Thin Power bank Advice

This might not be cheap but maybe try asking Apple if they are able to swap out the battery in the Nano for you. It sounds like you want to hold onto the Nano until it dies so this might be your best option if Apple can do it.

I have never seen a battery pack that small before. If one exists then it probably wouldn't be able to hold that much power.

ds2chan wrote: ↑ This might not be cheap but maybe try asking Apple if they are able to swap out the battery in the Nano for you. It sounds like you want to hold onto the Nano until it dies so this might be your best option if Apple can do it.

I have never seen a battery pack that small before. If one exists then it probably wouldn't be able to hold that much power.

That's the problem - most power banks are designed for smartphones, so they need max mah.
For my needs, 800 mah would be sufficient.

The nano battery still works - just need to extend it slightly for some commutes.
With Apple, it would be expensive, and I think they just swap the device.

Will likely stick with my single 18650 solution.
Just thought I'd check if anyone knew of something more adequate.

Best solution I can think of in 15 seconds is maybe a 3D printed AAA holder or something.
Pickup some random bits from China to "fix" the voltages and pipe that into whatever a nano takes for a charging cable.
Preferably an L shaped or even U shaped cable to make it stick out less.

death_hawk wrote: ↑ Best solution I can think of in 15 seconds is maybe a 3D printed AAA holder or something.
Pickup some random bits from China to "fix" the voltages and pipe that into whatever a nano takes for a charging cable.
Preferably an L shaped or even U shaped cable to make it stick out less.

Here are some pics of what I use.

My solution is pretty decent - just annoying to not have it flat in your palm while holding.
I picked up a bunch of these things on clearance a few years back for peanuts. It un screws, and you can easily remove the 18650 battery. Threw out the crap one it came with an replaced it with a high quality Panasonic 2800mah battery, which I charge with a decent 18650 charger.

I only use this (it's actually a 16gb 4th Gen) for rating new music. The click wheel offers the easiest way to listen and rate, skip, etc. The final nano - 7th Gen, was super annoying with touchscreen interface.

3D printing I think would be the best solution for comfort and aesthetics. Maybe I have large hands but that looks like it wouldn't be too uncomfortable to use.

death_hawk wrote: ↑ 3D printing I think would be the best solution for comfort and aesthetics. Maybe I have large hands but that looks like it wouldn't be too uncomfortable to use.

It isn't too uncomfy to use - just a slight wobble.
If I do go the 3D printing route, I would design 1 piece that would fit both the nano and the battery (get rid of the rubber band). This would be super awesome - just not certain I have the skills to make it happen.
Printing out in silicone would be amazing.

My closest library recently renovated and put in a 3D lab - might just tinker around (if I find the time).

shikotee wrote: ↑ just not certain I have the skills to make it happen.

Honestly... sketchup isn't that hard to use.
I design specialty items all the time.
I just printed a bunch of custom remote holders. It'd be trivial to expand that to an 18650 or whatever you want to pack in there.

If it came down to it, send me exact dimensions and I could probably make an STL for you.
All you'd have to do is send it to someone to print.

Printing out in silicone would be amazing.

That one is more tricky. You could print in TPU but I don't know how flexible it is.

death_hawk wrote: ↑ Honestly... sketchup isn't that hard to use.
I design specialty items all the time.
I just printed a bunch of custom remote holders. It'd be trivial to expand that to an 18650 or whatever you want to pack in there.

If it came down to it, send me exact dimensions and I could probably make an STL for you.
All you'd have to do is send it to someone to print.


That one is more tricky. You could print in TPU but I don't know how flexible it is.

I think the issue with regular tpu is the nano might slide out too much.
The trickiest thing would be the nano (it isn't square - rounded corners, sides).
The silicone sleeve slides off somewhat, and I imagine this would be much worse with tpu.
With the way the bottom of the nano is designed, there isn't much clearance to close a case bottom without blocking the two ports.

Making only a block case for the cylinder power bank would be much easier.
Would only need to measure thickness and length with callipers.
Would still need some way to keep cylinder from flying out (if you swung hand while holding).

