Background:
My iPod Nano 3G had some problems with its clickwheel. I can’t seem to adjust the volume or the clickwheel sometimes simply refuses to work.
I checked on some forums and saw that other people had similar problems. Their clickwheel also stopped working after a few months or so. Mine lasted for 10 months before I encountered this problem.
Some people suggested the common “reseting” of the iPod. This involved holding down the center button and the top button for around 3-5 seconds. But this didn’t help.
Someone also suggested that when you turn on and off the hold switch, the clickwheel adjusts itself so don’t hold it for 3-5 seconds. Still this didn’t help.
My last resort was to bring it to Digital Walker in Greenhills because it was still in warranty. Unfortunately, they told me something was wrong with their connection to the Apple Service Center and I had to wait for two weeks to find out if my iPod Nano 3G needs replacement. Then I still have to wait for another two weeks for the actual replacement.
I felt I needed a second opinion. And since my warranty was covered in all Apple Service Centers, I brought it to Power Mac Center in Megamall. I was impressed with the following:
- They immediately told me that it was up for replacement.
- They asked permission to delete everything. They said it was for my security to protect my invested contents. Nice!
- They will give me a text message to inform me if the replacement iPod arrives in two weeks. At least this time I was informed immediately that my iPod will be replaced.
To my surprise, I got a text message after 6 days from Power Mac Center informing me that my replacement iPod Nano 3G can now be claimed. 6 Days?!!! Wow! I’m impressed with Power Mac Center! 
However, I don’t know if it was a good thing or not but my new iPod came with 1.1.3 firmware. Usually it was supposed to be a good thing to have the latest firmware. Unfortunately, I noticed that my new iPod would crash or reset whenever I browsed through the Cover Flow or any of the Playlists. Good thing this didn’t happen for Videos and Photos.
I looked around forums and saw people complaining about the 1.1.3 firmware as well.
http://forums.macrumors.com/showthread.php?t=529865
Now this made me want to try “downgrading” my iPod from 1.1.3 to 1.1.2. The process might be simple but it worked.
Downgrading from 1.1.3 to 1.1.2 firmware:
*Warning: Please follow the instructions properly. Do these at your own risk.
This is a simple step-by-step guide to downgrading your iPod Nano 3G Firmware. I hope this tutorial will help you safely downgrade your iPod. But please remember that there is a risk of voiding your warranty.
Procedure:
-
You need your old 1.1.2 firmware. You can check if you still have it by going to your User Folder.
For Windows XP, you can usually find it in: C:\Documents and Settings\<username>\Application Data\Apple Computer\iTunes\iPod Software Updates\
If you don’t have a copy of your old 1.1.2 firmware, you can get it from this link shared by one of the Apple forum members.
-
Remove or move to another location any other existing files and firmwares and leave two files:
- iPod_26.1.1.2.ipsw
- iPod_26.1.1.2.ipsw.signature
- Turn off your internet connection. This prevents the automatic update of iTunes.
- Just to make sure it looks for the 1.1.2 firmware, restart your iTunes.
- Click on Restore. Now with the internet connection gone, it will prompt you if you want to use the old 1.1.2 firmware.
- Proceed with the restoration and wait for it to finish.
There you have it you now have a downgraded iPod Nano 3G.
For me, I don’t really use iTunes for syncing music. I use Winamp (+ml_ipod). But that’s another story. Perhaps I’ll make another post about using Winamp (+ml_ipod) as an alternative to iTunes. The only reason I installed iTunes was to downgrade my iPod. 
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