new ipod battery

My "old reliable" 4GB iPod Nano (purchased way back in 2005 in a moment of last-minute impulse buying at Perth Airport) recently reached a key milestone in its inevitable journey to obsolescence, as the battery charge-holding capacity crossed the sub-bus journey threshold. No longer able to rely on it to meet my audio needs for the length of my daily commute to work (even when fully charged immediately before leaving home), I was facing the prospect of having to consider a replacement.

But here's the thing: the damn thing was still working beautifully --- as it has for over 5 years now -- and didn't have a scratch on it. It seemed a terrible injustice -- not to mention an objectionable expense -- to be forced to replace it just because the lithium ion battery was succumbing to old-age charge incontinence.

So I did a little digging and was delighted to discover that an active (though still rather fringe) market exists for replacement ipod batteries. I was able to pick up a brand new one for around 23 bucks at the electronics store jaycar (aside: this was the first time I've been to this shop and I was impressed: their range of electronics supplies seems much better than Dick Smiths).

Unfortunately, installing the new battery (and getting the old one out) is a rather fiddly process. This is, of course, the downside to the iPod's lauded monolithic design. Nevertheless, I figured there wasn't much to lose, so I was happy to give it a shot (you can get it done professionally, but that runs to about $100 -- which is not really economical in comparison to the cost of a new ipod). Getting the case open took a while and required a lot of careful prodding of the plastic tool supplied with the battery). The existing battery had 3 wires soldered to the main PCB. Not trusting my soldering skills, I took the easy option and cut these, then twined the new ones around the stumps of the old, and finally covered them with a small bit of sellotape. Popped the case back on and that was it -- operation successful!

One week on, the new battery is working like a charm: I'm now recharging less than once per day -- which equates to about 5-6 hours listening time per charge, possibly more. And, equally importantly, it holds its charge for extended periods without use (like over the weekend).

So my wallet is granted a reprieve and my ipod lives to fight another day. To be honest it's a great example of my love/hate relationship with Apple products: on the one hand, it's a testament to the quality of the thing that it's still around to need the battery replaced after a few years (there's no way you'd do the same with a mobile phone, for example); but on the other hand, it's infuriating that they design it in such a way as to make changing the battery such a pain.

Here's a thought... this is a great example of where sensible government regulation could help: simply levy a hefty tax on all portable gizmos that aren't designed with easily  replaceable (i.e. without requiring tools) batteries, and implement a set of standards for lithium-ion batteries so that they are as interchangeable and universal as good old AAA and AA alkaline batteries. Apple wouldn't like it --- because they'd sell a lot less ipods and iphones --- but it would save a lot of gadgets from a premature trip to the scrapheap.