iPad mini Won't charge via USB A

[woolypants]

Just got a new iPad mini and am finding it won't charge via USB A to USB C leads. It charges for maybe a minute then says "Not charging" next to the battery icon. (No, I haven't got it set to 80% charging.)

I tried two different USB A power bricks that are known good.

However, it does seem to be charging OK using the USB C power brick and cable that came with my iPad Air M1 (5th gen/2022).

The weird thing is, the iPad Air is happy to charge using the above config of USB A to USB C.

What's your experience?

I asked ChatGPT and it said that older iPad Airs are probably OK with USB A charging but iPad minis are fussier. This sounds reasonable but I just wanted to check in case of a fault.

 

[BigBlur]

The newer iPads generally require more wattage than USB-A bricks are capable of providing. It isn't necessarily the cable that's the problem, but it may be difficult (if not impossible) to find a USB-A brick that can output the wattage needed.

USB-C also supports Power Delivery, where devices negotiate power specs to enable faster charging. USB-A cannot do that.

 

[baconcat_8964]

If iPad says "Not Charging" on screen, it could be either it decides not to charge (like battery is too cold or warm, or charing limit), or the power adapter cannot deliver sufficient wattage for iPad to charge the battery.

 

[transmaster]

I ran into the same thing with my M4 13” Pro. I have a number of USB A to C cables. With my metered Anker Chargers they don’t do the job. I have also noted my older, couple of years old, USB-C cables are not working very well. I have replaced everything with USB-4 cables. This cable can support 100 Watt charging. Of course the device requlates it own charging rate but the USB-4 cable makes sure it gets all of the power it needs. I have a few Thunderbolt 5 cables they can supply 240 Watts. The M4 pro max’s at 40 watts.