If you use an iPod or iPhone as your personal music device, you will undoubtedly been in the position where you have wanted to listen to your device, but it was almost flat! Luckily, you are near a PC, but it is not the PC which has your iTunes account. If you plug it in, it will try to sync your device, wiping all your music! So it seems you are stuck….or are you? You can use any PC with a USB port to charge your device as long as you know these two simple tricks!
1. Stop your device from syncing to a machine that has iTunes installed
Crazy to think that there are still computers that don’t have iTunes installed? Well there are quite a few; most likely the computers you use at work will not have iTunes installed. If this is the case, go to step 3.
Windows users
To stop iTunes from syncing on a Windows machine, after inserting your iPod, hold down Shift and Control. This will stop your device from automatically syncing, which will protect your data.
Mac users
Similarly, on a Mac based machine, hold down Command and Option to stop your device from syncing.
2. Exit iTunes
Once you have stopped the sync process, exit iTunes.
3. Eject your device
Once you have stopped your device from syncing, eject your device like you would eject any other USB device. Once you have done so, you will see the bar showing that the device is able to be disconnected. Leave your device connected and wait for that screen to be closed.
When your look at your device now, it is now operational, with the added bonus that is charging! Enjoy the ability to charge and listen at the same time!
