80G iPod Video Rebooting

[AvatharV]

I have an 80G iPod Video running Rockbox 3.6.  I notice that it is constantly rebooting.

When this happens, the iPod is not connected to a USB cable, and there are no headphones plugged in.

This seems to be correlated to the Idle Time Off setting.  As soon as it goes into Idle Off.. it reboots.

This is chewing up battery life.  Is this a documented problem, or is there possibly a setting that I am not finding to keep it from spontaneously turning back on after Idle Off?

The only solution I have come up with so far (which I don't like either), is to put it on HOLD, so that when it reboots, it comes up in iPod mode and then will truly sleep.

Thanks

[elkhedewi]

It started with some glitch making iPod start up by itself.. I would shut it back down, and it would immediately start up. I tried booting it into and shutting it down from the Apple firmware, but it would boot right back up again (into Rockbox or Apple depending on the hold switch).. I decided to leave it until the battery died.

Big mistake? Now when I plug it into a USB port, it cycles from the "Please Wait.. Very low battery" to another screen with a battery image and an exclamation mark, and back again, over and over again..

The battery is not charging, and I'm unable to start the firmware..

Need a workaround!

[GodEater]

I've merged these two threads as they sound identical to me.

Can you guys please let us know exactly which revision of Rockbox you're using?

[elkhedewi]

I'm using version 3.6

I just plugged the iPod into a wall adapter and its charging well..

But when I remove the cable, and shut it down, it starts right back up again

[AvatharV]

I think these are the same threads..

I am using 3.6 as well..  and I have had the exact same symptoms as he is expressing.  I had the same low battery problem as well.. but I usually charge my iPod with a car charger on the way to work.. which also got me around the battery issue.

I have been plagued with this since about 3.51. 

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Right now (4:38am July 5th).. at this very moment, it appears to be functioning correctly.  It is powering down and not rebooting.. and it is staying in Rockbox mode.  It is fully charged.. not that, that is a factor.  It is not connected to anything.. USB or headphones.  I have not tweaked any settings that I can recall.. all I have done is put more files on it.

Is it possible that it is a theme that is messing us up, or just a weird combination of settings that is conflicting?

If the problem comes back or persists.. I would even be open to roll back my version to an older one to see if the problem goes away.  But I would need to know where to find them.

[elkhedewi]

Update: The iPod charges, but very very slowly (>10 hours for a full charge)..

When unplugged, if I shut down, it still starts right back up..

I basically have to keep it plugged in when not using it, just to keep the battery alive..

Why does it keep starting up??

[torne]

iPod charging was not implemented in Rockbox in 3.6, which is why it doesn't charge very fast. Current builds have fully working charging support.

What happens if you boot the original firmware, and then hold play to put the device to sleep? Does it immediately wake up again? If so, then this is a hardware problem, since Rockbox cannot cause that to happen. I suspect the dock connector is damaged, and it thinks there is always a cable connected?

[elkhedewi]

I think I'll revert to 3.5.1 then, to get iPod charging functionality and a stable build..

To answer your question, torne, if I hold play in the original firmware and shut down, it does not start up again.. It only starts up by itself if I shut down from Rockbox

[torne]

I think I'll revert to 3.5.1 then, to get iPod charging functionality and a stable build..

To answer your question, torne, if I hold play in the original firmware and shut down, it does not start up again.. It only starts up by itself if I shut down from Rockbox

Charging was implemented *after 3.6 was released*, so there is no charging functionality in any older release either. I'm not sure what you mean by "a stable build" - 3.6 is a stable release. How long have you had this problem? What was the earliest build where it occurred?

Holding play in the original firmware doesn't shut down, it only puts the device to sleep. You said in an earlier post that it woke up again if you did this; was that a mistake?

[elkhedewi]

I must have made a mistake, yes.

Now when I hold play in the Apple firmware it goes to sleep and stays asleep.. But if I restart into Rockbox and shutdown it starts right back up

I installed release 3.6 last week, and it was working fine for a few days, then these problems arose.. I do remember it charging faster with 3.5.1 though, what could that be?

[AlexP]

I installed release 3.6 last week, and it was working fine for a few days, then these problems arose.. I do remember it charging faster with 3.5.1 though, what could that be?

Wishful thinking   It didn't.

[torne]

If it worked fine after installing 3.6, and only stopped working later, then that eliminates just about everything I can think of other than a hardware fault..

Does Rockbox think a charger/usb cable is still connected, after you unplug it?

You might want to try a current build, not that there's any specific change in there that will fix it, but it's still an interesting data point.

Release builds have always charged fine while in disk mode, because we rebooted to Apple's disk mode, and thus it was using Apple's charging code. Charging only didn't work properly if you forced it to stay in Rockbox. Perhaps that's what you are thinking of?

[elkhedewi]

Rockbox doesn't think a charger/usb cable is connected after I unplug it.. The plug image disappears as soon as I unplug the charger.. So doesn't seem like thats why it restarts

I just tried resetting the settings (Settings > Manage Settings > Reset Settings) but the problem persists

I'll install the current build later today and get back to you with an update.. I really hope its not a hardware issue.

Thanks for your help so far torne

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UPDATE: I installed current build r27343-100707, but I get the same problem.. My current workaround to save battery life is to boot into the original firmware and put it to sleep. Which sucks because I have to reboot the ipod whenever I need to use it..

So we've ruled out the ipod thinking a cable is connected (since when I unplug when its on, the ipod knows I unplugged). What else makes an ipod start up?

Thanks..

[torne]

The startup reasons, as far as I can recall, the two dock power sources (USB and FireWire), the men and select buttons, or the RTC alarm. Rockbox only enables RTC wakeup if an alarm is set. I'm not sure what to suggest right now, but later on I'll check where you can find these sources in the debt screen (most of their statuses should be shown).

[elkhedewi]

The alarm is disabled..

What do you mean by "debt screen"?