USB Type-C vs Lightning Connector Durability

[Cyanara]

A slight segue from this video, but something has been bugging me about the Type-C USB cable that I feel like people on the Internet probably have a good answer for.

 

As much as I love the idea of a near-universal cable, doesn't the fact that Type-C's design relies on a thin piece of plastic in the middle of the expensive female device end make it a significant liability? I've never had an Apple device, but the older lightning connector strikes me as having the better design for durability with solid components that follow the KISS principle as far as basic engineering is involved. I read that Apple were even involved in the design of Type-C.

 

The above video seems to demonstrate that I shouldn't be too worried about it, but I was wondering if anyone can articulate specific reasons for the design they chose?

 

Cheers

[zombienerd]

No more or less than the Type B Micro, I'd assume.  The device side had a thin piece of plastic in the middle, which (in my experience) was the first piece to break when the device was dropped while plugged in.

[Mira Yurizaki]

The plastic piece in the device end of the connector is in pretty deep, so you can't really push the plug in at an odd angle and potentially break it that way.

 

And while Lightning might look sound, I have two problems with it:

• Exposed pins. Almost every other power delivery device plugs into the device with a female connector so that you're not handing potentially live contacts.
• Lightning is only single sided. Granted this could be solved with a revision, but the original design of using half the pins is kind of dumb.

[Cyanara]

19 minutes ago, M.Yurizaki said:

The plastic piece in the device end of the connector is in pretty deep, so you can't really push the plug in at an odd angle and potentially break it that way.

 

And while Lightning might look sound, I have two problems with it:

• Exposed pins. Almost every other power delivery device plugs into the device with a female connector so that you're not handing potentially live contacts.
• Lightning is only single sided. Granted this could be solved with a revision, but the original design of using half the pins is kind of dumb.

Ah. Yes, that power delivery issue makes a lot of sense. Thanks!

[79wjd]

9 minutes ago, zombienerd said:

No more or less than the Type B Micro, I'd assume.  The device side had a thin piece of plastic in the middle, which (in my experience) was the first piece to break when the device was dropped while plugged in.

People seem to burn through micro-b cables somehow....I have no idea how (well, I do -- people are careless and treat their expensive toys like garbage) but it's a thing. 

 

Any usb-c and micro-b are both rated for 10,000 connect-disconnect cycles if I'm not mistaken, but I don't believe there is any official data regarding the lightning connector (at least not that I've ever seen).

5 minutes ago, M.Yurizaki said:

Lightning is only single sided. Granted this could be solved with a revision, but the original design of using half the pins is kind of dumb.

It actually was handled in the iPad Pros with a chip that would detect the orientation and allow for USB 3.0 speeds by utilizing all the pins. 

[Zodiark1593]

I haven't had a problem with either the cables or the port on my phone with USB-C. Come to think of it though, the only time I've had issues with my MicroUSB cables was when I lent them out. Never had issues with the ports. 

[DrMacintosh]

17 minutes ago, M.Yurizaki said:

•  
• Lightning is only single sided. Granted this could be solved with a revision, but the original design of using half the pins is kind of dumb.

? Lighting is dual sided and has been since its inception......

[Mira Yurizaki]

Just now, DrMacintosh said:

? Lighting is dual sided and has been since its inception......

The female connector has pins on one side.

[79wjd]

1 minute ago, DrMacintosh said:

? Lighting is dual sided and has been since its inception......

Not all the pins operate unless you're using an iPad Pro, which has a chip to detect the orientation and utilize the unused pins to achieve USB 3.0 speed.

[DrMacintosh]

Just now, M.Yurizaki said:

The female connector has pins on one side.

The cable itself is dual sided. And as stated before, devices that need the speed, like the iPad use both sides. 

[DrMacintosh]

Just now, djdwosk97 said:

Not all the pins operate unless you're using an iPad Pro, which has a chip to detect the orientation and utilize the unused pins to achieve USB 3.0 speed.

But the cable itself is dual sided and like you said, if you have a device that needs the speed of USB 3.0 it supports it. 

[Mira Yurizaki]

Just now, DrMacintosh said:

The cable itself is dual sided. And as stated before, devices that need the speed, like the iPad use both sides. 

Kay dude.

[79wjd]

Just now, DrMacintosh said:

But the cable itself is dual sided and like you said, if you have a device that needs the speed of USB 3.0 it supports it. 

The iPhones should also really support USB 3.0. It's kind of ridiculous that it's limited to 2.0 speeds. It's not a big deal most of the time for most people, but it's still stupid. 

[DrMacintosh]

1 minute ago, djdwosk97 said:

The iPhones should also really support USB 3.0. It's kind of ridiculous that it's limited to 2.0 speeds.

Well look at what the iPhone uses the lighting cable for. 

 

95% of it is just charging. iTunes syncing is mostly dead for the majority of users (not me though), backing up and restoring can be done in iCloud, and nobody uses the import adapters anymore. So while yeah it would be nice to have that speed, its just that the iPhone has no real use for it. 

