Recycle your old iPhone dock for use with your 3G iPhone
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Jul/0820
Jul/0820
Last week i was donated an old first gen iPhone dock, which i took to our engineering dept and attacked with an electric precision grinder….the result is a little messy but very very usable.
I’m modifying another dock right now to give to a friend – based on that I decided that blogging it might be helpful to others!
Some photos below….
So…. save yourself some cash and recycle your old docks!!! You only need to take a small amount off the back and a little more off each side.
3:57 pm on July 21st, 2008
I’d get some wet n’ dry sandpaper to that. It will give it a nice smooth finish. Make sure you use the paper wet.
4:05 pm on July 21st, 2008
Hey – I agree with Craig. Get yourself some automotive wet and dry sandpaper, and you can get it looking smooth again. No problem! Just use a higher grit to get it smooth-by-scratched looking, work your way up to 800+ grit, using wet sandpaper – like, do this in a sink of water. Get above 1000 and it will look brand new! Places like AutoZone should have what you need.
5:44 pm on July 21st, 2008
I’m surprised you guys are going to such extremes. I took a hair dryer and warmed the plastic then pushed the new 3G into the docking section and let it cool overnight. Presto! Works like a charm now – each and every time. I’ve done this to both the old dock (that came with the iPhone) and the dual dock for the BlueTooth earbud.
You merely need to stretch the cradle section just a bit. I see no reason to hack it to death with sandpaper and scrapers.
6:16 pm on July 21st, 2008
Hi Tim,
Well, its funny you should say that… only the previous day i was using the heat gun from our engineering dept to ‘modify’ (for modity read destroy) an N95 housing off ebay that just didn’t fit exactly right… and based on my experience with melting plastic i avoided it in this instance.
I do have another one to do for a friend though, so i might give it a go next time.
Thanks for the tip!
9:29 am on July 22nd, 2008
@Admin
You might have noticed there is a “slight” difference between a hair dryer used by Dr. Tim Martin and the heat gun you used for your experiment on that N95 case.
10:38 am on July 22nd, 2008
Archetrix, you do have a point, but i’ve never been one for taking my time and being careful – i usually wade in with all guns blazing, with a Tim Allen – Home Improvement “More Power” mentality.
Maybe i’ll grow out of it by the time i hit 30
11:14 am on July 22nd, 2008
Hi … sorry but I had to post this on my blog. http://www.iphone3g.co.za
11:23 am on July 22nd, 2008
haha, no worries Rashaad!
You can’t beat a bit of ghetto modification
8:59 pm on December 26th, 2008
YOU ALL ROCK- I have been smooshing my 3g into a 60$ tiny white dock for weeks thinking I was doing something wrong untill my brother called me a retard & said I bought the dock for the old iPhone. I don’t have a grinder, but so far I’m using a razor, & lighter to mold it. You guys are brilliant. Hope I don’t kill myself.
All I want is my cell to stand up & charge. That’s it dude.
Thanx- Karen
6:32 pm on March 23rd, 2009
Good thinking. It seems such a waste to buy a new one.
@Karen – That sounds so dangerous….lol