I think some people are just more meticulous with their stuff than others. I mean by this that it could be considered as going out of their way to make sure the

I think some people are just more meticulous with their stuff than others. I mean by this that it could be considered as going out of their way to make sure there are no tight bends, not pulling on cables, not shoving the cable in a purse whichever way you can, etc. My original iphone cable I bought more than 3 years ago still has its rounded shape as when it was new. This, combined with poor quality products explains the difference in my opinion. The only cable that frayed on me was a MagSafe 2, next to the computer connector. The cable is ridiculously thin. It was the adapter for my 15 MBP. In comparison, I'm still using the original adapter of my 2008 MBP and apart from being scratched and dirty, it's still as good as new, cable and all. What I think happens often is that the cable will be under some kind of rotational stress. I've noticed I have a tendency to always turn the phone the same way, so the cable has a tendency to turn around its axis. It's something I see especially often on corded office phones. Also, cables are often at very tight angles close to the connector, so there beign next to no relief ends up tearing the housing. I've also seen many people pull on the cable instead of the connector to uplug it. That can't be to good for longevity either.