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New iPhone, iPad, or AirPods? Get Extra Apple-Certified Lightning Cables for Just $6

JarScott said:
Anker's a great brand for stuff! But is it really necessary to get Apple-certified cables? I can understand making sure you have genuine power adapters but cables don't seem necessary, you're just over paying. I got a very hand, very short lightning to USB cable from Tiger for £3.
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It's absolutely necessary. Sending power down incorrect or crappy cabling is a recipe for disaster.
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Traverse said:
Rub it in MacRumors...my absent AirPods...
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They're worth the wait :)
 
Bought a 3 pack a few months ago. 2 were dead in the first month. I have doubts that these are actually certified.
 
WRChris said:
I don't know what YOU PEOPLE do to make cables last. But seriously I use my phone while it's on charge and I imagine the constant twisting and moving is what does it to my cables.
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It's the twisting at the end that causes issues. If you never twist the ends and always grasp the solid part of the connector to disconnect then the Apple cables will last.
 
Get them at OWC - macsales.com Those guys have the real deal and have been around for Mac users for ages. I don't trust much stuff on Amazon these days. To many fake stuff.
 
I have the Anker 20100 external battery and it works great. Also an older USB-c to 3 port USB-3 hub that works fine as well. Both seem to be good quality! So just ordered a couple cables. One can never have enough lighting cables
 
JarScott said:
Anker's a great brand for stuff! But is it really necessary to get Apple-certified cables? I can understand making sure you have genuine power adapters but cables don't seem necessary, you're just over paying. I got a very hand, very short lightning to USB cable from Tiger for £3.
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If you ONLY use those cables for power, a low-end cable is probably OK. But a large part of the issue is when you then want to use that same cable for data and various anomalies start to occur. Most households are not organized enough to somehow tag the power cables as ONLY for power and make sure there is never a mixup.
 
Anker is my favorite accessory brand. I own many of their products. You really can't go wrong. Their Powerline+ premium lightning and micro USB cables are the best I've ever used and are $5 cheaper than Apple. Rechargeable battery packs, chargers, solar panels, cables, flashlights, car mounts (except the cd version), everything is awesome. When I had an issue with the cd mount, they sent me free versions of other mounts to try and sent me a $20 credit. Freaking amazing. With my iPhone 6s I spent hours for days troubleshooting on the phone with Apple and restoring not from backup and manually doing everything myself and I couldn't even get them to comp me anything at all for all the days of trouble and frustration. Then recently they issued a replacement program for those problems. Apple takes forever to recognize and help customers, and yet this company started by former Google engineers just gets it. High quality, good packaging, good pricing. I hope they keep expanding and growing. They recently developed a dash top computer so they're getting into a more advanced space. I'd love to do design work for them someday.
 
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ach said:
For some reason, the Amazon Basics cable seems to overheat to the point it almost catches fire. Check the reviews.

Does any have any comments if Anker's premium cables are worth the extra money? We are very hard on our cables.
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The powerline (step above this) is apparently well made and recommended by wirecutter, however I step up to the powerline + line above that. They have sales occasionally to put them around $12 for a 3ft. Cables are double nylon wrapped and shrug off precisely the kind of abuse that will destroy any apple cables.

PSA though - Apple will replace cables in the the first year and through whole two year Apple Care. I used to bring them in and swap several times until I finally started getting something better.
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Abazigal said:
I am still using the same Lightning cable that came with my 5s to charge my 6S+ and apart from some dirt, the cable is still in perfect condition.

I have no idea what you people are doing to your cables.
...
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Well, I jump rope with mine ...
 
chr1s60 said:
You can find lightning cables for cheaper than Apple charges pretty much any day. And didn't Macrumors recently posted an article saying something like 90% of non Apple chargers fail or don't work properly?
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Anker product are of the highest quality. I only started buying Anker about a year ago, and I've since become a huge fan. I know it's weird to get excited about charging products, but these are beautifully designed, as well as being economical.
 
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duffman9000 said:
It's the twisting at the end that causes issues. If you never twist the ends and always grasp the solid part of the connector to disconnect then the Apple cables will last.
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This ⬆️⬆️⬆️⬆️⬆️⬆️⬆️⬆️⬆️

I would have thought it i utterly obvious that for ANY cable you grasp the hard part at the end when pulling it out. Doesn't matter if it is a lightning cable, a USB cable or, hell, a straight electrical power cable.
But apparently this common sense is beyond the grasp of most people --- they just yank on the wire and then they're amazed at the consequences. Basically think of the characters in either The Inbetweeners (for Brits) or It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia (for Yanks) and how they might pull at a cable and you'll understand how 50% of humanity treat their cables.
 
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I will echo others, I own many anker cables....and I am very particular about 3rd party items to use with Apple products. These are great cables, very well made (better than apples more expensive ones) and I can't speak to their customer service because I have yet to have an issue with their products!
 
Lol at shameless punting. Absolutely no need whatsoever to participate in the silly MFi extortion scheme.
 
