This was actually my iPod from 2006! It was in my pocket everyday till I got my first iPhone in 2012. After that, it lived in the center console of my car for occasional tunes and then in my desk drawer as an Ebenezer of simpler times.
It was still functioning in all ways till this assignment. The hard drive whirred quietly, the LCD screen had no spider cracks or bleeding, and the hold switch (though filled with dirt and grime) still switched.
Though I appreciate the clear polycarbonate coating that covers the black faceplate and becomes the window to the screen, it’s fillet of the back cover continuing through the headphones port that is my favorite detail. In older models of the iPod, the opening of the headphones port is completely perpendicular, but A1136 incorporated this detail to allow the curve of the mirror polished back cover to remain uninterrupted.
The assembly of A1136 is exceedingly simple. It’s held together more by double sided tape and plastic clips than it is by screws. However, without specialty tools, this proved difficult to disassemble. I resorted to deforming the tip of a metal pallete knife to separate the back cover and face plate enough to expose the plastic clips. From there, I gently folded it open and removed the 12 screws that secured the different components to the aluminum frame and back cover and removed all double sided tapes and padding.
