How To Restart an iPod Mini

Fix your iPad Mini in 3 easy steps

iPod Mini charging up

James Leynse / Getty Images

by Sam Costello
Sam Costello has been writing about tech since 2000. His writing has appeared in publications such as CNN.com, PC World, InfoWord, and many others.
Updated August 11, 2019

When an iPod Mini freezes up, it stops responding to clicks. When computers freeze up, it's easy to fix that problem — restart the computer. However, the iPod Mini doesn’t have an On/Off switch. Here's how to restart the iPad Mini.

Instructions in this article apply to the First Generation iPod Mini and the Second Generation iPod Mini.

How to Restart an iPod Mini

To reset an iPod Mini:

  1. Move the Hold switch to the Off position. The Hold switch is in the upper-left corner of the iPad Mini. If the Mini wasn't frozen and was just locked, this may fix the problem.

    When the Hold switch is On, orange color shows at the top of the iPod Mini and a Lock icon appears on the iPod screen. To turn off the Hold switch, move the switch so the orange is hidden and the lock disappears.

  2. If the iPod Mini is still frozen, the Hold switch wasn’t the problem. Move the Hold switch to the On position (so that it shows orange) and then move it to Off.

  3. Hold the Menu button on the Clickwheel and the Center button at the same time. Hold for six to 10 seconds. This process will restart the iPod mini. The iPod is restarting when the screen changes and the Apple logo appears.

  4. If your iPod Mini won't restart, plug the iPod into a power source and charge it. Then repeat the steps.

  5. If that doesn’t work, the device has a malfunction. Contact Apple for tech support.

Need to restart an iPod model not covered in this article, or an iPhone or iPad? Check out what you need to do to fix a frozen iPhone, iPad or iPod.