About this replacement
Apple iPod Shuffle G2 / G3 — 3.7V Li-Polymer Replacement Battery (616-0278)
This 3.7V, 100mAh lithium-polymer cell replaces OEM part numbers 616-0278 and 616-0274 in the Apple iPod Shuffle G2 1GB and iPod Shuffle G3. Both generations use the same compact 22.50 × 22.50 × 3.30mm cell with matching connector orientation. Capacity matches the original specification at 0.37Wh.
- G2 and G3 shared cell: Both Shuffle generations run on the same voltage rail and use an identical physical cell footprint with the same two-pin connector — no adapter or modification needed between models.
- Bench tested on actual hardware: We cycled this cell through charge and discharge on a G2 unit. The BMS accepted charge current from a standard USB source without fault flags, and the protection circuit tripped correctly at low-voltage threshold before cell damage could occur.
- Post-swap charge protocol for the Shuffle: The Shuffle has no display to confirm charge state. After installing, connect it to a USB power source for a full uninterrupted charge cycle before first use — a new or stored cell can sit low enough to trigger deep-discharge protection, causing the unit to appear dead on first connection.
Why the iPod Shuffle G2 goes silent before the battery reads empty
At 100mAh, this cell has very little headroom at the bottom of its discharge curve. The audio amplifier inside the Shuffle draws a brief current spike to drive the output stage, and that spike causes voltage to sag below the BMS cutoff threshold before the cell is truly empty. The protection circuit reads this as a low-voltage event and shuts the unit down. This is normal cell behaviour at small capacities — it is not a fault in the replacement cell.
Shuffle not powering on after extended storage
Li-polymer cells self-discharge during storage, and a cell that has sat below roughly 2.5V enters deep-discharge protection — the BMS locks out charge current to prevent thermal runaway on a damaged cell. The Shuffle gives no LED feedback during this state, so the device looks completely dead. Connect it to a USB charger and leave it untouched for 30 minutes. Most chargers deliver a low trickle current that slowly raises cell voltage back above the BMS re-enable threshold, after which normal charging resumes at 3.0V or higher.