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”

  1. OMG, thank you SO much! Mine froze while trying to connect to an alarm clock docking thing. I was freaking out, but was relieved when I found this page!

    Thanks again!

    Like

  2. Thanks for the tip – helped a bunch on my 8Gb nano – I’ve only had it for 2 days and thought it broke already.

    Like

  3. Your simple instructions did it. 4GB (RED) nano for what it’s worth. I’m piling on the love!

    Like

  13. hey allysha,

    maybe you are to stupid to operate the buttons on your nano. maybe you should start out with something less complicated like a paperclip. moron.

    Like

  16. thanks so much for telling me how to reset my ipod. it worked exactly like you said it would! thanks again

    Like

  17. THANK YOU THANK YOU THANK YOU!!! I almost thought I’d go the whole day without the one thing that helps me focus at work!!!! LIFESAVERS! 🙂

    Like

  19. I’m having problems with my ipod nano 2nd generation. it seems to be frozen. an hourglass appears and it is not responding.

    would appreciate any help. thanks

    ramon

    Like

Comments are closed.