3g Ipod Hack: Thinking of adding a 2100MAH (maybe 2) battery in parallel.

[sprockett]

Hi everyone, im super ####ed off with my 3g 15gig's super lack of battery life. 8 hours is crap enuff. and with random starting/stopping/etc, its more like 4hours.

Anyway, my warranty just ended, and im thinking of getting one of them 1G/2G bigbadboy 2100mah batteries, and putting it in parallel with my 3g battery. or if that won't work coz they are of different capacities, i may remove the 3g battery all together and just use 2x 2100 mah for PURE Capacity!!! at this rate, i'll probably forget that my ipod even runs on batteries by the time i realize i need a charge.

Obviously they won't fit in the 3g shell. so i was thinking of slicing off (Cross section) 1/3 of the silver backing, and fitting on a custom backing. I may probbaly custom make a carbon fiber shell to fit on top of the piece. (i have expereince with epoxy + fiber cloth mould making methods).

My main question is :
will the charging circuitry need to be modified since im using 2100x2? or is there no circuitry mod required at all? like how will the ipod know if my 2100x2 are fully charged not since they are of different capacities than the original 650mah batt?

Hopefully someone can help me with this, and i'll be sure to post pics of my awesome carbon fiber back 40hr playtime "not so slim, but still cool" 4200mah modified 3g ipod.


AWESOME!!


EDIT: I was checking out pics of the 1g/2g battery vs the 3g battery, and noticed that the 3g has 3 wires (white black red) vs 2 wires (black / red) for the 1g/2g. Any experts know what all this is abt?

[Superweirdash]

Pretty all CCCV (Constant Voltage Constant Current, the only way to charge lithium batteries) shut off by detecting the voltage of the battery. Once it reaches peak(charged) voltage (3.7V) the charger shuts off. I don't see any reason why the new pack will not work correctly.

[honeybee1236]

Just a suggestion but try the website 'iPod Hacks' you may be able to get some help there also. Maybe someone has tried this before and posted some info you can use.

[sprockett]

this sounds awesome...

i emailed newer tech support, and they said "totally incompatible because:

1. Different voltage (??? i thought they were both 3.7V)
2. 1G/2G version has 2 wires, and 3 wires for 3g Version.

Being the geek that i am, i am determined to see if this works... once i find out what the 3rd wire in the 3g version is for, im sure i could make it work..

anyother comments?

thanks dudeS!

[Sentient One]

I'd just go for replacing the battery, as it's easy to do and will increase the standard runtime as it is. No need to go crazy go nuts or anything.

[FallN]

Do you often spend your time in a cave? Are times really tough for you that you have to try and "save" on electricity? Do you not have a home with an outlet? Did you not pay your electric bill? Because those are the ONLY reason I see why someone would need two 2100mAh batteries in their iPod.

I understand that with your usage you only get 4 hours out of your 3G battery... I have a 3G too, so I feel for you, but have you ever thought about "tweaking" your usage to conserve battery life like shutting off the backlight entirely? Or turning down the volume which can be easily accomplished while still getting stellar sound if you invest in some decent In-Ear/Canal 'phones? Or making better Playlists so you don't have to keep searching around for music or switching Playlists? Or not using your 3G as a eBook reader??

These are common sense stuff that will definitely prolong ANY iPod's battery life. I would suggest trying those before attempting a mod that most likely will wind up frying the Hell out of your iPod.

Or may I suggest buying an "aftermarket" battery that already offers 10.5 hours of battery life and is made to fit in the 3G's case? :)

You can even save yourself further time and frustration by selling your 3G on eBay, take the money you would have spent on those 2 large batteries and you'll have enough for a BRAND NEW 12 HOUR 4G iPod! :p

Just some suggestions to save you from blowing up your iPod or losing some fingers in an untimely explosion. LOL! :)

[sprockett]

hi falln, i need long batt life coz i hate it when my ipod die 4 hours into my 19 hour flight journey home.

once that happens, the music changes from sweet alt rock to babies crying and turbines vibrating for the next 15 hours.

had a belkin battery pack (4aa type) which sucked ### and stopped working. was considering getting a external LI-ION pack. but figured if i could do it myself for half the price why not.

i got the parts already anyways... but i screwed up my ipod trying to disassemble it! haha

anyway i got the replacement part...

i'd say its not that bad a deal...

the price u pay for knowledge..

[FallN]

Glad to read you got everything you need. Can you post some pics when you're done with the mod? I'd love to see it. :)

[sprockett]

haha got all the parts. assembly and testing begins this weekend. will post pics of my 15gb IPOD inside a 30gig case, that can go for 20+ hours.


Not to mention its real fun and exciting... heh such a geek i am.