iLounge

1

hmmm, looks cool, i spose it’s what u’d expect, the fact that the Hard Drive is that small is so cool

Posted by Nuke666 on February 22, 2004 at 6:48 PM (PDT)

2

and is that the same battery as the one in the ipod, or is the battery life better?

Posted by Nuke666 on February 22, 2004 at 6:49 PM (PDT)

3

It’s a different battery from the one used in iPods (in size and amperage). More on this in the autopsy report.

Our initial tests show that the battery is lasting up to 5.5 hours after a full 3-4 hour charge. The test was performed using only playback… no backlight, no navigating the menu, Equalizer off. A more detailed report will be published tomorrow in our in-depth review.

Posted by Dennis Lloyd in Irvine, CA on February 22, 2004 at 7:02 PM (PDT)

4

Ouch!!!!!! That hurts (Was it hard to get to the guts of it?) anything broken?

Posted by osmac on February 22, 2004 at 7:28 PM (PDT)

5

Why is it that when I am charging the Mini Ipod, then connect it to my computer to do some updates… put it back to charging, it says it’s “done.”  Makes me worried that I’m short-circuiting my battery life somehow.  Any ideas?
Thanks!

Posted by Matt on February 22, 2004 at 7:37 PM (PDT)

6

Can we get an OFFICIAL, FINAL word on whether or not you can use the CF drive as a regular CF drive??!?

Posted by Jerrod H. in TX on February 22, 2004 at 7:45 PM (PDT)

7

Oh my gosh the ipod mini is the best i just got it today is so cool and is so small people go out and buy this im serious ok

Posted by Christopher Chavez on February 22, 2004 at 7:49 PM (PDT)

8

Well it’s only a matter of time before these wonderful creations are harvested for that macrodrive. If any of you out there are photographers out there you know what I’m talking about.

Recently people have been snaching up the Creative Muvo 2 4Gb MP3 player, gutting it of it’s Hitachi microdrive and using them in there camera’s (compact flash II compatible camera’s only). Why would someone want to do that to the wonderful iPod Mini? Well because the microdrive still retails for a wopping $500 bucks! I would really hate to see this happen, but the forums at DP review are already spreading the word.

Hitachi really needs to lower the price of the microdrive.

Posted by Orb on February 22, 2004 at 7:50 PM (PDT)

9

You know, instead of ripping open a shiny new iPod Mini, I’d recommend the cheaper Creative 4GB - same hard drive but you can get the MuVo for $190.

Posted by harvesting on February 22, 2004 at 8:31 PM (PDT)

10

Re battery life: I’ve seen three mainstream reviews now, ALL of which agreed that battery life exceeds Apple’s specs. (Which say 8 hours, I think?)

Posted by Nagromme on February 22, 2004 at 9:05 PM (PDT)

11

I’m the guy who took the thing apart.

I tried mounting the drive in a Lexar FireWire CF Card Reader and the LED just blinks and the drive clicks every two seconds… Perhaps someone could tell me what to do with it?

How hard it is to take apart depends on how willing you are to mess up the aesthetics of the Mini. I took a LOT of time to pry off those top plates as I knew my screwdrivers were much harder then the anodized surface and could scratch them easily. The plastic top and bottom plates are very pliable and withstand a pretty good amount of abuse in regards to keeping their shape, but removing them will put a dent or two on the edges.

Greg

Posted by GregK on February 22, 2004 at 10:28 PM (PDT)

12

Battery test #2 has been running for 4 hours as of now. Different results so far: battery meter currently shows 50% strength remaining. So the first time playing may be an aberration. Full report tomorrow.

Posted by Dennis Lloyd in Irvine, CA on February 22, 2004 at 10:28 PM (PDT)

13

ok then, thanks…hey Greg, can u still not get the mini back together?

Posted by Nuke666 on February 22, 2004 at 11:40 PM (PDT)

14

Ohh, I can get it back together just fine, it looks perfect, but I broke two things:

- The ribbon cable that connects the Click Wheel assembly to the Main Board assembly ripped off of the male side of the connector. Oops.

- The standoffs that interface between the “Hold” switch shuttle on the plastic top plate and the actual hold switch soldiered onto the Main Board broke, so the Hold switch no longer works.

Posted by GregK on February 23, 2004 at 12:50 AM (PDT)

15

- The standoffs that interface between the “Hold” switch shuttle on the plastic top plate and the actual hold switch soldiered onto the Main Board broke, so the Hold switch no longer works.

... Well done ...

Posted by Philipp on February 23, 2004 at 6:38 AM (PDT)

16

Are IPODs FAT32 formatted? Good chance that the drive must be FAT32 formatted before it will work in a digital cam.

Posted by Davey on February 23, 2004 at 7:52 AM (PDT)

17

<<I tried mounting the drive in a Lexar FireWire CF Card Reader and the LED just blinks and the drive clicks every two seconds… Perhaps someone could tell me what to do with it? >>

dont you have to put it in a camera to format it?  but it does fit into the reader, no?

Posted by Dan. on February 23, 2004 at 7:55 AM (PDT)

18

Any word on if you will be able to pull the 4Gb drive out an replace it with a regular CF card.

Posted by Art on February 23, 2004 at 9:26 AM (PDT)

19

I notice that the rounded sides of the iPod Mini are solid aluminum. I like those rounded “additions” but I’m amazed to see that the Mini could have been even narrower (and lighter) with the same internals!

Posted by Nagromme on February 23, 2004 at 11:39 AM (PDT)

20

Greg K.

Was the shell bare after the autposy? I am not a fan of the color offerings, and I would be interested in getting it anodized a different color, or painted…

From the pictures, I cannot tell.

thanks

Posted by Paul Liszewski on February 23, 2004 at 4:40 PM (PDT)