The iPod mini (2nd generation) is the second and final model in the iPod mini series. Released by Apple on February 23, 2005, the iPod mini (2nd generation) was successful throughout the entirety of its sale period
| Developer | Apple |
|---|---|
| Generation | 2nd |
| Release date | February 23, 2005 |
| Introductory price | $249 |
| Discontinued | September 7, 2005 |
| Units sold | ---- |
| CPU | 2x PortalPlayer PP5020 ARM processors @ 80 MHz |
| Memory | 225 bytes (32 MiB) |
| Storage | 4GB or 6GB(Microdrive) |
| Display | 1.67" monochrome LCD at 138 x 110 pixels |
| Successor | iPod Nano (1st Generation) |
| ARBL | 18 hours MP3/AAC playback |
| Battery | 650 mAh Li-Po |
| External Interface | 30-pin Dock (FireWire AND USB, sync & charge) |
| Maximum capacity | 239 bytes (512GiB)[2], with up to approx. 20,000 songs Song limit is caused by RAM limitations, and can be bypassed using Rockbox. |
Telling a Second Gen and First Gen Apart
Second generation Minis have the capacity printed on the back, and the clickwheel text color matches the housing (This doesn't matter for Silver models, as the clickwheel looks the same as a first generation). The first generation iPod Mini had a gold color as an option. This color was not available with the 2nd generation iPod Mini.
Advertising
Advertising for the Mini was far smaller for the second generation, simply comprising of online banners in apple.com saying "The new iPod Mini"
Modifying
The Minis are fun and relatively simple to modify. They use a rather common CF (Compact Flash) connector for their storage options and there are many SD to CF adapters that make flash storage possible. As an added benefit, doing so increases the battery life of the device, as it does not need to spin the hard drive during play. The upper limits on how much storage they can take is said to be about 512GiB. Given the low amount of ram on the Mini, it can "only" shuffle about 20,000 tracks.
Resources
Notes
[1] Only applicable to new iPod mini batteries, when using the included Microdrive. A flash-modded iPod mini will most likely have better battery life; an older battery, worse battery life.
[2] It is unknown whether the iPod mini can handle 1 TiB or 2 TiB of storage. Theoretically, the limit would be at 2 TiB, because of Master Boot Record limitations. 512 GiB is the highest amount of storage tested so far in an iPod mini; to fill that much storage without going pass the song limit, one will need to use lossless audio files.
