOD after I just replaced the battery. Or, I am having trouble getting the hard drive connected back up to the logic board. What can I do?

Yes, sometimes getting the hard drive ribbon cable connected back to the logic board can be a bit of a challenge. And if the hard drive is not connected, you will see the “file-folder-with-an-exclamation-point” symbol on the screen. The most common mistake we see is customers just laying the hard drive back down onto the logic board and hoping that the two parts will re-connect when the two halves are pressed back together. Don’t do this. Instead, you have to connect the ribbon cable FIRST and then slowly lay the hard drive down on top of the logic board and battery. This video shows you the best way to do it:




During the new battery installation in my 3rd Generation IPOD the ribbon cable that attaches to the headphone jack and tethers the two sections together disconnected. How can I fix it?

The top and bottom of the 3rd Generation IPOD are connected to each other by a ribbon cable. This copper-colored cable controls the sound from the headphone jack, so if it disconnects, you will have no sound from the headphones. The good news is, as long as the cable is still intact and not torn, it can be reconnected easily to the logic board. You can watch this video to see exactly how it’s done:




The wires on my new battery are thicker than the ones on the original battery and won't fit under the motherboard now. What now?

The wires of your new battery may be a little thicker than your original, stock battery. This is not a problem. We don’t advise trying to get them back under the motherboard. Just bend them around the edge of the hard drive – there *is* room between the outer edge of the hard drive and the white clips – just be careful not to pinch the wires. Don’t place the wires from the battery underneath the hard drive because this can prevent it from laying flat and may cause the hard drive to heat up would could damage your IPOD.