3 ms·

> 1. The part that wears out is inside the phone in Lightning How is this mitigated in usb-c? As in how do they prevent the inside of usb-c from wearing out?

by vxNsr 6y ago

crooked-v 6y ago
The friction pressure that keeps the cable in place is provided by the cable head, while the bit inside the computer is just a solid block with nothing that flexes. Rough handling can still damage the latter, but otherwise its expected lifespan is long enough to put in the 'don't bother worrying about it' column.
- cesarb 6y ago
  From what I've read, the USB-C cable does have a pair of springs (one on each side, pressing on slots on the sides of the "tongue"), so it's not just friction that keeps the cable in place.
  - mmastrac 6y ago
    Here's a picture illustrating this. Also note that the data contacts can fatigue as well! https://i0.wp.com/blog.adriel.co.nz/wp-content/uploads/2019/06/IMG_20190227_134550.jpg?w=1512&ssl=1 https://i0.wp.com/blog.adriel.co.nz/wp-content/uploads/2019/...
mmastrac 6y ago
The USB-C bit is more like a PCB with a shell around it. There's only a small amount of moving metal in the shell, reducing the amount of possible fatigue in the expensive part of the equation. USB-C is sort of like "inverted lightning". The inside bit on the host looks very much like a lightning cable does.
ink_13 6y ago
They don't. The idea is that when it does wear out, replacing a cable is much easier than replacing a connector.
- vxNsr 6y ago
  Right, my question was why doesn’t anything wear out in the usb-c female part of the connection. The answer apparently is that the usb-c cable holds the part of the connection that has moveable parts, whereas the lightning connector has the part that holds the cable in place in the device itself, so once that eventually wears out the cable has nothing to hold it in place.

3 ms·

> 1. The part that wears out is inside the phone in Lightning How is this mitigated in usb-c? As in how do they prevent the inside of usb-c from wearing out?

by vxNsr 6y ago

> 1. The part that wears out is inside the phone in Lightning How is this mitigated in usb-c? As in how do they prevent the inside of usb-c from wearing out?

crooked-v 6y ago
The friction pressure that keeps the cable in place is provided by the cable head, while the bit inside the computer is just a solid block with nothing that flexes. Rough handling can still damage the latter, but otherwise its expected lifespan is long enough to put in the 'don't bother worrying about it' column.
- cesarb 6y ago
  From what I've read, the USB-C cable does have a pair of springs (one on each side, pressing on slots on the sides of the "tongue"), so it's not just friction that keeps the cable in place.
  - mmastrac 6y ago
    Here's a picture illustrating this. Also note that the data contacts can fatigue as well! https://i0.wp.com/blog.adriel.co.nz/wp-content/uploads/2019/06/IMG_20190227_134550.jpg?w=1512&ssl=1 https://i0.wp.com/blog.adriel.co.nz/wp-content/uploads/2019/...
mmastrac 6y ago
The USB-C bit is more like a PCB with a shell around it. There's only a small amount of moving metal in the shell, reducing the amount of possible fatigue in the expensive part of the equation. USB-C is sort of like "inverted lightning". The inside bit on the host looks very much like a lightning cable does.
ink_13 6y ago
They don't. The idea is that when it does wear out, replacing a cable is much easier than replacing a connector.
- vxNsr 6y ago
  Right, my question was why doesn’t anything wear out in the usb-c female part of the connection. The answer apparently is that the usb-c cable holds the part of the connection that has moveable parts, whereas the lightning connector has the part that holds the cable in place in the device itself, so once that eventually wears out the cable has nothing to hold it in place.