iTunes is not recognizing my iPod Touch 4th generation

Question

iTunes is not recognizing my iPod Touch. I tried re-installing iTunes but that didn't help. At first, my iPod was recognized by the computer as a digital camera but this has already been fixed.

Answer 1

First, try connecting to a different computer and/or using a different cable to rule out the possibility of it being something other than the iPod.

Next, check if there are any defects with the iPod. If you are using iOS 5, configure it to back up all your data to iCloud.

Finally, you may want to consider putting the iPod into recovery mode and trying to restore from there. If that does not work, you may want to visit the Genius Bar to check for any hardware issues.

How to do it: http://support.apple.com/kb/HT1808

Note: if you are out of warranty, and suspect it may be a physical issue, you may just want to continue using the iPod as it is, because once you put it into recovery mode you may not be able to get out of it

Answer 2

Try unplugging your device and rebooting it (press and hold power till you see slide to power off, slide it, then turn back on). Once you're at the homescreen, close iTunes and try connecting again.

If that doesn't work, unplug every device connected to your PC that isn't required to control it (i.e. don't unplug the power, mouse, keyboard or monitor). Close all programs that are open, including iTunes. Now try plugging in your device, opening iTunes if it doesn't do so automatically. Try this after a reboot if this doesn't work.

If that still doesn't work, confirm the USB cable isn't broken. The cord inside that transfers data might have a cut somewhere; if this is the case, the easiest way to fix it is just to buy a new cable from Apple.

Answer 3

Is your iPod functioning 100%? Any problems outside of iTunes?

One thing I have noticed is that iTunes doesn't like that Windows users have multiple USB devices connected at the same time. So you might want to try removing all but the iPod and try restoring from iTunes from that.

Answer 4

Try a different cable or connecting the iPod to another USB port on your computer.