Headphones aren't working?

It has a one year warranty (2 if you buy AppleCare) so I think you have sufficient time.

I had the same problem. I had used my Bose Noise Cancellation headphones without any problems on my old iPod Classic, but neither the Apple earbuds nor the Bose headphones worked with my new Nano. After reading this thread, I pushed the earbuds in harder, and that did work...but still no luck with the Bose. I'll be going back to the Apple store for a fix, because I really hate earbuds.

i went through the manual online and did some of the suggested troubleshooting when i had the same issue. the resetting seemed to help with me.

To reset iPod nano:
1 Toggle the Hold switch on and off (slide it to HOLD and then back again).
2 Press and hold Menu and the Center button for at least 6 seconds, until the
Apple logo appears.

You should go through all the troubleshooting steps. It sounds like you hit a couple. One you definately want to do is to hold the menu and center buttons until the apple appears then disappears. Do this while the nano is connected to your computer. Then let up on the buttons. iTunes will come up with a dialog about having to recover the nano. Do it and you should be good. If not, just go through all the other troubleshooting to make sure.

http://www.apple.com/support/ipod/five_rs/nano5gen/

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Just had this exact thing happen. I bought one, had this happen. Exchanged it. Just been checking my new one - same problem.
We put generic headphones in, which had a very slightly longer jack and there was no problem. Then put the originals back in and they seem to be working at the moment.

Just don't know whether they'll continue working or not. About to head overseas in two days and don't know whether to persevere or replace yet again.

Interestingly they worked fine until I tried the radio setting and then disaster.

I've done the troubleshooting thing, but that did nothing, which isn't surprising cause I think this is a hardware/bad design problem.

Can't believe the money I forked out for this to have such a simple problem. Perhaps they need to redesign their headphone jack for gen 5 nano???

From what others have posted, the key is to make sure that you insert the headphones all the way.

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The speaker doesn't turn off when the headphones are plugged in. This has happened to me on every 5th GEN Nano I've tried. The solution for me is to just plug the Nano into the computer, let it start ITunes and do a sync, and then disconnect it properly. The speaker will go off, and the headphones should work right again. I haven't come across a Nano 5th GEN that doesn't do this. Pushing the headphones in all the way has not been the issue, as I have done that already.

Are you sure you are plugging the headset jack all the way in? I have been able to reproduce what folks describe here, but only if I don't insert the headphone jack all the way. The white part of the jack should be completely flush with the case of the Nano.

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I've had both the 4G and 5G Nanos and they both work fine IF the earbuds that come with the unit are pushed ALL THE WAY IN. Re the FM radio, the cord on the headset is the ANTENNA and it won't work without the headset pushed all the way in.

My wife used my Nano the other day with a "airline" headset and it worked fine as an antenna. I'm guessing that some OEM headsets may not go all the way into the headset hole due to their design. If that's true, you can forget about them with the Nano.

I've just noticed that there is a tiny ridge (outside case on the Nano) that sticks up above the earphone socket that MIGHT prevent an OEM headset from going ALL the way in. I've only listened to my Nano with the factory earbuds which work fine for me.

I had the same problem and after reading about trying to plug the headset in more it started working.
Thanks for the tips. Even though it feels like you may have the head set all the way in, you have to keep pushing in the headset firmly until you feel it click and the round white plastic part is seated all the way against the bottom of the IPOD

Yay! I just wanted to thank you all for your great advice!

It's Christmas, and I was very excited when I was given the new ipod Nano 5th GEN as a gift. Unfortunately, I had the same issue as you did: the headphones weren't registering, and so I couldn't listen to music or radio. I was really disappointed -- honestly, it just about ruined my Christmas. But hen I came on here and tried what you guys said: just pushing it in harder. I felt like a total idiot, but the earbuds went in and clicked, and when I tried my iPod again, they worked perfectly!

So, don't give up on your iPod so fast -- all it takes is a bit more force! 🙂

This has really made my day -- thank you all so much!

I have just taken back an iPod Nano to Comet as headphones apparently not working, told this was an unsual fault never heard of before but replaced with no fuss at all. Brought home replacement only to find the same problem headphones not turning off speaker. Getting very frustrated and searched on this forum as user guides and Help and Support no good. Problem solved! Push in the earphone jack hard as recommended in previous Christmas Day post - working perfectly! Thanks for taking the time to record this - perhaps someone should tell the technical support at Apple! and no I am not blond!

Your answer is the first one that worked! The headphones were working fine until today. For some odd reason internal speaker didn't turn off with headphones plugged in. Well I just did exactly what wrote here, and headphones are working fine! Thank you, thank you, thank you. Maybe you should be the one writing up tech support info for iPods since of the official documents even cover this as a problem.
It's a shame more testing isn't done before releasing a new product or updated version of a product is released for public sale/use. I don't understand why companies don't post messages about newly discovered problems and solutions. I h
Thanks again! Too bad I didn't see your post earlier before I was ready to toss the iPod...