A Classic IPod without ITunes

[Conchis]

What am i supposed to do with my classic IPod now iTunes is no more?

iTunes is still there on my laptop but my iPod no longer shows up as an icon when I plug it in. It does appear on the desk-top but when I try transferring tracks to it, it says. Its ‘synced’ but there is no music when i come to play it.

It’a getting pretty desperate because I’mm doing a lot of driving at the moment and am constantly being reminded how bloody awful most radio is.

[richardfinegold]

Theoretically that wasn’t supposed to happen. I would try Apple Support, but since they officially stopped supporting the iPod years ago, see what Google says.

[cmr_for3]

Have you considered putting Rockbox on it? It's a custom firmware and means no more Itunes (yay) I popped it on mine and it seems ok (I need a new battery)

[MrGongGong]

Have you considered putting Rockbox on it? It's a custom firmware and means no more Itunes (yay) I popped it on mine and it seems ok (I need a new battery)

I used to have Rockbox on an iRiver player
far better than what came with it
and if it works for the iPod then that would make the iPod something worth having in the first place

[Dave2002]

Bummer if Apple don’t support the iPod, and have cut the means to load it/access it.

There are other applications which can provide two way traffic to and from and iPod, though some are a bit clunky.

If you’re running MacOS perhaps you could re-install the previous version which worked. If there’s not enough space, install it on a drive or SSD and boot externally. You could also run a VM version.

One issue may be that you’ve upgraded too soon, so reverting might be difficult. Maybe you had auto-update turned on. It’s for this kind of reason the I don’t allow updates/upgrades without knowing what they do, and without my explicit permission.

However, as Richard suggests maybe this is a glitch, and Apple will actually fix this.

[Pulcinella]

I have just copied a CD into iTunes on my Mac (running Mojave), connected up my Classic iPod (recognised and icon appearing where it usually does) which then synched as normal, and the new tracks are there on my iPod (I listened to check!).

Perhaps you were unlucky trying something yesterday, when there seems to have been some problems with iCloud: my mail was down for a while (I got a message on my Android smartphone asking me to login to my mail account, realised there was a problem as my iPad was not updating mail, ignored the message, and all was fine a few minutes later).

[Conchis]

I have just copied a CD into iTunes on my Mac (running Mojave), connected up my Classic iPod (recognised and icon appearing where it usually does) which then synched as normal, and the new tracks are there on my iPod (I listened to check!).

Perhaps you were unlucky trying something yesterday, when there seems to have been some problems with iCloud: my mail was down for a while (I got a message on my Android smartphone asking me to login to my mail account, realised there was a problem as my iPad was not updating mail, ignored the message, and all was fine a few minutes later).

No: still no change.

I'm now getting an 'iPod playlis' showing up on the l/h side of iTunes, but no music has been transferred to the device itself. The device icon still appears on the desktop but, though it appears I can transfer files to it, when I check the device it still says 'No Music'.


Frankly, getting very fed up with 'technicals' at the moment: my amplifier problems persist and so does the iPod problem. Is it something to do with the operating system your using (Mojave) that allows you to do this?

[Pulcinella]

No: still no change.

I'm now getting an 'iPod playlis' showing up on the l/h side of iTunes, but no music has been transferred to the device itself. The device icon still appears on the desktop but, though it appears I can transfer files to it, when I check the device it still says 'No Music'.


Frankly, getting very fed up with 'technicals' at the moment: my amplifier problems persist and so does the iPod problem. Is it something to do with the operating system your using (Mojave) that allows you to do this?

I'm afraid that you'll need someone far more tech savvy than I am to answer that!

[Dave2002]

Something like this might help you out - http://www.xilisoft.com/iphone-magic.html

I have the xilisoft magic platinum program from a number of years ago, and it was able to sort out some issues with my own iPod Classic. Versions have moved on since then though - so it may not be a solution - but it might be worth investigating if you think it justifies the expense. Not sure if there's a trial version of any of the newer software versions.

[LezLee]

I've only ever used my iPod Nano (7th gen,) for storing all my favourite music and occasionally listening to the radio. I only use iTunes to buy CDs when they're cheaper than from other sources.

[Constantbee]

To be honest I never managed to get the best out of my iPod Classic, but as iTunes seems to have had a relative short shelf life it doesn’t seem to matter now. A couple of commercial music radio stations are currently running ads for Chiltern Music Therapy inviting people to send in their old iPods for reconditioning and distributing to people who need them more. This suggests to me that somebody somewhere must know how to recycle/reprogramme them successfully. After some investigation I turned up a website called ‘It Still Works’ containing a help sheet called ‘How to Add Music to an iPod Without Using iTunes’, a 6 Step plan, and wouldn’t we all like to know how to do that? As it starts with a factory re-set I didn’t fancy trying because there’s a risk of losing a few things that I do value, like old podcasts of the Early Music Show. You’re welcome to have a go. Please let us know how you get on.

https://itstillworks.com/add-music-ipod-using-itunes-4494568.html

[Conchis]

Mrs. Conchis very kindly bought me an iPhone for my birthday. This has solved the iPod problem.

Very glad I no longer have to listen to the radio in the car. The amount of crap on the airwaves is quite horrifying. I've never had to do so much channel-hopping!