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Broken home button on Ipod 4th gen.

poor MFG decision? I'm not so sure..

April 24, 2014 1:48:17 PM from WinCustomize ForumsWinCustomize Forums

I recently had my home button stop working. I have barely had my ipod 4th gen over a year and took great lengths to take excellent care of it, Never dropped it etc. I thought I had possibly just wore it out and would need to upgrade..

After some research I found out that it was not broken but merely that a tiny and I mean tiny shim placed between the internal switch and the one we push fell off. This tiny little plastic shim is glued on to the top of the internal switch and after so long falls off leaving the home button un-useable..

Now one could take the ipod in to apple they will sell you another for $100-$150 depending on generation etc..Then take your Ipod send it to their repair center, glue a new shim on to your old ipod, re-package and resell it..

wow talk about making free money..reselling an Ipod possibly 2-3 times at a profit sounds dam sweet.. to them..

I opted to look up how to repair the home button and do it my self.. there's plenty of videos on youtube detailing exactly how to fix it your self and save a hundred bucks or so..

In short you warm up the ipod slightly with a Hair dryer or setting it in the sun for a few minutes just enough to warm the adhesive up under the glass screen. Then gently slide a thin sturdy piece of plastic under the glass around the edges to break the hold of the adhesive and lift the screen out. ( on fourth gen Ipods you need to lift the glass from the bottom by the home button as there is a clip under the top portion that hang's up and will break the screen if you try to lift from the top) once the bottom is free and you can lift it you would need to swing it up toward the top.

Once open you can see the button sitting on the main board directly below the home button we press which is still attached to the screen..I glued a tiny piece of the tip of a plastic tooth pick to the top of the button with gel type super glue.. let it dry, placed the screen back down on top of the ipod and gently pressed the edges of it to reseal it to the ipod.. and boom.. I now have a working home button again....

IMo apple could have easily made the button we press with a nib on the bottom to actuate the internal switch we press that would have possibly outlasted the ipod it's self.. But then reselling an Ipod you paid them to take and fix would seem much more profitable..

 

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HG_Eliminator
DrJBHL
Join Date 04/2002
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Reply #1 April 24, 2014 1:59:19 PM
from WinCustomize ForumsWinCustomize Forums

Sounds like deliberate crappo design - in short, planned to fail and cost you.

May their pizza crumble before it reaches their lips.

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HG_Eliminator
HG_Eliminator
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Reply #2 April 24, 2014 2:02:51 PM
from WinCustomize ForumsWinCustomize Forums

As this seems to be a common issue with the Ipod touches.. I would tend to think its not a mfg defect..

 

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starkers
Join Date 05/2004
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Reply #3 April 24, 2014 3:09:21 PM
from WinCustomize ForumsWinCustomize Forums

Now one could take the ipod in to apple they will sell you another for $100-$150 depending on generation etc..Then take your Ipod send it to their repair center, glue a new shim on to your old ipod, re-package and resell it..

wow talk about making free money..reselling an Ipod possibly 2-3 times at a profit sounds dam sweet.. to them..

Now this totally fechen stinks, but what else can one expect from Apple!  I despise that company worserer than Google.

And why anyone would buy an iPod to be tied to fechen iTunes has got me beat, cos it becomes a never ending handing over of cash to probably the greediest company on the planet, if not the galaxy... won't say solar system cos Earth is probably the only inhabited planet except Mars, and Martians don't listen to music... well not like we do.  They sort of do it anally, which counts out headphones and earplug thingies.  Hmmm, wonder what they do when the batteries need changing/charging?

Anyway, I purchased a $39.00 Laser MP3 player about 8 - 9 years ago and it still works as good as the day I bought it... and NO fechen iTunes.  I can transfer any music I have on my PC and play whatever I like whenever I like without having to purchase another license. A friend of mine transfered some music from his PC to his iPod, but would it let him then transfer it to his iPhone, no, not on your life, it said he had to purchase another license... like what?  For music he had transfered from his PC and already owned?

