So my clip is about 1.5 years old and IMO, lightly used, mainly when it’s warm in the summers for exercise. However I do charge it on a mini USB charger that plugs into the wall. The guy at the store told me it was safe to use for any mini USB compatible devices. Recently I have found that the battery life drops very rapidly, around 2-3 hours on a good full charge. I called customer support and they said because it was out of warranty I was out of luck. I looked online to try to replace the battery but it looks pretty complicated. The battery drains even when it’s not being used. So if I want 3 hours out of it I have to keep it charging until the moment I use it. Do I have any options at this point? I don’t want to drop another $50+ to get the clip+.
Not the best of options, but you could use an external power supply with the player, such as a Duracell Instant Charger (small and portable) at around $20.
If the battery drains significantly when it is not in use, then it probably means that there is a short circuit in the player. If the player’s battery just holds a small charge, then the battery is worn out. Some people have successfully replaced the battery in a Clip, although imo it isn’t worth the trouble. You didn’t mention if your Clip is one or 2 GB, or if it is 4 or 8 GB. Imo if it is 4 or 8 GB then it might be worthwhile enough going through the effort of replacing the battery.
A 2 GB Clip+ is only around $38 on Amazon with free shipping. You could add a micro SDHC card to it if you want more storage.
I have a 4gb clip. I read online at anythingbutipod.com how to replace the battery. I have to solder a couple wires together. I don’t have the tools, so even if i wanted to replace it, after I bought the tools required I would spend more than it’s worth.
I can’t tell if the clip is actually consuming energy while it’s off or if the battery just has really crappy life. Either way it only stays charged for about 2 days if not in use, and about 2-3 hours if it’s in use.
@shlurpee wrote:
I can’t tell if the clip is actually consuming energy while it’s off or if the battery just has really crappy life. Either way it only stays charged for about 2 days if not in use, and about 2-3 hours if it’s in use.
That is definitely not normal.
What’s the charge time if the battery is empty?
So now you have an excuse to upgrade to a Clip+. If you are in the US, you can get a 4 GB Clip+ on sale this week at Best Buy for $40. It sounds like your Clip may have a short circuit, in which case going through the bother and expense of changing the battery still won’t solve the problem.
Have you tried it on a different charger or USB port. A friend of mine found that although the mini plug fit her digital camera charger, it wouldn’t fully charge the Clip.
Poor battery life is typical for a Clip. Two to three hours sounds on the low side, but Clips have never had long battery life, and they are notorious for losing power while off.
The Clip should easily run all day without difficulty on its internal battery. The largest single consumer of power is the control and display illumination.
If the Clip is simply playing music or books, over ten hours is the norm. 2-3 hours of operation sounds like a battery issue for sure. There were some Clips with battery issues in the past; this is covered under the one-year warranty.
µsansa
