How to Turn Off a Video iPod

These devices don't include a power button

Updated on August 07, 2019

If you just got an iPod Video and haven't had an iPod before, you won't find a common button found on most consumer electronics: the on/off switch. The iPod Video doesn't have an on/off button. Instead, it has a hold button that locks the iPod so that it can't play music or use battery power.

Instructions in this article apply to the iPad Fifth Generation (also called iPod Video).

How to Turn Off the iPod Video

The iPod Video doesn’t work in terms of on and off. That's why there's no switch. Instead, it only deals in awake or asleep.

When you don't use your iPod for a period of time, the screen dims and fades to black. This is the iPod going to sleep. When an iPod is asleep, it uses less battery power than when the screen is lit up and music is playing. To force an iPod to go to sleep right away, hold the play/pause button for a few seconds.

Just because there's no on/off button doesn't mean you can't restart an iPod Video. Learn how to restart an iPod Video and how to restart every frozen iPod.

How to Keep Your iPod Video Asleep

When you press any button on the iPod Video when it is asleep, the screen lights up to indicate that the iPod is awake.

If the iPod won't be used for a while, store it to conserve battery power and keep it from playing music. To store an iPod, look for the hold switch at the top edge of the iPod Video near the headphone jack. Slide the hold switch to the on position when you put the iPod away. This locks the Clickwheel the same way a cellphone keypad is locked. Now, your iPod won’t wake from sleep when a button is accidentally pushed.

To use the iPod, slide the hold switch to the off position and click any button to start it up again.