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MrMister111

macrumors 68040
Original poster
Jan 28, 2009
3,874
368
UK
I have an iPhone 5, and iPad Minis. (foolishly) I bought 2 off eBay spare lightning cables for the car and work for spares.

I've now been given a spare genuine lightning cable, but daft me, I've mixed up the non genuine one. I know one as the USB plug came off, hence why I want to use genuine.

Is there anyway I can tell, as they look identical to me? anything I can check etc?

cheers
 

tardman91

macrumors 65816
Oct 21, 2009
1,134
344
Tampa Area, FL
Genuine ones should fit better. The fakes usually require more effort to insert into the lightning port. Some fakes have larger plastic covers on the ends (the genuine ones are smaller) and some have a metal lightning connector that appears to be two pieces. The fake ones will also only work for charging and syncing, while the Apple one will also transmit audio.
 

dictoresno

macrumors 601
Apr 30, 2012
4,482
619
NJ
can you post a picture of both ends of both cables side by side?

i believe the OEM apple cable doesnt have a dimple on the metal part of the USB connector like some do. also, the lightning part on the fake is usually larger and less streamlined in shape vs the real.

511r%2BtVeYiL.jpg
 

MrMister111

macrumors 68040
Original poster
Jan 28, 2009
3,874
368
UK
Thanks I'll have a look for the "dimple" and then these will be the eBay ones yeh?

I know one of the copies and it does have a dimple, so just need to find the other one now....
 

bpt123

macrumors newbie
Sep 3, 2013
1
0
Correct - no dimples on the genuine Apple cables - I checked mine. Also, the metal lightning end should be 1-piece vs multi-piece. Some great videos on Youtube detailing the differences. I won't be bidding on any "new" cables listed on eBay - not worth trying to save 5 bucks.
 

Gjwilly

macrumors 68040
May 1, 2011
3,216
701
SF Bay Area
Wait a week and then install iOS 7.
;)
The fake cable will generate an on-screen warning.

I've got fakes without dimples and I've got fakes that have 1-piece ends.
If it really is a good fake then the verification chip inside will be the only way to tell.
 

davidg4781

macrumors 68030
Oct 28, 2006
2,798
398
Alice, TX
I'm planning to buy a 5S very soon and will be looking to get some extra Lightning cables.

When people talk about fake lightning cables, do they just mean the knock-offs on eBay or does this include Belkin, Monoprice, and Amazon's cables? I looked at the fake ones on Apple's site and they looked pretty bad and cheaply made. I would assume these manufacturers wouldn't make anything like that.
 

dictoresno

macrumors 601
Apr 30, 2012
4,482
619
NJ
I'm planning to buy a 5S very soon and will be looking to get some extra Lightning cables.

When people talk about fake lightning cables, do they just mean the knock-offs on eBay or does this include Belkin, Monoprice, and Amazon's cables? I looked at the fake ones on Apple's site and they looked pretty bad and cheaply made. I would assume these manufacturers wouldn't make anything like that.

there are officially licensed, non-OEM (belkin, amazon basics branded), OEM (genuine apple ones) and unlicensed knock off fakes (the cheap ebay junk)

the officially licensed ones are endorsed by apple and are of comparable quality and manufacturing. the fake ones, aka the $5 ebay ones which are usually shipped from overseas, are non endorsed by apple and can be potentially harmful to the device. they are of substandard materials and manufacturing.

if you are looking for additional cables, buy official apple ones or the belkin/amazon branded ones as those will be your safest bet.
 

ABC5S

Suspended
Sep 10, 2013
3,395
1,646
Florida
can you post a picture of both ends of both cables side by side?

i believe the OEM apple cable doesnt have a dimple on the metal part of the USB connector like some do. also, the lightning part on the fake is usually larger and less streamlined in shape vs the real.

Image

How to identify counterfeit and imitation Lightning connector accessories (from Apple): http://support.apple.com/kb/HT5609

I bought two Apple lightning cables from the Apple accessories site (2m length), and absolutely no apple certified logo on them that is shown on that link. No dimple either. Only logo was the Apple logo on the box. Not even the one that came with the iPhone 5S. Go figure

Unless one is talking about third party cables that meat the spec from Apple and they are given the logo that verifies that they are genuine.
 

jusefe

macrumors newbie
Dec 9, 2013
1
0
I bought two Apple lightning cables from the Apple accessories site (2m length), and absolutely no apple certified logo on them that is shown on that link. No dimple either. Only logo was the Apple logo on the box. Not even the one that came with the iPhone 5S. Go figure

Unless one is talking about third party cables that meat the spec from Apple and they are given the logo that verifies that they are genuine.

Hi ABC5S,
Does the 2m cables you got from apple have serial numbers printed on them? this along the "Designed by Apple" quote?

It seems that some people have reported getting cables from trustworthy sites without that printed quote. I started to suspect that apple added the printed message to later cable production batches..
 

Partridge

macrumors 6502
Jul 28, 2007
355
81
Hi ABC5S,
Does the 2m cables you got from apple have serial numbers printed on them? this along the "Designed by Apple" quote?

It seems that some people have reported getting cables from trustworthy sites without that printed quote. I started to suspect that apple added the printed message to later cable production batches..

The print and serial numbers are VERY hard to see. Almost like a watermark.
 
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