Apple released iPod shuffle Reset Utility 1.0 for Mac and Windows

The iPod shuffle Reset Utility 1.0 for Mac is available for download from this Apple Web page (for Windows here). This Utility is for use on only first generation 512MB and 1GB white "gum pack" iPod shuffles. According to Apple,

The iPod shuffle Reset Utility restores First Generation iPod shuffle. The restore process completely erases all music and data on iPod shuffle and reinstalls software version 1.1.4.

Use the iPod shuffle Reset Utility to fix the following issues:

• With the iPod shuffle switched on, pressing the Play button will cause amber and green LEDs to flash for a few seconds, and the unit will not play any music, nor can you sync music to it from iTunes.
  
• On a Windows PC, iPod shuffle will appear in My Computer as a "Removable Disk," however the iPod shuffle volume will not mount correctly. The unit is listed in Device Manager under "Disk Drives" as "Apple iPod USB Device."
  
• On a Mac, the unit will only be recognized in Apple System Profiler under Hardware -> USB and will not appear or mount in the Finder.
  
• When attempting to restore, the unit may not be recognized at all. However, if it is recognized, the restore may fail with an error dialog "Firmware update failure. Disk write error" or another error. It may take 3 restore attempts before the error appears. Note: iPod shuffle may take several minutes to be recognized.

More details on the Utility are available from this Apple Web page.

We do not have any of these issues with our original 512MB iPod shuffle that we use every day so we have not applied the Utility. [Bill Fox]