Help finding an external iPod Touch charger

[Mama Zappa]

Ideally one that could be powered by regular AA (or similar) batteries but a rechargeable one would do. We have such a charger right now for our iPods and it comes in quite useful.

I keep hearing that old-style iPod chargers don't work with iPhones and iPod Touches. So I ordered (from eBay) a battery-powered charger that listed iPhone 3GS as a compatible device. It arrived yesterday, I tried it this morning, and the iPod Touch said "cannot charge with this device".

So I reread the listing - it did say iPod Touch, but 32G not 64G. So I can't really pan the vendor.

Unfortunately, searching around, I don't see any such devices (AA or rechargeable) that specificially list the 3rd generation Touch... and since we're leaving on a long airplane trip in 1 week, I'm anxious to have something in hand.

My google-fu is failing me. Anyone else have links to anything that would do?

[Mama Zappa]

(using my one bump)

[QuercusMax]

Googling for "iphone battery pack aa" finds this:

http://www.amazon.com/Portable-Emerg.../dp/B002TR6AT2

You'll probably have better luck searching for iPhone instead of iPod touch.

[Wesley Clark]

http://www.amazon.com/External-Porta.../dp/B003L6ZKEQ

[Mama Zappa]

Thanks, QuercusMax and Wesley Clark!

Lest I appear a *complete* moron (and *complete* morons are rare), the reason I was hesitant to get something that did not specifically say the 64G ipod touch (or 3rd generation ipod touch) was because of the cheap battery backup that I had ordered - which listed iPod Touch 32g but not 64g... and didn't work on my 64g. It's hard to even find something that lists a 3rd generation ipod touch (a lot of stuff even at the Apple online store just lists 2nd generation).

[scr4]

Look for one that explicitly supports the 2nd and 3rd generation iPod Touch, and/or the 4th and 5th generation iPod Nano. These models can only be charged from USB power. Earlier models could be charged from FireWire.

(As I understand it, the iPod connector has two sets of pins, one meant to connect to a USB port and one for FireWire. The earliest iPods could only be charged from FireWire, even though they could sync through either port. They later added the ability to charge from either side. Even later, they removed the ability to charge from the FireWire side. Third party peripheral manufacturers were slow to catch up to this; for a long time they continued to sell chargers and docks that provided power through the FireWire pins.)

Another option would be to get a universal charger (power supply) with a USB port on it, and use your iPod cable to connect to it. An added bonus is that it can recharge anything that charges from a USB port, including many newer cell phones. I have an XPal rechargeable battery with a USB port on it, which I use to charge my iPod and cell phone. I think there are AA-battery powered USB power supplies as well.

[scr4]

Originally Posted by Mama Zappa

So I ordered (from eBay) a battery-powered charger that listed iPhone 3GS as a compatible device.

Hmm, it says here that the "iPhone 3G and iPhone 3GS cannot be charged with a FireWire power adapter or FireWire-based car charger." So if your charger is really compatible with the 3GS, it should work with your iPod Touch as well. I'd send it back if I were you.

[Mama Zappa]

Originally Posted by scr4

Hmm, it says here that the "iPhone 3G and iPhone 3GS cannot be charged with a FireWire power adapter or FireWire-based car charger." So if your charger is really compatible with the 3GS, it should work with your iPod Touch as well. I'd send it back if I were you.

I concur, but the thing was shipped from Hong Kong and cost about 6 bucks including shipping. Not worth it. I may pan the vendor for selling me something that doesn't work.

Thanks for all the ideas - I wound up getting a USB battery pack from Radio Shack. It plugs into a wall outlet to recharge vs being powered by AAs, so would be less useful if we were, say, camping - but it should do well enough for a 5 hour flight. I tried it this morning and the iPod lit up and said it was charging.