iPod nano Lockup Reset When Frozen

Nick Momrik765 Comments

My iPod nano locked up and I had no idea what to do. Holding down buttons wouldn’t turn it off. Toggling the hold switch didn’t do anything either. It was in a stuck state where hold was turned on and none of the buttons would respond.

If you own an iPod with the Click Wheel (iPod with video, nano, iPod photo, iPod, or mini) follow these steps to reset the iPod:

  1. Toggle hold switch on.
  2. Toggle hold switch off.
  3. Hold down the menu and middle button for a few seconds.
  4. You might need to repeat.

Both times my iPod nano has frozen up I was plugging the ipod into the USB cable while the the hold switch was toggled on. Make sure to hold switch is togged off when connecting your iPod with the USB cable.

To reset some of the earlier iPods including like the iPod, iPod (scroll wheel), iPod (touch wheel), and iPod (dock connector), follow these steps:

  1. Toggle hold on.
  2. Toggle hold off.
  3. Press and hold the Play/Pause and Menu buttons until the Apple/iPod logo appears, about 6 to 10 seconds.
  4. You might need to repeat.

To reset an iPod shuffle:

  1. Move the switch on the back of iPod shuffle to the off position (green stripe not visible).
  2. Wait 5 seconds.
  3. Move the switch on the back to the play in order or the shuffle position (green stripe visible).

Still having problems?

  1. Connect to a different USB or FireWire port on the computer.
  2. Install the latest Operating System upgrades.
  3. Restart the computer.
  4. Reinstall the iPod with iPod Updater
  5. Reinstall iTunes
  6. Restore your iPod using the latest iPod Updater.

    *Restoring an iPod will erase all songs and files from the iPod, restoring it to the original state. Backup all files from the iPod before restoring it. Once restoration is complete, you can transfer your music and files from the computer back to your iPod again.

iPod displays sad iPod icon

In most cases, the sad iPod icon indicates a hardware issue. If you are able to force iPod into Disk Mode, then it may not be a hardware issue, and you should try to restore your iPod with the latest software.

765 thoughts on “iPod nano Lockup Reset When Frozen”

  2. THANKS!

    Nano was frozen and I don’t remember Apple supoort mentioned your fix directly. Maybe you can go edit Apple’s support site.

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  4. Oh my GOD!! Thanx soooo much. I was so scared my nano was dead already after just less than two weeks in my posession but now it is fixed.

    Thanx

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  6. THANK YOU SO VERY MUCH! (It worked the first time)

    I was so terrifried when my nano (which I owned for less than a year)frooze. I wonder how you discovered that.

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  7. i love you i was about to be DJiny for a party and i was asembling the playlist and it froze your a life saver.

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  8. I have had my iPOD nano for a month and now it won’t turn off and is stuck in the charging mode (even when it is not connected to anything it says it is charging). It plays songs but it started to skip and the battery lights with a lightening bolt flahes constantly. Resetting did not help (I’ve tried it about a dozen times). I also let the battery run down then put it on the charger and tried restting it again; no joy. Can you help?

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  9. my ipod as frozen in disk mode and i have followed oter instrctions which say 2 eject it on the itunes but no hope. Is there any othe ay i can get out of this disk mode and get back listening 2 my music????? 😦

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  11. Simply brilliant! Thankyou very much for your advice, I had also looked on the Apple website and they were useless.

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  13. Thanks w/ the info!!! I found nothing on the Apple site & then I google you & find the holding menu & the middle button down together for a few minutes clears it up, perfect!!! It did this about 6 months ago while I was out running & did it again today-perfect timing-out for a run & no music!!! Thanks so much, now I actually have an easy solution for when I’m not at home! Last time I had to completely delete my IPOD & update it again, this is much easier! Thanks again! sorry this sounds like a cheesy commercial, I’m just thrilled that your info actually fixed it & that I can do this when I’m not at home! 😉

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  15. My Ipod nano wouldnt go to sleep when i would try.

    Then just faded out and shut off and can not get to come back on. Iv tried restarting, resetting, you name it.

    It want respond to the computer ethier when i plug it in.

    Please help?

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  17. this works for about 2 seconds on my ipod nano then it freezes up again or as soon as i take my finger off menu+the middle button, any suggestions?cheers

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  18. Thanks a million!!! I thought my nano had broken down after only a week’s use !!! I would never have figured this out without your help. Thanks again

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