6 ms·

USB-C Port on iPhone

66 points by hasheddan 4y ago

melling 4y ago
I’ve got a USB-C on my iPad and I must say that the lightning port is a better connector, at least as far as inserting and removing it.
- ev1 4y ago
  When I'm really mobile on some days I'm genuinely terrified of breaking off the USB-C tab inside the port at times. It feels a lot.. safer? to be inserting the middle portion like lightning, I am rather unsure how to describe it.
  - woojoo666 4y ago
    I think the danger with lightning is that it's much easier to lead to short circuiting due to the exposed pins. I remember reading that some incidents were causing fires.
    - rubatuga 4y ago
      Accidentally woke up with a lightning cable under my back, it gave me a small burn.
  - phendrenad2 4y ago
    Having seen USB-C connectors bend and crumple, and having never seen a lightning connector bend or crumple, I agree with you.
- smileysteve 4y ago
  At the risk of being ironic, I use magnetic connectors on my usbc MacBook pro
  - m-p-3 4y ago
    I'm honestly surprised Apple has not yet released an official USB-C to MagSafe adapter yet.
    - ThePowerOfFuet 4y ago
      There are unofficial ones, but it is a horrible idea as misalignment can cause voltage to be applied to pins which can't handle it, blowing out the circuitry for the port.
    - ahaseeb 4y ago
      Yeah or a subscription to using adapters :)
- mackatap 4y ago
  I only like usbc because my phone, Thinkpad, MacBook, switch, and vape all use it.
- Gigachad 4y ago
  I find the iPad usb c to be entirely sufficient, but lighting certainly has a more satisfying snap. Would still rather usb c on the iPhone.
- WastingMyTime89 4y ago
  The issue with lighting is that the springs used to ensure proper contact are on the phone side. USB-C wisely put them on the cable side. This means it’s a bit harder to insert but when the springs become loose you just need a new cable rather than get your phone repaired.
  - evgen 4y ago
    A problem I and everyone else I know with a lightning-connector iPhone (or iPad) have never encountered. Ever. This mythical problem has been repeatedly brought up and I am now beginning to think that it is simply a theoretical problem and not one that anyone ever has, but the additional effort needed to align and insert a usb-c connector is quite real. If I could use wireless charging on my iPad I am certain I would never again use a cable for power because it is such a pain to do without actually looking at the connection point.
    - schwartzworld 4y ago
      > everyone else I know with a lightning-connector iPhone (or iPad) have never encountered. Ever. How long do you keep your phone on average? Also, how can you know that nobody around you has ever experienced this problem? I have, but I didn't tell everybody I knew about it.
      - evgen 4y ago
        I keep phones longer than most to test apps on old hardware. Am looking at an iPhone 6S, and original iPhone SE, and an iPhone 12 right now. All three are plugged in via lightning at least three times a week to a dev box. I know several other developers with similar experience at frequent connections via lightning connector and not a single case of failure on the phone side of the connection. The only time I have had an issue is when pocket lint got into the connection port and after a period of being compressed by the lightning connector the tiny puck of fluff eventually made a good connection difficult. A paperclip was sufficient to clear the problem. Would love to hear proof of the occurrence of this particular problem though. Until I do I will file it with UFOs and Bigfoot in the category of 'imaginary problems.'
traviswt 4y ago
Here’s a YouTube video of a similar project: https://youtu.be/1yudWXta6dM https://youtu.be/1yudWXta6dM
- gruez 4y ago
  Or this: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WCEzdj_8YwU https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WCEzdj_8YwU Seems like there's a lot of people doing the same project.
  - Retr0id 4y ago
    Or this (iPod nano, instead of iPhone) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Lwv82l3Gsd0 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Lwv82l3Gsd0 From the same author as the OP - me :)
solarkraft 4y ago
Has anyone made kits for this type of procedure yet? Maybe I'd buy one for an iPhone X at a reasonable price, since the charging port is the single most annoying thing about using it day to day.
jandorn 4y ago
A lot of people come to my repair shop with Apple devices. Many of them have “mushy” feeling UCB-C ports that don’t click when inserting a cable. It seems that Lightning port is vastly superior.