I wonder if there are any 4th gen nano stl's online?
Found this:
https://grabcad.com/library/ipod-nano-4g

I bought this that worked fine
https://www.amazon.ca/gp/product/B075V5 ... UTF8&psc=1

forget that price tho I think I paid 10 bucks for it. Its niche was it could easily slide right up behind your phone

lead wrote: ↑ I bought this that worked fine
https://www.amazon.ca/gp/product/B075V5 ... UTF8&psc=1

forget that price tho I think I paid 10 bucks for it. Its niche was it could easily slide right up behind your phone

Unfortunately, way too big.
Not the Nano phone, but the iPod Nano, which is 1.5 inches wide.
Consensus is nothing exists that would be that narrow and thin, as it would only be able to hold a skimp battery.
I guess practically speaking, the market demand is more for the product you shared (the size of a phone).

Was seriously considering designing and printing as suggested by @death_hawk , but have reconsidered.
Determined this by holding my existent set-up.
If I make the back wider, I suspect it will be more cumbersome to hold - like a mini brick.
With just the cylinder on the back of the nano, my hand is able to better fold around it while holding.
The only way it would comfortably work would be if the battery was about the same thickness as the nano.
Since I'm actively using it to input ratings, it will mostly be in my hand, so comfort is key.

So - it might be that my redneck elastic band engineering is for the best.
"She may not look like much kid, but she's got it where it counts"

Obviously not to scale and not actually finished since it'd just slide out, but here's a mockup I did in Sketchup in 60 seconds.



Here's fixes I'd obviously do:

-Round corners for comfort
-Put in a floor.
-And a gap for cables.
-Maybe a top although you could leave it open and double sided tape it. You could pick up something like magnets to let it lock into place.

Optionally you could extend it down a little to completely enclose the charging ports.

Depending on how deep down the rabbit hole you want to go you could DIY something with smaller batteries. Instead of an 18650 you could maybe go with 10440 or something. They're AAA sized.
Hit up fleabay for a battery management system, solder a bunch of junk together, and hope it works.

death_hawk wrote: ↑ Obviously not to scale and not actually finished since it'd just slide out, but here's a mockup I did in Sketchup in 60 seconds.



Here's fixes I'd obviously do:

-Round corners for comfort
-Put in a floor.
-And a gap for cables.
-Maybe a top although you could leave it open and double sided tape it. You could pick up something like magnets to let it lock into place.

Optionally you could extend it down a little to completely enclose the charging ports.

Depending on how deep down the rabbit hole you want to go you could DIY something with smaller batteries. Instead of an 18650 you could maybe go with 10440 or something. They're AAA sized.
Hit up fleabay for a battery management system, solder a bunch of junk together, and hope it works.

This is very cool. Appreciate the effort.

Some thoughts/mods...

Instead of having the naked nano clipped in, why not clip in the nano with silicone cover.
The bare nano would be more likely to slide, but silicone should keep it in place more securely.

I would stick with 18650. Length wise, the power bank is the same as the nano, almost as if they were meant to be placed back to back (the ports for both are flush at bottom).

Design wise, would slide in power bank from top (pictures will explain why). Would use an adhesive to keep power bank shell in place, and leave enough clearance up top to be able to unscrew cap and remove battery.

But yeah - this would work, especially since you kept it curving to fit comfy in hand.

shikotee wrote: ↑ Instead of having the naked nano clipped in, why not clip in the nano with silicone cover.
The bare nano would be more likely to slide, but silicone should keep it in place more securely.

That would work too. I figured the silicone would add a slight bit more bulk. It doesn't need the silicone for protection any more either. I figured double sided tape would be fine.

I would stick with 18650. Length wise, the power bank is the same as the nano, almost as if they were meant to be placed back to back (the ports for both are flush at bottom).

Oh I figured it was too bulky hence the smaller battery suggestion. If you're fine with the 18650 then yeah keep it.

Design wise, would slide in power bank from top (pictures will explain why). Would use an adhesive to keep power bank shell in place, and leave enough clearance up top to be able to unscrew cap and remove battery.

Same idea as the silicone, you could lose the shell too. Not that a thin case will add that much but you get the idea.
I was thinking a magnetic top or something. But there's no reason you couldn't just leave it open up top so you could unscrew it.