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. Worked great. Thanks!! Google too the rescue!!! -m

    Toggle hold switch on.

    Toggle hold switch off.

    Hold down the menu and middle button for a few seconds.

    You might need to repeat.

    Like

  3. dude! thanks so much!

    my ipod was stuck or sumthin of the song “GOOD LIFE”

    by kanye west

    and when i did wat u said, IT WORKDED

    aye thxs man owe u a million

    Like

  5. Thanks a lot! I knew Internet would have the answer for my problem.

    Just for those who does not speak English…

    Para desbloquear Ipod nano:

    1.- Bloquea las teclas con el boton superior mostrando el coclor naranja.

    2.- Pasalo ahora a la posición de desbloqueado

    3.- Mantén pulsado el botón del centro y el de menu a la vez por unos segundos.

    El simbolo aple se muestra en pantalla y ya puedes apretar play parta encenderla. Ni siquiera pierdes la musica que había almacenada y a mi me ha funcionado 100% !!!

    Like

  14. Thanks so much I was very upset that my ipod would freeze at work where I had no way of fixing it through itunes! THANKS YOU ROCK!

    Like

  15. THANKS FOR THE HELP, I’VE HAD ALOT OF TROUBLE WITH MY NANO FREEZING UP I NEVER THOUGHT ABOUT MAKING SURE THE HOLD BUTTON WAS OFF WHEN I WENT TO PLUG IT IN. I USED YOUR ADVISE ON THAT AND ON UNLOCKING MY IPOD BOTH HAVE SEEMED TO WORK WELL!! THANKS SO MUCH!!

    Like

  17. Thank you so much!! I went frozen with my nano and I didnt know wht to do… but found your instruction and my nano goes back to normal… Phew!! .. Thanks x 1000!!!

    Like

  18. didn’t work do you know how to unlock my ipod it isn’t frozen but the middle button doesn’t do anything when i have put the code in

    Like

  19. i need big time help please i am only in grade 4 and my ipod nano is frozen i try to click all the buttons and it doesnt work so someone please HELP PLEASE I AM BEGING YOU

    Like

Comments are closed.