Anyone Brave Enough to Change 5g iPod Battery?

[Nick B]

Greetings Learned Forum:

I have always been one to shy away from the extended warranty full court press one experiences at the Big Box Stores. But when I bought my 5g iPod Video, the pitch was almost....tempting. Tales of battery woe were spun, with the bottom line being that the 3 yr extended warranty (which completely covered the cost of new battery and labor) was significantly cheaper than the cost of having battery replaced by Apple out-of-pocket. Is there a concensus on this issue here? What are your thoughts? As always, your advice is greatly appreciated. Thank you.

Nick B

[Nick B]

Perhaps I should rephrase. Is it worth getting the extended warranty for the battery issue alone?

[cire]

replacing the battery yourself isn't that hard. i guess it really depends on how much the extended warranty costs

[Nick B]

Hello Cire, and thanks for the reply. It costs $60 and lasts 3 years. Is this worth it, or a waste?

[Jahn]

i got the best buy warranty on my 5G. my 3G was a PITA and i had no warranty, argh. it's worth getting just for the peace of mind, regardless of possible future battery issues. so far my 5G has no batt probs, but you never know when you're just going to drop the sucker...

[zip22]

Originally Posted by cire

replacing the battery yourself isn't that hard.

i believe it is significantly harder than previous generations. the battery is soldered and not just plugged in.

$60 is not worth it for the battery alone. the ipod battery replacement program is only $65 if you should have a problem.

[cire]

yeah like Jahn said, the piece of mind is worth it, so if you can afford it, buy it. i'd be much more worried about the screen and hard disk than the battery

[Nick B]

A good point, Jahn. I have been pretty lucky in life when it comes to buying lemons. I have always read that if you buy a good product, odds are that it will work right. Extended warranties are a great money maker for the companies and, generally, are seldom worth the expense. But with the iPod, a new battery within 3 years appears to be a certainty.

If the concensus was that it was inexpensive and not terribly difficult to replace the battery one's self, I would skip the extended warranty.

[KenW]

Take it from me....that extended warranty is definitely worth it. You can have HD failures, headphone jack issues to go along with the troublesome battery. As another poster mentioned, these portables can and most times will be a PITA. Having a bit of security can go a long way. Do it and relax. That would be my path.

[Nick B]

Excellent advice, as always. Thank you all very much.

[agile_one]

Been pondering this same question myself, since a 60gb 5th gen is on its way to me.

Decided that since I like to tinker and mess with things anyway that I will chance it, and not go for extended warranty, although I certainly understand and respect the reasons for doing so. Peace of mind at $60 for three years is an ok deal.

It just seems that with 5G batteries on eBay for $7.99 + 6.99 shipping, and screens, hd's, etc just as available at reasonable cost, that dealing with issues that may come up won't be that expensive, and, for us hands on types, a fun challenge.

Ask me later, though, after I've had my first battery failure, screen crack, or hd crash ... ... I may change my mind.

[Zeratul]

Correct me if I'm wrong, but don't all "big box store" warranties EXCLUDE issues related to regular wear and tear (dead batteries included)? At least that's my experience with FutureShop and Best Buy in Canada. Although I suppose there's always some way of abusing those warranties