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paulc · Nov 28, 2006, 12:11 PM

Again, brand new 80G video, experienced user have had a 2nd gen 20G since it first shipped. I've seen the question raised but have never seen any real definitive answer. Essentially is there ANY difference in the "sleep" state" and the state with the "Off" function accessed? Obviously only as it relates to battery use.

It seems that a paused song stays in that state after I use the "Off" function. That seems to indicate the "Off" function may simply be a method of actively putting it into sleep mode. True?

Eriamjh · Dec 3, 2006, 12:07 PM

I believe if the iPod is in the sleep state for more than unknown minutes, it enters the Off state. You know the iPod was off when the Apple logo pops up the next time you power up. Otherwise, the last screen seen comes up.

The question is, if you force it to OFF, does it turn OFF or just enter sleep?

paulc · Dec 3, 2006, 12:32 PM

Hmm, the ONLY time I see the Apple logo is after I do a reset on my Pod.

I DO see that if I pause a song, it will stay "paused" even if I use the "Off" mechanism. Did NOT work this way on my previous Pod. The ONLY time that "pause" goes away is when I sync the unit, or if I play one of the built in games.

Indeed, that IS the question I posed... it sure does seem like what they call the "Off" function just is an active way of putting it to sleep. Of course, that also means that we can't actually turn the thing off. The REALLY annoying thing is that Apple KNOWS how it works, and seems totally unwilling to actually tell us.

Atheist · Dec 3, 2006, 12:59 PM

Originally Posted by paulc

Hmm, the ONLY time I see the Apple logo is after I do a reset on my Pod.

I DO see that if I pause a song, it will stay "paused" even if I use the "Off" mechanism. Did NOT work this way on my previous Pod. The ONLY time that "pause" goes away is when I sync the unit, or if I play one of the built in games.

Indeed, that IS the question I posed... it sure does seem like what they call the "Off" function just is an active way of putting it to sleep. Of course, that also means that we can't actually turn the thing off. The REALLY annoying thing is that Apple KNOWS how it works, and seems totally unwilling to actually tell us.

I would surmise the "off" mode is similar to what is called "hibernate" in windows, where the current state of the iPod is saved to disk and the unit is truly off...i.e. not using any battery.

I guess "sleep" mode is when the state of the iPod is residing in memory and requires a small amount of battery to power the memory.

k squared · Dec 3, 2006, 07:45 PM

Wow. Lots of confusion here. I'll do my best to add to it. There is no real "off" which is user activated. If you pause and leave it alone it goes to sleep -- or you can force it to sleep. I guess this would save a marginal measure of battery because the screen in turning off a bit sooner. When an iPod is sleeping for a while -- not sure how long this is -- it will turn off. As Eriamjh wrote above, you understand this when the user presses the play button and the Apple logo appears. This typically happens for me over the weekend: I pause the iPod on Friday and press play again on Monday. The Apple logo appears. On a day to day basis the logo does not appear.

ghporter · Dec 4, 2006, 07:31 PM

Two different sleep states, no real off state.

There's the basic sleep where the iPod wakes up and remembers where you were in the song you were playing (or where you were between songs-you get the idea). This happens when you hold the play/pause button for several seconds.

Then there's the DEEP sleep, where the iPod reboots when you wake it up, and it doesn't remember anything about where you were before.

No "off" because it has to monitor the clickwheel constantly for an input to wake it up.

Oh, and here's what Apple has to say about it.

k squared · Dec 4, 2006, 10:59 PM

Thanks for the link...very informative!

Eriamjh · Dec 5, 2006, 10:17 PM

Originally Posted by ghporter

Oh, and here's what Apple has to say about it.

Love the classic iPod on that page.

Macpilot · Dec 11, 2006, 03:57 AM

There is no OFF on any iPods. They always use some amount of battery when not connected to AC power.

paulc · Dec 11, 2006, 11:20 AM

Ha, interesting page! As usual, it generates new additional questions. Is "deep sleep" the same as "hibernation" as it relates to saving battery time? If there really isn't any real "off" state, why keep using that term?

Yes there have been a few times where I see a brief flash of the logo; but as the screen w/o backlight is so hard to read, it may be hard to impossible to really catch it. The only real sign is that you press a button and after a beat or two expect it to be awake... but it isn't.

It's only a guess, but it SEEMS that maybe deep sleep and hibernation are the same. BUT with hibernation, a paused song should come back... paused in the same position. As hibernation seems limited to the most current models, it seems one could consider it an additional feature. Too bad there isn't some UI setting, as I don't typically start and stop the thing numerous times each day, I'd love to be able to set it for 2 hours instead of 14.

thewhiteguy1 · Dec 11, 2006, 10:08 PM

yeah that would be a good idea to be able to change it from 14 to 2 hours...