How To Downgrade An iPod Touch

Knowing how to downgrade an iPod touch is helpful if you are experiencing crashes or bugs with a new firmware update. Occasionally, new firmware is released for the iPod Touch that “locks out” some applications or functions that were present with the original or older firmware versions. Thankfully, downgrading the firmware is an option, and as you will see, is quite simple.

To begin, you will need the following items:

• iPod Touch
• A PC
• Firmware file

1. Download firmware. Locate and download a copy of the firmware you wish to downgrade to. There are many websites that offer various versions of the iPod Touch firmware, and by using your favorite search engine you can easily locate one. Save the firmware file to your desktop.
2. Turn off iPod Touch. Make sure that your iPod touch is not connected to your computer and then power it off by holding down the power button for 10 seconds.
3. Press “Home” button. Press and hold the “Home” button. After ten seconds have passed, connect the iPod to your PC while still holding down on the “Home” button. A message should appear on your iPod Touch that reads “Connect to iTunes”. This means the iPod is now in recovery mode and ready to be downgraded. You may now release the “Home” button.
4. Downgrade firmware. Open iTunes and click on the iPod Touch device located in the sidebar (on the left side of the screen by default). You should then see a button in the right window pane that reads “Restore”. Hold down the “Shift” button on the keyboard and click on the “Restore” button. This will open up a window where you can browse for and load the firmware you intend to downgrade to. Locate the file and hit “OK”. This will begin the process of downgrading your iPod Touch.
5. Test it out. Once the process has completed, your iPod Touch will reboot. Confirm that the firmware version is downgraded by using the information displayed in iTunes.