Over the weekend, I performed surgery on my old iPod, swapping out the worn-out original battery (the iPod would only hold a two-hour charge) with a third-party replacement.

The plastic tool that came with the battery didn’t work worth a damn for prying the case open — I eventually chewed it to bits trying to get it to work — but a carefully applied jeweler’s screwdriver worked just fine. The other plastic tool that came with the battery– a smaller one designed to pry the old battery away from the glue that held it down — worked well and came in quite handy.

Apple recently reduced its charge to replace the battery (which they actually don’t replace — they just send you another Ipod from the pile, so woe to you if you’ve taken excellent care of your iPod), but it still will set you back $66 to get it done (one more ‘6’ and all would become clear) — and you get a battery with the same capacity as the original. My battery, along with instructions and three tools (two plastic tools and a small Torx screwdriver) set me back about $20, including shipping.

After I popped open the case, the replacement took perhaps five minutes. There is a tiny nick in the side of the iPod — you’d probably never notice it unless I pointed it out, and I keep the Ipod encased in a silicone sleeve anyway — and that’s it. If you can install an expansion card in a computer, you could do this.

YouTube has a video illustrating the surgery. Trust me, though: It’s not that easy to open the case.
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That reminds me: I have certain requirements for my next portable video player. With a working iPod and a Treo that does video, I don’t really have any urgency, but newer models do have better screens. What I want:

–At least a 3-inch (3.5 or higher would be better) high-res screen.
–Divx compatibility
–Bluetooth and wireless-G compatibility
–At least 8gigs of memory, preferably more.
–Flash memory only (no hard drive)
–A reasonable price. I’m willing to pay a premium for the interface that’s coming with the iPod touch. However, I’m not willing to pay the 50% premium I’m seeing right now.