October 2016
I have an Apple iPod and lost the little USB charge brick. I have a USB charger that works with my cell phone but it won’t charge the iPod. Is there something “special” about the Apple iPod charger and if so, can I modify a “regular” charger to work with both?
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Yes, the iPod requires a higher current to charge and so a simple 200 mA 5V USB brick won’t work. The higher bricks are usually modified to indicate to the plugged in device that higher current is available.
You can actually build the circuit that gives the right voltage level on the data pins to indicate this capability, but an easier “fix” is to simply modify a USB extension cord by opening it up & shorting the two data lines the iPod “sees” together. I’ve made a number of these & use them for a number of reasons.
You can also look up the difference between a low and higher powered USB charger on the Internet to see the specifications and schematic. Or at least when I did that years ago I found what I was looking for & found my “fix” was much easier to implement.
In order for the IPOD to charge using any USB charger you need to use a small adapter.
Apparently Apple chargers have a resistor between the 2 data pins inside the charger. I had a similar issue when trying to use a non Motorola or car charger with the Razor V3M phone. A small adapter does the trick and makes the device think a genuine charger is connected.
You can get one here:
www.boxwave.com/apple-ipod-nano-3-travel-chargers/apple-ipod-nano-3-ipod-charging-adapter/bwpdd/fpz-gcgz/
They run about $8 or so.
You will need to add a few resistors. Google “iPhone charger circuit.” You should find several discussions about this. For example, see www.epanorama.net/newepa/2010/08/18/apple-charger-secrets/
There is no reason for it not to charge unless the iPod charging port is damaged. Both a phone and iPod should have similar charging requirements.
In order for the iPod to charge using any USB charger you need to use a small adapter.
Apparently Apple chargers have a resistor between the 2 data pins inside the charger. I had a similar issue when trying to use a non Motorola or car charger with the Razor V3M phone. A small adapter does the trick and makes the device think a genuine charger is connected.
You can get one here: www.boxwave.com/apple-ipod-nano-3-travel-chargers/apple-ipod-nano-3-ipod-charging-adapter/bwpdd/fpz-gcgz/
They run about $8 or so.
iPods require voltages on the data pins of the device in order to charge. If your charger has just the positive and negative pins connected to the plug, your iPod won’t charge. This is probably the case. Search the net for USB charger circuits.
The modification will require four resistors wired from ground (negative) to positive as voltage dividers. One pair for Data + and the other pair for Data -. According to the circuit diagram I found you will need two 27K resistors, a 22K, and a 39K. The two 27K resistors are wired to ground (negative) pin 4 on the charger plug. The 22K and 39K are wired to the positive pin 1 on the charger plug. The junction of the 27K and 39K divider is wired to pin 2 (Data -) on the charger plug. The junction of the 27K and 22K divider is wired to pin 3 (Data+) on the charger plug.
Also, for an iPod you should have a charger capable of at least 2 amps output. The wimpy 1 amp chargers will take a much longer time to charge apple devices like an iPod. To be sure which pins are which, just do a search for USB pinouts.