[zombienerd]

11 minutes ago, Zodiark1593 said:

I haven't had a problem with either the cables or the port on my phone with USB-C. Come to think of it though, the only time I've had issues with my MicroUSB cables was when I lent them out. Never had issues with the ports. 

I've never broken a MicroUSB cable or port myself, but I'm an electronics technician (as well as a system builder, and Vape Shop owner, I wear a lot of hats), and have had many customer parts with broken device side charging ports due to dropping or knocking over when plugged in 

[DrMacintosh]

43 minutes ago, Cyanara said:

As much as I love the idea of a near-universal cable, doesn't the fact that Type-C's design relies on a thin piece of plastic in the middle of the expensive female device end make it a significant liability? I've never had an Apple device, but the older lightning connector strikes me as having the better design for durability with solid components that follow the KISS principle as far as basic engineering is involved.

I would probably agree with that. 

 

Its possible to break the connector on the inside but in the case of lighting its a lot easier to break the cable itself but I would argue that is better than possibly breaking the port. 

 

But.....realistically both of these ports are very durable and I don't think it is likely that breaking either of them is of any real concern. 

[Zodiark1593]

3 minutes ago, DrMacintosh said:

Well look at what the iPhone uses the lighting cable for. 

 

95% of it is just charging. iTunes syncing is mostly dead for the majority of users (not me though), backing up and restoring can be done in iCloud, and nobody uses the import adapters anymore. So while yeah it would be nice to have that speed, its just that the iPhone has no real use for it. 

Well, the iPhone can do 4k video recording. That alone can easily warrant USB 3.0+ speeds for those regularly recording, especially as the iPhone is probably one of the few devices that might be capable of saturating the connection.

 

6 minutes ago, zombienerd said:

I've never broken a MicroUSB cable or port myself, but I'm an electronics technician (as well as a system builder, and Vape Shop owner, I wear a lot of hats), and have had many customer parts with broken device side charging ports due to dropping or knocking over when plugged in 

I try to make an attempt not to abuse my devices. Evidently, I'm doing something right.

[DrMacintosh]

2 minutes ago, Zodiark1593 said:

Well, the iPhone can do 4k video recording. That alone can easily warrant USB 3.0+ speeds for those regularly recording, especially as the iPhone is probably one of the few devices that might be capable of saturating the connection.

Who tf is transferring video over a wire these days?

 

I could just Airdrop it to my Mac if I could not upload it to my iCloud Photo Library. If you are transferring to a PC, well....

[79wjd]

5 minutes ago, DrMacintosh said:

Who tf is transferring video over a wire these days?

 

I could just Airdrop it to my Mac if I could not upload it to my iCloud Photo Library. If you are transferring to a PC, well....

Someone who wants the transfer to happen quicker.....Which is reasonable if you're talking about long 4k video(s).

[DrMacintosh]

Just now, djdwosk97 said:

Someone who wants the transfer to happen quicker.....

I mean Airdrop is pretty instant......

[Zodiark1593]

6 hours ago, DrMacintosh said:

I mean Airdrop is pretty instant......

For smaller files, perhaps. Still pales to 5 gbps from USB 3 (let alone the 10 gbps/1.2 GB/sec offered by 3.1). Last I checked, the AC Wifi speed maxes out at 1.3 gbps (~162 MB/sec). Also, Airdrop is Mac exclusive, so a Windows or Linux user needs to go cable anyway. Not as though Apple cares, of course.

[DrMacintosh]

2 hours ago, Zodiark1593 said:

Not as though Apple cares, of course.

Why would they? Apple isn’t in the game of making users that use their competition easier. Well, except for Bootcamp. 

 

3 hours ago, Zodiark1593 said:

Last I checked, the AC Wifi speed maxes out at 1.3 gbps

AirDrop uses Bluetooth and WiFi at the same time. 

[Zodiark1593]

26 minutes ago, DrMacintosh said:

Why would they? Apple isn’t in the game of making users that use their competition easier. Well, except for Bootcamp. 

 

AirDrop uses Bluetooth and WiFi at the same time. 

Oh, how could I have forgetten Bluetooth? I'm sure we're all aware of the utterly massive amounts of bandwidth that Bluetooth provides. A whopping 25 mbps of bandwidth is totally not a drop in the bucket.

 

It would not surprise me if, later in the future, Apple decides to license some radio spectrum for proprietary use however.

 

 

[79wjd]

 

18 minutes ago, Zodiark1593 said:

Oh, how could I have forgetten Bluetooth? I'm sure we're all aware of the utterly massive amounts of bandwidth that Bluetooth provides. A whopping 25 mbps of bandwidth is totally not a drop in the bucket.

 

It would not surprise me if, later in the future, Apple decides to license some radio spectrum for proprietary use however.

I'm also pretty sure Bluetooth is only used to establish a Wi-Fi bridge. 

[MarkSpurrell]

Knocked my S8+ off my nightstand while I was sleeping somehow and the USB-C connector bent at a 45 degree angle. The phone port was fine though.