Fiestaman said:
Yes. Most definitely. You must not have many Apple devices or are new to them. If they aren't certified, then yes you can charge with them, but at an insanely reduced speed. You'll get the error saying they aren't certified and charging gets reduced to a paltry speed to protect the device. There's a chip in the MFi cables that does data/power management and makes sure nothing is out of wack. Some say it's simply so Apple can make more money, which they do, but with situations like Samsung's Galaxy Note 7, maybe tighter restrictions aren't so bad. I guess the question is, with all the horror stories about fake chargers exploding and cables fraying and causing fires, why would you risk your $800 device just to save a couple bucks?


Anker's USB battery packs are phenomenal, too. I have several and they are well worth the money. Anker is definitely a brand I support and trust.
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Very familiar with Apple products and a long time user, thank you. Not familiar with what you're describing. Majority of my cables are genuine but I don't think I'd pay extra just to have a certified cable.
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Todd Fisher said:
Being officially Apple-certified means that a product has met all of the quality standards set forth in Apple's Licensing Program. Cables, as an example would have to meet bend test requirements, have adequate cable shielding, etc.. All of the requirements that products licensed by the program are quite extensive, so any manufacturer that does abide by the program should be putting out decent products, so your product should last longer and be more robust than that $4 Lightning cable that you can get at the cash register of the gas station down the street.
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TBH this cable feels more robust than the trash ones Apple charge you a fortune for.
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name99 said:
If you ONLY use those cables for power, a low-end cable is probably OK. But a large part of the issue is when you then want to use that same cable for data and various anomalies start to occur. Most households are not organized enough to somehow tag the power cables as ONLY for power and make sure there is never a mixup.
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Who still plugs their iPhone into a computer?
 
WRChris said:
The problem with non MFi isn't that they won't work, it's that you don't know for certain they will work/work well. You are reading reviews before you buy just to see if it's a legit cable/charger. MFi is a very good thing for consumers, as it takes the guessing out.
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My post was about correcting the error of conflating counterfeit products with 3rd party products. As for the non MFi, I can buy products from companies like Belkin, Fellowes, Anker, and others with full confidence they will work and work well. MFi is no more a guarantee of quality accessories than the Apple branded accessories.
 
JarScott said:
Very familiar with Apple products and a long time user, thank you. Not familiar with what you're describing. Majority of my cables are genuine but I don't think I'd pay extra just to have a certified cable.
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TBH this cable feels more robust than the trash ones Apple charge you a fortune for.
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Who still plugs their iPhone into a computer?
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I do, for one...

This is the NEVER-ENDING disease of the internet. "I don't do something, and my friends (who are basically identical demographically to me) don't do something. THEREFORE no-one does something." Replace something with
- wears a watch
- uses cordless headphones
- uses a PC
- buys CDs
- watches broadcast television
etc etc etc
 
apolloa said:
Happy Christmas everyone :)

And buy the Amazon Basic cables, they are great and cheap and well made. Just make sure you get ones sold by Amazon and not a third party, should help rule out the copycats then.
Likewise with the Anker cables, make sure they are sold by Amazon and not third parties.
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The price is good, but mine broke in two months.

Also, Anker has a great car charger that charges very quickly.
 
JarScott said:
Very familiar with Apple products and a long time user, thank you. Not familiar with what you're describing. Majority of my cables are genuine but I don't think I'd pay extra just to have a certified cable.
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TBH this cable feels more robust than the trash ones Apple charge you a fortune for.
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Who still plugs their iPhone into a computer?
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Lots of people who are apparently not in your social circle
 
Love Anker stuff. I've had cables, small and large battery packs, and bluetooth speakers and earphones. Only thing I've had a problem with was the bluetooth earbuds. Their customer service was responsive, and sent me a new pair. The new ones are now faulty too, but my new AirPods make me not care too much.

It's a pretty simple recipe: Make a quality product, sell it for a reasonable price, stand behind your product if it fails, and people will spread the good word.
 
Anker is a fantastic company and they truly stand behind their products. I've had screen protectors, cables and chargers replaced. Their cables are the best 3rd party cables I've used and their chargers are extremely affordable and offer great capacity/size. Lastly, been using their screen protectors since the iPhone 6. Won't go anywhere else for screen protectors.
 
69Mustang said:
Unfortunately, you're both wrong. The article you mentioned was about counterfeit chargers masquerading as Apple chargers. 90% of chargers pretending to be Apple chargers were substandard. Apple certification (MFi) has nothing to do with whether or not a cable, charger, or any other accessory is reliable. There are plenty of 3rd party accessories that don't carry MFi certification and they're perfectly fine to use.
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I would argue that it is exactly this that allows Apple, and most any other OEM, to charge more for their own accessories, than even their official licensors. Why should a customer take any chances when they can buy the real deal supported by their device maker at the store when they purchase their equipment, or get them shipped straight to their door by just a touch of Apple Pay?
 
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