News, info, and opinion by Mac users, for Mac users.

March 1, 2007

geekery

How to add some flash to that old iPod mini

Posted Mar. 1, ’07, 8:41 AM PT by Dan Moren
Category | Geekery

Flash miniHave you got an old iPod mini sitting on the shelf, feeling all neglected whenever you compare it to its slim iPod nano brethren? Don’t toss the old model aside just yet: a little bit of minor surgery and you can practically get yourself a whole new iPod.

When it came to storage, the first generation minis forwent the traditional hard drive of their larger predecessors in favor of using a 4GB microdrive—a hard drive that interfaces via a CompactFlash slot. The downside to microdrives is that, well, they’re hard drives; they have moving parts and they suck up more battery life than flash memory. But since they use the CompactFlash interface, one could, in theory, replace the microdrive with a standard CompactFlash card, which not only use less power, but are also available in capacities of up to 16GB.

That’s just what Mark Hoekstra did, though he used a 4GB CompactFlash card. As with anything requiring minor surgery, this procedure isn’t for those shy about messing with electronic innards. Mark walks you through the process (he also installed a new battery). Once you’ve replaced the hardware, just plug the mini into your computer and restore the firmware and you’re ready to rock.

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