Advisable time of working with iPod shuffle

There is no specific amount of hours per day you should or shouldn't use your iPod. Use it when you want to charge it when it needs it. Try to avoid letting it drain completely. Don't leave it in hot cars. You can't extend the life of the battery beyond the capacity it has.

siesam wrote:

Thanks for your help. But my question regards the ipod itself, not the battery life. What can I do and how to use my ipod to extend its life for years. Again thanks for your comment about battery. It was really helpful.

Don't get it wet. Try not to drop it too often.

Lithium batteries can become unable to hold a charge, if it is left in a completely discharged state for an extended period (like a few months). Also, keeping it connected to power continuously (for a really long time) is not that great for the battery either, but there is no need to be concerned about "over-charging" it. It is best to just use it normally and regularly.

With my shuffle, I charge it full, and usually use it (without connecting it again) until I see that the shuffle's light is amber (not green) when I turn it ON or wake it up. Amber light, when using the shuffle, means it has less than 25% charge remaining. Then, at the next opportunity, I connect it to my computer to sync it and charge. But it does no harm to plug it in when it still has a good charge (or unplug it when not fully charged). I'm just trying to avoid constantly plugging it in and unplugging it, because that will wear out the shuffle's headphones jack, which already does double-duty for audio and syncing.

I leave the shuffle's power switch in the ON position most of the time. The shuffle goes into sleep mode when inactive (not playing media) for a short period. I don't notice any obvious difference in battery life if I turn it OFF using the switch versus letting it "sleep." Plus, I don't like constantly turning the shuffle ON and OFF using that tiny switch, and I don't want to wear out the switch. A good practice may be to turn it ON at the start of the day, and turn it OFF when you set it down at the end of the day. When you connect it to your computer, it does not matter if the switch is ON or OFF.

As an additional note, I find Autofill to be the most convenient way to load my shuffle with songs. I have a "favorites" playlist in my iTunes library, but it is far too large to fit on the shuffle's small storage capacity. I set Autofill (which is not automatic syncing) to load a random selection of songs from that playlist with favorite songs, to completely fill my shuffle. When I connect my shuffle to charge, I usually do an Autofill to get a new random selection of songs. Since I normally use my shuffle to "shuffle" my songs, it's like shuffling that complete playlist although I only have a small portion of it on my shuffle at any given time.

Red light while using it just means it's very low on battery power. It does not hurt if it stops playing while using it (because it runs out of power). That happens to me often. I have occasionally left it playing music (unattended), to later find the battery drained. Just don't leave the shuffle with a drained battery for a LONG time; charge it up at the next opportunity.

3 hours should give you a full charge, but it does no harm if you stop charging it after 1 or 2 hours because you're going somewhere and you want to take your shuffle. Just use it in a way that is convenient for you and "exercise" the battery. What to avoid is not using it for an extended period. I've seen posts here by people who "lose" their shuffle at home (because it's so small). They find it many months or years later, and discover that the battery does not charge.

TIP: When the shuffle's light blinks amber while connected to your computer, it's a warning Do not disconnect - Eject iPod before disconnecting. You cannot tell from the blinking light if the battery is fully charged or not; when blinking, the color is always amber. However, if you Eject the shuffle in iTunes, but leave it connected, the light becomes solid (not blinking). Solid light means OK to Disconnect. Now, the color indicates battery status. Green means fully charged. Amber means currently charging (but you can disconnect it).