66 points by hasheddan 4y ago

I’ve got a USB-C on my iPad and I must say that the lightning port is a better connector, at least as far as inserting and removing it.

ev1 4y ago
When I'm really mobile on some days I'm genuinely terrified of breaking off the USB-C tab inside the port at times. It feels a lot.. safer? to be inserting the middle portion like lightning, I am rather unsure how to describe it.
- woojoo666 4y ago
  I think the danger with lightning is that it's much easier to lead to short circuiting due to the exposed pins. I remember reading that some incidents were causing fires.
  - rubatuga 4y ago
    Accidentally woke up with a lightning cable under my back, it gave me a small burn.
- phendrenad2 4y ago
  Having seen USB-C connectors bend and crumple, and having never seen a lightning connector bend or crumple, I agree with you.
smileysteve 4y ago
At the risk of being ironic, I use magnetic connectors on my usbc MacBook pro
- m-p-3 4y ago
  I'm honestly surprised Apple has not yet released an official USB-C to MagSafe adapter yet.
  - ThePowerOfFuet 4y ago
    There are unofficial ones, but it is a horrible idea as misalignment can cause voltage to be applied to pins which can't handle it, blowing out the circuitry for the port.
  - ahaseeb 4y ago
    Yeah or a subscription to using adapters :)
mackatap 4y ago
I only like usbc because my phone, Thinkpad, MacBook, switch, and vape all use it.
Gigachad 4y ago
I find the iPad usb c to be entirely sufficient, but lighting certainly has a more satisfying snap. Would still rather usb c on the iPhone.
WastingMyTime89 4y ago
The issue with lighting is that the springs used to ensure proper contact are on the phone side. USB-C wisely put them on the cable side. This means it’s a bit harder to insert but when the springs become loose you just need a new cable rather than get your phone repaired.
- evgen 4y ago
  A problem I and everyone else I know with a lightning-connector iPhone (or iPad) have never encountered. Ever. This mythical problem has been repeatedly brought up and I am now beginning to think that it is simply a theoretical problem and not one that anyone ever has, but the additional effort needed to align and insert a usb-c connector is quite real. If I could use wireless charging on my iPad I am certain I would never again use a cable for power because it is such a pain to do without actually looking at the connection point.
  - schwartzworld 4y ago
    > everyone else I know with a lightning-connector iPhone (or iPad) have never encountered. Ever. How long do you keep your phone on average? Also, how can you know that nobody around you has ever experienced this problem? I have, but I didn't tell everybody I knew about it.
    - evgen 4y ago
      I keep phones longer than most to test apps on old hardware. Am looking at an iPhone 6S, and original iPhone SE, and an iPhone 12 right now. All three are plugged in via lightning at least three times a week to a dev box. I know several other developers with similar experience at frequent connections via lightning connector and not a single case of failure on the phone side of the connection. The only time I have had an issue is when pocket lint got into the connection port and after a period of being compressed by the lightning connector the tiny puck of fluff eventually made a good connection difficult. A paperclip was sufficient to clear the problem. Would love to hear proof of the occurrence of this particular problem though. Until I do I will file it with UFOs and Bigfoot in the category of 'imaginary problems.'

traviswt 4y ago

Here’s a YouTube video of a similar project: https://youtu.be/1yudWXta6dM https://youtu.be/1yudWXta6dM

gruez 4y ago
Or this: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WCEzdj_8YwU https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WCEzdj_8YwU Seems like there's a lot of people doing the same project.
- Retr0id 4y ago
  Or this (iPod nano, instead of iPhone) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Lwv82l3Gsd0 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Lwv82l3Gsd0 From the same author as the OP - me :)

solarkraft 4y ago

Has anyone made kits for this type of procedure yet? Maybe I'd buy one for an iPhone X at a reasonable price, since the charging port is the single most annoying thing about using it day to day.

jandorn 4y ago

A lot of people come to my repair shop with Apple devices. Many of them have “mushy” feeling UCB-C ports that don’t click when inserting a cable. It seems that Lightning port is vastly superior.