H1xx Internal Battery Replacement

From iriver Wiki, your source for everything iriver - a part of MisticRiver.

Requirements

H120, replacement battery, penknife and T5 driver

• H1x0 Player
• Replacement battery
• Torx driver size T5
• Penknife to swap wires in battery connector

Open Player

Player after removing end caps and back section.

• Remove the 8 screws that secure the two end caps using the torx driver.
• Pull the end caps off the player
• The back part of the case which holds the battery can now be removed from the player.
• Remove the small screw from the centre of the side section that houses the REC button and microphone. This side section needs to be removed because it houses the mic which is connected to the main board with a small section of wire. The other side panel can remain attached to the front section of the case.

Separate battery from case

The battery is stuck to the back section of the case using double sided sticky tape. To remove the battery just gently pry it away from the case. If the battery is firmly stuck try gently warming the case to loosen the glue. Using tools is to be avoided as you could pierce the plastic battery covering.

Remove Hard Drive

The drive slots into a connector at the bottom of the main board.

• Gently pull the top end of the drive away from the mainboard until it clears the line in/out jacks.
• Now slide the drive towards the top of the player.

Remove Mainboard

Location of mainboard securing screws.

The mainboard is attached to the front section of the case with 6 screws.

• Remove the 6 screws that secure the main board to the front section of the case.
• Carefully remove the main board from the case.

Swap wires in battery connector

Prying the battery clips up with a small knife. (this is the original iriver battery so the polarity of the connector is correct)

If you are replacing the original with a Cameron Sino ipod battery you need to swap the wires so that the polarity of the wires in the connector is reversed. If you are replacing the original battery with a Cameron Sino battery designed for the iriver Hxx series there is no need to swap the wires in the connector as the polarity is already correct. Whatever battery you get, visually verify that the polarity of the replacement is the same as the old prior to installation.

• Gently use a penknife or other small knife to pry up the plastic clips on the connector.
• Remove the wires by pulling the wires out of the plastic connector body.
• Gently push the plastic clips that you lifted back into the plastic connector body, this is to ensure they will properly latch onto the wires when they are reinserted.
• Push the wires back into the connector body, (with correct polarity).
• Then look at the end(front) of the plastic connector and verify that the little steel plugs that you have just inserted into the plastic connector are properly lined up with the holes in the plastic connector, if not use a sewing pin or suchlike to gently line up the metal pins with the holes in the connector.

Replacing Battery

Location and correct polarity of battery connector

This is the most fiddly part of the whole operation. The battery socket is located tightly behind the DC IN socket which makes removing and inserting the battery connector difficult.

• Pull the battery connector from the socket while pulling the connector away from the mainboard. The old battery should now be disconnected.
• Connecting the new battery is the reverse of removal and just as tricky. You could shave off the bottom edge near the wires of the battery connector to help passing the DC IN socket.

Alternative method

• Pry the connector from the socket far enough to access the plastic clips that hold the wires into the connector.
• Pry up the clips to release the wires.
• Remove the wires of the new battery from its connector.
• Insert the wires from the new battery into the connector on the player making sure the polarity is correct.
• Now just push the connector fully into the socket.

Refit Mainboard

Battery wires passing through notch in mainboard PCB.

Replacing the mainboard is the reverse of removal. Just above the bottom right hand screw hole there is a notch in the pcb. The battery wires should pass through this notch as they travel from the front to the back of the main board.

Refit Hard Drive

Again this is just the reversal of removing the drive. The large capacity batteries are thicker than the original ones so you need to make sure the padding around the drive is positioned correctly otherwise there might not be enough space for the battery.

Assembly of Player

• Attach the side section of the case that was previously removed, be careful not to overtighten the screw as it can cause the plastic case to crack.
• Fit the back section of the case and the end caps. It's a good idea to turn the player on to test everything is connected before fitting the 8 screws that hold the end caps on.
• Charge the player and enjoy your increased runtime.

Back to Customize Your H1xx