USB

Lightning Connector chip policies against third-party alternatives

Ed Sutherland ∙ Updated April 10, 2018

Apple apparently has gone to great length and expense to ensure consumers purchase only its version of the Lightning connector. The connector, which debuted with the iPhone 5, includes a chip which serves to prevent third-party alternatives, according to a report.

The authentication chip is located between the cable's V+ contact and power pin, according to Double Helix Cables, which took the new cable apart, sharing its results with AppleInsider. Because the chip appears only in Apple's Lightening cable, third-party alternatives offered by places like Alibaba.com won't work, the company claims...

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Purported accessories for next-gen iPhone leaked

Cody Lee ∙ August 29, 2012

We're just weeks away from Apple's next-gen iPhone event, and the leaked parts just keep on coming. This time it's a wall charger, USB cable and a case — all of which appear to be made for the handset and its rumored smaller dock connector.

For the first time since its inception, Apple is widely expected to change the dock connector on its iPhone this fall. Instead of the usual 30-pin setup, it's said to be utilizing a smaller, 8-pin connector that we'll also see in future iOS products...

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Claimed photo of next-gen iPhone sync cable surfaces

Cody Lee ∙ Updated January 22, 2018

Over the past few weeks, we've seen an increase in iPhone 5 part leaks — specifically the dock connector/headphone jack assembly. The components have echoed previous reports that the next-gen iPhone would have a smaller dock connector.

Adding to the evidence is a new photo of a USB charging/sync cable, which popped up online this afternoon. With its 8-9 pin end matching up with the previous parts we've seen, it's believed the cable belongs to Apple's new smartphone....

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The ChargeCard: an iPhone charger that fits in your wallet

Cody Lee ∙ Updated April 18, 2018

This is pretty cool: inventors Noah Dentzel and Adam Miller have finally come up with a solution to the problem of having to lug around a spare iPhone cable.

The ChargeCard works just like your average 30-pin USB cable — it will charge your device and transfer data — but it's compact enough to fit in your wallet...

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BioLite CampStove lets you charge your iOS device by burning stuff

Christian Zibreg ∙ July 16, 2012

Say what you will, but all day long performance is a pipe dream with today's power-hungry iOS devices. Because these are mini computers, iOS devices require lots of juice to run. Unfortunately, space constraints and today's battery technology just can't keep up with the realities of mobile computing (yet).

Folks tackle the problem with battery packs, but that's just another item to lug around while out and about. And guess what, a battery pack is one item that routinely gets forgotten in my camping preparations. But I never forget a camp stove.

Enter BioLite's CampStove, an awesome new 'accessory', basically a special camp stove which lets you burn stuff -  be it wood and pine or twigs and leaves or other bio mass - to convert heat to energy via its built-in thermoelectric generator, so you can charge your iPhone, iPod touch or iPad. The campfire will never be the same. A cool promo video follows right below...

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AViiQ Ready Clips brings tangle proof USB cables for your iPhone

Jim Gresham ∙ Updated October 10, 2018

Simply, I hate tangled cables. The most worthless item in your bag is a knotted-up bunch of charging cables and, if you've really got a bird's nest, it can take forever to untangle. Thankfully, everyone at AViiQ shares the common tangled-disaster-pain that ravages the world of technology and decided to do something about it. Ready Clips are here as the antidote and they fit quite nicely in a travel bag...

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PadSync: a great looking iTunes file sharing alternative

Guest Author ∙ Updated April 3, 2018

PadSync from ecamm is yet another way to access the documents folders of apps on your iDevice. The interface is very similar to iTunes File Sharing, located in the device view of a synced device. The main advantage is that you don't need iTunes running to use it.

Maybe not enough apps you use have added iCloud support yet. Or perhaps you want to be able to easily drag and drop movie files into your movie app from your computer without performing a full iTunes sync. The rest of you might need an easy way to drag a document from your iPhone or iPad to your desktop. Let's take a look at how PadSync can help…

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Apple Working on Universal Charging and Syncing Cable For Macs, iDevices

Oliver Haslam ∙ September 26, 2011

It's patent time again, and the latest discovery by those eagle-eyed patent-watchers at AppleInsider have spied a new application that hints at an improved method of charging and syncing our mobile devices.

The patent, originally filed all the way back in 2001 and recently improved upon, suggests Apple's boffins are keen to reduce the number cables and connectors we use for our mobile devices – that's Macbooks, iPhones, iPads and iPod touches. The old-fashioned click wheel iPods should also be able to get in on the action...

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Apple’s New Thunderbolt Technology Could Eventually Come to the iPhone

Alex Heath ∙ February 25, 2011

Apple recently introduced a new connection technology dubbed "Thunderbolt." In Apple's MacBook Pro refresh, the Thunderbolt port has been added as a new wired connection architecture that Apple hopes will unify its connection technologies.

The key feature for the Thunderbolt architecture is speed. Thunderbolt promises to be lighting fast (pardon the pun) and offer incredible speeds for data transfers. The need for Thunderbolt is evident for the desktop, but it's not a stretch to imagine that Thunderbolt could eventually make its way to iOS devices.

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How to Change Your iPhone App Icons Without Jailbreaking

Alex Heath ∙ Updated February 6, 2016

We Apple users are picky about our aesthetics. Some of us try to pretend that we aren't, but we are. Things like app icons matter to us. Apple doesn't make it easy to customize your iPhone's look on a system mod level, but luckily there are still jailbreak-free hacks out there to taunt Apple's need for aesthetic control.

I'm going to walk you through how to manually change app icons on your iPhone without jailbreaking. There are multiple reasons you may want to change an app icon; you think the developer's icon is ugly, you want a retina display-compatible icon, or you just want to mess with your friend while he's away from his phone. Here's how you do it:

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A Handy iPhone Accessory to Carry Around

Sébastien Page ∙ September 22, 2010

This has to be the handiest iPhone accessory you can easily carry around. It's a little USB iPhone charger that you can attach to your keychain.

It's called the flipSYNC and it will charge and/or sync your iPhone while on the road. It's so small and convenient that it allows you to always have your cable around...

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