Yesterday my 8GB Clip+ suddenly shut off while I was listening to music and I couldn’t turn it back on. I assumed it just ran out of batteries, but when I went to plug it into my computer the screen did not light up or tell me it was charging or anything, it looks completely dead.
I’ve tried using a different USB cable, plugging it into a different computer, and tried different USB ports on the two computers I have access to. I’ve tried holding down different buttons for 20+ seconds, both unplugged and plugged into the USB, but nothing I do makes my Clip+ show any sign of life whatsoever. Is it just completely dead?
I got my Clip+ in November 2009 as a birthday present, but I didn’t start using it until maybe 6 months to a year ago. I don’t believe it’s still under warranty.
Something to try: plug the player into the wall AC via a USB AC adapter and leave it there for a few days (2-3, or more); this sometimes has been know to bring a seemingly dead player back to life, a joyous event! As to warranty: if you’re in the U.S., you’re past warranty–it’s 1 year (but if you used a credit card that doubles the warranty to buy the Clip, you’d still be covered–something to check out (this has saved me on at least one occasion)?); EU is 2 years.
I’ve tried holding down different buttons for 20+ seconds . . .
Would one of those different buttons be the power button on top of the unit? That’s the one that performs a reset when held continuously for 20 seconds or so.
I don’t have a USB AC adapter to try this with. Do you know if you get the double warranty if you use a debit card to buy the Clip, or just a credit card?
Well, for what it’s worth. this just happened to me too. Earlier today my Clip+ abruptly stopped playing. I do have one of those USB AC adapters and that didn’t bring it back to life after about 3 hours.
Then I saw this thread and noticed the advice about holding the power button down for 20 sec to force a reset.
It worked!!
However the reset didn’t occur until after I unplugged the power adapter. So here’s the entire sequence:
Clip+ plugged into USB AC adapter (not computer); charged for about 3 hours
Power switch held down for 20+ seconds
Unplugged adapter (I was going to switch it to the computer USB plug to try that)
Sansa splash screen appeared, paused a little longer than usual, then the player resumed working - even picked up playing in the track where it had been when it died.
Looks like the hard reset with the power button, followed by a USB disconnect, is the way to go - at least in my case.
You can get an AC USB adapter for under $5, on eBay, at meritline.com, etc.
You also can try this charging “fix” using your computer. If you are using a laptop, try a USB port at the back of the laptop–sometimes more powerful than those at the front of the laptop.
An extended warranty sometimes is added as part of a credit card’s offerings. I haven’t seen this with a debit card, though, although it could be, I guess–depends on the service provider (although unlikely).