ipod

12/13/2005, 10:20am, EST

Tuesday, December 13th

iPod fan upgrades iPod mini to 8GB

MacNN reader Jason Parry has managed to upgrade his iPod mini to 8 gigabytes of storage. He upgraded the now-discontinued music player by installing an 8GB "Seagate Photo Hard Drive," which sells for around $200-$250. Jason recommends that users attempting the hard drive upgrade get a battery upgrade at the same time from Sonnet Technology, as the company includes tools and an instructional video to aid in getting the Mini open. Parry also provides instructions for restoring the iPod's operating system after installing the new drive. With the hard drive and battery upgrades, "Mini enthusiasts can double the capacity and battery life of the iPod mini and extend its usefulness arguably past that of Apple's replacement, the Nano," writes Parry.


Filed under: iPod

, , 5comments, del.icio.us, slashdot, digg, buzz


5 comments
Reader Reactions (Please use <i></i> for italic text)

subscribe to comments
for this article




Expand All   Global Settings
smart?
0
12/13, 12:38pm, EST
So for $200-$250 plus the cost of the battery, this person now has an iPod Mini that's 8 GB instead of 4GB. Mmm-hmmm. And that means $300+ when you could have purchased a brand new iPod - nano or video -- for either less or not that much more. Cool on being able to do the install. Duh for spending all that money to upgrade a -- albeit sadly -- now outdated mp3 player.
Fresh-Faced Recruit
Joined Nov 2003
User is offline
$
0
12/13, 1:04pm, EST
Yes, i realize the cost-benefit isn't totally there yet. Still, its cool that it works and might be an option for some people!
Fresh-Faced Recruit
Joined Aug 2005
User is offline
Outdated?
0
12/13, 2:25pm, EST
Huh? Why? It still plays music, what else is it supposed to do? To be honest, colour screens and the ability to play video are just gimmicks for the sole purpose of making people feel their's is outdated, why give into slick advertising?
Mac Enthusiast
Joined Jan 2001
User is offline
Several benefits
0
12/13, 2:39pm, EST
Yes, a color screen would be cool - but by no means is the mini "outdated". It can still play all the same audio file formats, and is still a great form factor. If Jason wants to increase the storage space in his unit, more power to him.

But, also keep in mind that older iPods and the mini (all capable of Firewire data connections) can be used as bootable hard drives - not so with the USB-only nano and new "video-capable" iPod. This is, admittedly, a fringe use of this device - but for those of us who have grown accustomed to the great usage and feature set, the elimination of this capability is a significant issue.

In all, its the new iPods which - unless you absolutely "must" have the nano's small size and/or the new iPod's video capability - seem to be less-than compelling upgrades. Spending the money on enhancements to a more-capable unit, actually sounds like a viable plan to me. As such I'm going to keep my 20 Gb color iPod around for quite some time to come...
Fresh-Faced Recruit
Joined Aug 2005
User is offline
ipod repair
0
07/03, 3:49pm, EDT
ipodmods.com has the 8GB drive here: http://www.ipodmods.com/shop/ipod-mini-hard-drives.html they are #1 for any ipod repair. http://www.ipodmods.com
Fresh-Faced Recruit
Joined Jul 2006
User is offline
Your Comments

In order to post comments: If you are a registered member, please login with your MacNN Forums username and password otherwise please uncheck the checkbox below.


Registered Member?
macnn forums login:

macnn forums password:

Not a member of the MacNN forums? Register now for free.

RSS Feeds

Have the latest content delivered to your desktop via RSS. Use the links below to get access to a specific blog, news, or reviews feed.



  MacNN -all

  MacNN Reviews

  MacNN Podcasts

  iPodNN

  Electronista

  Left Lane News

Check Out the VIERA from Panasonic!: Enter a New Visual Era with Panasonic VIERA HDTVs. An Enhanced Experience.

Get an IT Degree Online: Get solid credentials. Take your hobby to the next level. Adult Programs. Affordable.

Convert PDF to Word: Easily Convert PDF to Word Doc, Excel, and More. Fast and Accurate. No Registration Trial

Check Out the VIERA from Panasonic!: Enter a New Visual Era with Panasonic VIERA HDTVs. An Enhanced Experience.

NewsGator Enterprise RSS: Improve Corporate Communication via Web 2.0, RSS, and Social Computing.

Buy from The Apple Store, iTunes.com, Amazon.com, TechDepot, OfficeDepot, Computers4Sure, or donate.