As for the faulty iPod?  Had I taken it back to the Apple store to be told I had to purchase another, while mine was refurbished to be resold, I'd have put it on the floor and stomped on the bastard... then gone to a K-Mart or something and got me a decent MP3 player minus the DRM and other restrictions Apple impose on its customers.  Beats me how it was the wealthies company last year, threating people like that.

Okay, rant off... it just pisses me off to read the crap it does to turn a dishonest buck.

Orright, it is now... and sorry about the hijack, HG, though I expect you expect that from a pirate with insomnia and thus too much time on his hands.

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starkers
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Reply #4 April 24, 2014 3:12:34 PM
from WinCustomize ForumsWinCustomize Forums

Oh and I nearly forgot....

Quoting DrJBHL,
reply 1
May their pizza crumble before it reaches their lips.

and when they pick it up and put it in their mouths, may it be tainted with something awful that gives 'em belly ache and diahorrea.

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DrJBHL
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Reply #5 April 24, 2014 3:34:06 PM
from WinCustomize ForumsWinCustomize Forums

I always used a Sansa for my music, HG...same as Mark would do.

I've had it 12 years and the s.o.b. still works like new!

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Island Dog
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Reply #6 April 24, 2014 3:47:52 PM
from Stardock ForumsStardock Forums

Quoting starkers,
reply 3
And why anyone would buy an iPod to be tied to fechen iTunes has got me beat, cos it becomes a never ending handing over of cash to probably the greediest company on the planet, if not the galaxy... won't say solar system cos Earth is probably the only inhabited planet except Mars, and Martians don't listen to music... well not like we do.  They sort of do it anally, which counts out headphones and earplug thingies.  Hmmm, wonder what they do when the batteries need changing/charging?

You're not tied to iTunes unless you want to be.

The fact is, iPods are good at what they do.

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Reply #7 April 24, 2014 3:59:10 PM
from WinCustomize ForumsWinCustomize Forums

Quoting Island Dog,
reply 6
The fact is, iPods are good at what they do.

 

Well said ID.  Ive bought Ipods since the first gen Videos were out..I was always more than satisfied with them. Typically durable..

 

Tho i do feel they could have made a better decision on MFG, than to glue a tiny plastic shim on top of a button that seems to wear off shortly after warranty expires... seemed a bit hokey to me..

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Reply #8 April 24, 2014 4:10:25 PM
from WinCustomize ForumsWinCustomize Forums

Quoting DrJBHL,
reply 5

I always used a Sensa for my music, HG...same as Mark would do.

I've had it 12 years and the s.o.b. still works like new!

 

 

Well I use my Ipod to take pics/ video, play games. music, movies, basically a portable entertainment center with Wifi and bluetooth.

Not sure if the Sensa does all that. If it does coo..

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Reply #9 April 24, 2014 4:13:53 PM
from WinCustomize ForumsWinCustomize Forums

Mine's from 2002...so as for blue tooth stuff...no, but I suppose I could paint it...does it fit in Ps? And where are its teeth?

I'm pretty sure the new ones have all that stuff, HG.

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starkers
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Reply #10 April 24, 2014 11:46:28 PM
from WinCustomize ForumsWinCustomize Forums

Quoting Island Dog,
reply 6
You're not tied to iTunes unless you want to be.

Orright, then, so now I'm wondering why my mate Jeff had DRM applied to music he transfered to his iPod, and when he tried to transfer it to his iPhone it/iTunes asked for a payment for another license.  Oh well, I'm not gonna wrack my brain trying to figure it out.

Quoting Island Dog,
reply 6
The fact is, iPods are good at what they do.

That may be so, but I do not need one since my phone handles all the media functions I need it to... and I've got these great sounding bluetooth headphones to deliver the music/sounds I want to hear. I can't ask for more.

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