Getting a new 5K iMac for under two grand was nice, and the addition of Force Touch to the 15-inch Retina MacBook Pro was cool. But this release is by far the most surprising release from Apple that we've seen today.
Indeed, has released a Lightning dock for the iPhone 5, iPhone 5s, iPhone 6, and 6 Plus. You can even use Apple's new dock with a Lightning equipped iPod touch.
The dock is available for purchase now for $39.99 and ships in 1-3 business days.
Apple’s included Lightning cable just seems to fall short of useful. Maybe that is because it is too short. The charging cable that comes with your iPhone, iPad, and iPod touch is only about 3 feet long. If your wall plug is right next to your bed, then you will be OK, but otherwise, you need extra feet.
Amazon makes an MFi-certified Lightning cable that is six feet long, twice the length of Apple’s. So, if you need the extra length, or just want a second cable, Amazon has you covered.
I travel a lot. Not necessarily on vacations mind you. I just mean, I'm out and about on a daily basis, gone for side family visits on the weekend, and fly on a somewhat regular basis. Consequently, my daypack is always stuffed with cables for my gadgets, iPhone, iPad, backup battery charger, Bluetooth headphones and the like.
Naturally, there is some overlap there with the Lightning cable, but sometimes you need to charge the iPhone and iPad simultaneously. More importantly, my daypack is made for lightweight daily stuff and every time I cram one more even small item, it gets filled. Thankfully, I've added Nomad's NomadClip to the mix and I can store my charging cable on my belt clip, outside of the bag, and many other non-backpack locations.
If I had to guess, I’d bet that a lot of iPhone users charge their device at night, next to their bed. Doing so serves two purposes. You can charge your iPhone through the night while you sleep, and you can use it as an alarm clock. When docked, it could also serve as a display for relaxation images and late night talk show viewing.
The Lightning Desktop Dock from Mophie is a stand that is compatible with the iPhone 5, 5s, 5c, and 6. Connect your device to the dock and it will charge all night while you watch movies in portrait mode until you fall asleep.
There is a mysterious port on the Apple Watch that could be used to connect accessories such as a smart band or battery, reports TechCrunch. The outlet says that multiple sources have confirmed the wearable features a secret 6-dot brass contact used for diagnostics and direct access to the operating system.
Apparently the port is very similar to the Lightning port found on larger iOS devices, and is located inside the groove of the "bottom" strap connector slot. It's believed that this portal is "absolutely necessary" to install the Watch OS during manufacturing, and thus it will be present on shipping versions of the wearable.
SONICable is claiming it's the world's most advanced charging cable for the Lightning-supporting iPhones, able to charge your device in half the time as a normal Apple charger.
It offers an off and on switch that is behind the magic. When the switch is OFF: Its like a normal USB cable, charge and sync. When the switch is ON: All of the power is focused on charging, sync/data is disabled, which the Fort Lauderdale-based company says helps increase speed significantly.
As The Verge reported Thursday, Consumer electronics maker Philips took the wraps off its new on-ear headphones that don't have a built-in battery, instead drawing power from the Lightning port of an iOS device.
The Fidelio NC1L features noise-cancelling technology which uses four different microphones to suppress background noise. Audio quality is improved further thanks to the use of Philips's own integrated 24-bit digital-to-analog converter instead of the one built into iOS devices.
Tired of carrying around multiple cables? Of course you are! Lots of gadgets pile up around iOS devices. There are battery cases, portable Bluetooth speakers, powered headphones, and the like. Unfortunately, none of them use Lightning cables for charging as they instead require a micro USB.
I keep both a Lightning cable and micro USB cable in my daypack at all times. Actually, I keep two Lightning and two micro USB cables in my pack. My forgetfulness only proves the challenge of keeping enough cords around. If only there was a cable to satisfy both standards. Thanks to accessory maker TYLT, the Syncable-Duo is just the solution.
Apple during its MFi Summit that took place last week over the course of three days in Shenzhen, China told its 'Made for iPhone' (MFi) accessory vendors that it will be relaxing rules of the game.
Specifically, makers will be permitted to outfit their iPhone, iPod touch and iPad accessories with Apple's proprietary Lightning port beginning early next year, Jordan Kahn reported Tuesday morning over at 9to5Mac.
Accessories such as iPhone docks and battery cases with a built-in Lightning port would benefit from using Apple's proprietary I/O technology to provide power to both an accessory and the iOS device. The current implementation requires such accessories to provide an additional USB cable for charging.
We spent several Let's Talk iOS episodes chatting about fraying cables. Many people suffer from OEM Lightning cables that over time fray near the tip. Arguably, this happens from bending, flexing, and tugging on the cable. Personally, like Cody, I have never experienced this problem. However, most of my cables remain in place, whether in the office, kitchen or car, I do not tote them around. Also, I am careful to pull them from the pin head, as opposed to using the wire as my tugging point.
Here to resolve several issues, including the fray, is AwesomeCables. The newly released 6' Braided Cable showed up for review, thanks to their offer. I am a big fan of the build quality and, most importantly, MFi certification.
There have been a lot of rumors going around about Apple's alleged reversible cable. Most recently, reports are saying no such cable will be included with September's iPhone 6 launch. It is shocking reversible USB cables are not already in mass production. After all, the technology is quite old. Only since the reversible cable was linked with Apple, has there been such a firestorm.
Last week, we posted an article about accessory maker Truffol debuting a reversible cable, available for purchase immediately. I was able to get my hands on a pair of cables from the manufacturer and am quite pleased with their build quality!
Online retailer Truffol has launched a reversible Lightning cable for models of the iPhone, iPad, and iPods that support the connection technology. This marks the first reversible Lightning cable, meaning there is no wrong way to plug it into the USB port on your charger or computer as there is on the official cable sold by Apple.
Apple hasn't officially launched or embraced a reversible Lightning cable as of yet, but is rumored to do so when it launches the iPhone 6 in the coming weeks. Truffol is allowing you get a leg up on the Cupertino-based company for a measly $9.99.