Found iPod

April 19, 2004 11:22 AM

My brother found an iPod a while back. He sent it to me as a gift. I'm delighted, but wonder if Apple has a registration program which I should use to try to return it to the previous owner. And if that doesn't work out, I'm wondering what the essential accessories would be, since this is just the iPod.
posted by weston to Computers & Internet (8 answers total)

Apple does indeed have a registration program for iPods. Mine's definitely registered with them, but I don't know if everyone out there registers theirs, I think you register when you install the software.

If you can't locate the owner, and decide to keep it, you'll first need to figure out what model it is. Generation 1 have a firewire port but no cover for it, generation 2 models have a firewire port on top with a cover, and generation 3 models have a special remote jack on top, and a dock connector below. Generation 1 & 2 share the same accessories, you'll need a regular firewire cable and Apple's iPod charger, the remote control is pretty handy, although I don't know if Apple still sells them. Generation 3 iPods need a dock connector firewire cable with a charger, the dock is optional and the remote is definitely easily available.
posted by riffola at 11:56 AM on April 19, 2004

Did he find it in a NYC cab about 16 months ago? Or perhaps on the sidewalk near 34th and 3rd? Just asking.
posted by n9 at 12:23 PM on April 19, 2004

If you're serious about finding the owner, rather than snaffling a nice piece of tech, you could always send it back to your brother and ask him to hand it in to the police station nearest the location he found it, and take a receipt, so that he can claim it if no one turns up to collect it, after whatever time limit the local laws set for such matters.
posted by Blue Stone at 12:23 PM on April 19, 2004

Response by poster: It sat in a local high school's lost and found for a long time, apparently, before he sent it to me. I think if it was going to be found by local means, then it would have been by now.
posted by weston at 1:32 PM on April 19, 2004

Response by poster: (Denver/Evergreen area was where it was found, in case anyone's wondering)
posted by weston at 1:33 PM on April 19, 2004

It's been a while since I played with my sister's iPod mini, which I helped set up, but I remember that one of the menu items in the iPod's OS took you to a screen that had her name, the iPod's serial number and (I think) her Apple Care registration information. The name of the owner of that iPod might actually be in that iPod somewhere.
posted by emelenjr at 1:45 PM on April 19, 2004

was there decent music on it? and any song formats encode user information as well?
posted by th3ph17 at 2:48 PM on April 19, 2004

This may be slightly o/t, but my pod's address list has a prominent first entry giving my phone number and saying "reward offered."
posted by stonerose at 6:15 PM on April 20, 2004