Did refrigerator magnets hurt my iPod?

May 11, 2004 6:44 PM

iPods and refrigerator magnets don't mix. Or do they? I (accidentally) put an iPod in the same small backpack where, among books and other stuff, there was also (I didn't know that) an envelope with three small refrigerator magnets inside. the iPod seems to work fine. more inside

it's still under warranty, but should I ask Apple to check it out? is the magnetic field of the 3 small magnets strong enough to do damage?
thanks

posted by matteo to technology (7 comments total)

the iPod stayed in the backpack with the magnets for about 48 hrs
posted by matteo at 6:46 PM on May 11, 2004

It's fine.
posted by punishinglemur at 6:49 PM on May 11, 2004

I don't think that's enough magnetism to worry about. surely iPods have some minimal amount of shielding. Even if it was affected, I believe all they could do would be erase some of the hard disk.
posted by sixdifferentways at 8:01 PM on May 11, 2004

My cousin actually secures his ipod to his dashboard with a small magnet doohickey. The gadget is designed for cell phones, so i guess it doesn't screw those up either.
posted by rorycberger at 9:06 PM on May 11, 2004

Hard drives are pretty well shielded. I think you would need a strong electromagnet to do any damage.

Speakers also have magnets in them, and I'm sure plenty of people leave their iPods on their speakers.
posted by hashashin at 9:14 PM on May 11, 2004

thanks everybody

*resumes lasciviously fondling own iPod *
posted by matteo at 1:43 AM on May 12, 2004

I've worried about this as well. I carry my iPod Mini in my pocket, along with my wallet - which incorporates a magnet based money clip. It's never caused a problem, but I figured I'd put the iPod in a different pocket just to be safe.

But this has never felt right and gets me all lopsided. Glad to know that I don't have too much to worry about.

It was those 5.5 inch floppy discs that were so sensitive to magnets, I believe. We were all so ingrained with that back in the day, it's hard to shake.
posted by aladfar at 8:06 AM on May 12, 2004