Anyone else still have a 30GB Paper-weight lying around?

I'm not sure if this will work for you, however it did for me, and it is definitely worth a try.

First:
1) Gently pry off the piece of plastic covering the two screws where you plug the sync cable in.
2) Unscrew the screws, and DON'T LOSE THEM, as they are very small.
3) Gently pull off the back cover, have it sitting face down so the battery doesn't fall out. That would most likely break the ribbon that connects it.
4) Pull up the green clip that is holding the ribbon into place, and remove the battery.
5) Wait 15-20 minutes.
6) Plug the battery back in, support the back, keeping the battery in.
7) Quickly turn it over and use the complete format maneuver. (Back+Left+Center)
8) Put it back together and follow the instructions on screen.
9) Hopefully enjoy the music!


EDIT: By doing this, you will void your warranty (if you even had one). So proceed with your own risk.

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So keep dreaming, you're never gonna taste me!

 BR3ATH3CAR0L1NA wrote:

I'm not sure if this will work for you, however it did for me, and it is definitely worth a try.

First:
1) Gently pry off the piece of plastic covering the two screws where you plug the sync cable in.
2) Unscrew the screws, and DON'T LOSE THEM, as they are very small.
3) Gently pull off the back cover, have it sitting face down so the battery doesn't fall out. That would most likely break the ribbon that connects it.
4) Pull up the green clip that is holding the ribbon into place, and remove the battery.
5) Wait 15-20 minutes.
6) Plug the battery back in, support the back, keeping the battery in.
7) Quickly turn it over and use the complete format maneuver.
8) Put it back together and follow the instructions on screen.
9) Hopefully enjoy the music!


EDIT: By doing this, you will void your warranty (if you even had one). So proceed with your own risk.

It worked for me :D

Very good method, it will delete everything off your Zune but thats a small sacrifice for the player itself to work :D

trying this right now. i was one of the idiots who used the pry-apart method on 12/31 and it hadn't worked for me then, or since. i'm really hoping this does it. i was pricing mp3 players on amazon last night....

All 3 of mine work perfectly fine now after following the instrcutions from Matt at Zune. I let all 3 run out of power, then plugged in all 3 to my computer and they charged first for about 20 minutes, then synced and all played just fine without any hitch at all. I did this at 1am on the 1st after coming home from a party.......no problems at all.

Why does it not work for you? Hopefully you do not ruin your device by opening it up.

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Zune is AWESOME!!...since Nov 2006 Black30GB and Pink30GB (my wifes'!!!)

 Catcher 10 wrote:

All 3 of mine work perfectly fine now after following the instrcutions from Matt at Zune. I let all 3 run out of power, then plugged in all 3 to my computer and they charged first for about 20 minutes, then synced and all played just fine without any hitch at all. I did this at 1am on the 1st after coming home from a party.......no problems at all.

Why does it not work for you? Hopefully you do not ruin your device by opening it up.

No, mine is the exact same way. Will NOT WORK even AFTER I have tried everything mentioned everywhere except opening it. Even the stupid combination of back left center at the same time won't work.

If the battery is dead, do not plug into your computer. Try charging it from a wall charger and see of that gets it up and running, then you can plug to your computer and sync it. You might need to leave it plugged to the wall for many hours. My son took his and charged it thru his Xbox360 for about 20 minutes and it restarted just fine and played fine.

Good luck

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Zune is AWESOME!!...since Nov 2006 Black30GB and Pink30GB (my wifes'!!!)

 Catcher 10 wrote:

If the battery is dead, do not plug into your computer. Try charging it from a wall charger and see of that gets it up and running, then you can plug to your computer and sync it. You might need to leave it plugged to the wall for many hours. My son took his and charged it thru his Xbox360 for about 20 minutes and it restarted just fine and played fine.

Good luck

Tried to charge mine on my PS3 as well. Same thing.

mine is still dead.. let it die , stayed dead for 24 hours plugged it back in and as soon as the battery came to life the damn thing froze up again. This is some BullS**t.  It was working with no flaws before this happend.

How is the format maneuver done in step #7?

 Catcher 10 wrote:

All 3 of mine work perfectly fine now after following the instrcutions from Matt at Zune. I let all 3 run out of power, then plugged in all 3 to my computer and they charged first for about 20 minutes, then synced and all played just fine without any hitch at all. I did this at 1am on the 1st after coming home from a party.......no problems at all.

Why does it not work for you? Hopefully you do not ruin your device by opening it up.

FYI - Matt's instructions haven't worked for me.

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-TheBiffTannen

All i did was disconnect the internet and then change the date to a few months before the current date. After that, its been working perfectly.

here is my fix :
stick your zune in the freezer for like 5 hours to kill the battery. THE BATTERY MUST BE DEAD. then when its dead load the zune software on your computer, then plug the zune in to your computer. after the battery charges up, it should reset itself and be normal again

i fixed my lil paperweight on the first try.

 BR3ATH3CAR0L1NA wrote:

I'm not sure if this will work for you, however it did for me, and it is definitely worth a try.

First:
1) Gently pry off the piece of plastic covering the two screws where you plug the sync cable in.
2) Unscrew the screws, and DON'T LOSE THEM, as they are very small.
3) Gently pull off the back cover, have it sitting face down so the battery doesn't fall out. That would most likely break the ribbon that connects it.
4) Pull up the green clip that is holding the ribbon into place, and remove the battery.
5) Wait 15-20 minutes.
6) Plug the battery back in, support the back, keeping the battery in.
7) Quickly turn it over and use the complete format maneuver.
8) Put it back together and follow the instructions on screen.
9) Hopefully enjoy the music!


EDIT: By doing this, you will void your warranty (if you even had one). So proceed with your own risk.

This is a lot more trouble than needed.  The issue is that once the device freezes, you can't reboot it with the buttons.  That is the reason why the advice from uSoft is to let it discharge.  Disconnecting the battery also unfreezes it, but is a risky manuever.   It's too easy to damage the battery or the sensitive zune electronics which is why it is not recommended.   
And, if you can use the format manuever, it means you are already unfrozen.  There is no need to format the device.