I have an iPhone 5, which is a believe the first generation that used the new lightning cable.
I love it in theory… doesn’t matter which way it’s plugged in, super-easy to insert and remove.
BUT… I’ve had incredibly bad luck with the cables themselves. The connection seem to get worn out incredibly quickly, such that eventually no amount of plugging and wiggling actually gets the phone to start charging. I must have owned something like 8 cables in the past two years. I would say that the problem might be the connection on the phone itself, except that new cables always seem to work just fine, at least for a while.
I’ve also had a lot of experiences where I’m plugging the phone just into a power source with no data (ie, my car charger), and the little battery icon turns green for a second (indicating it’s charging). Then it turns white again, and a little message pops up saying “this device or accessory may not be supported”. Then I unplug the cable and rotate it 180 and plug it back in (which is SUPPOSED TO DO NOTHING) and suddenly it works.
are these actual Apple Lightning cables or third party ones certified “Made for iPhone?” they should work since Apple cables and approved third party ones contain an authentication chip to indicate they’re genuine. if they’re $0.50 bargain “lightning” cables, then my experience with such has been hit or miss. including such issues as working, then not working unless unplugged and reversed, and not being able to charge an iPad.
They are generally not genuine Apple products (which seem ridiculously expensive), but most of the ones I’ve bought have certainly not been dirt-cheap, and have universally worked for a while, so it’s not that they’re missing some chip and completely can’t function at all.
I have had these issues. I find that only the cables from Apple are bomb-proof.
I’ve found that for the car if I replace the USB plug for the power, I can then get some more life out of old non-apple cables. Technically, this makes no sense.
I also find that I have two swap the non-apple cables during long trips, and flip the phone-side plugs up and down to keep the power woking. This makes no technical sense.
The phone is on its last legs, and is on a replacement battery that overheats. I find that sometimes I can only get the phone to charge if I stick the phone in the A/C vent to cool it down.
So far I’m blaming the battery, and the possibility that the plug into the phone is affected by the heat inside the phone.
I’ve had decent luck purchasing cables from Amazon with high user ratings, including some awesome 12’ monsters that are great for work.
Most important - one must have a powerful charger to plug into; the phones need power and when the power is iffy and the cable gets old then the the problems start.
Well, now you know they are expensive for a reason …!
The other problem you can get is dirt and lint in the phone’s Lightning socket. a few months ago I couldn’t get the cable properly plugged in, and took it to the phone shop I bought it from. The tech there used special small tweezers and pulled out about two belly-button’s worth of fluff! This is probably because I typically have the phone upside-down in my rear pocket.
I’ve had this problem with genuine Apple lightning cables constantly. I think it’s the connector on the phone itself, not the cable, that gets loose over time. I think it’s just not a great connector design and the female side wears out quickly.
I’ll note that the same cables almost never give me a problem on my mini iPad, which I charge far less often.
As for getting it to work again, lick it. Seriously. A little moisture seems to improve the electrical contact, at least temporarily.
Once I read the OP, I knew that those weren’t genuine apple cables. Happens every time with the knockoffs, they charge for a while and then the stop working. Never buy them.
If you want cheaper cables, Amazon’s store brand cables are certified. I’ve been using them for months, they work fine. 8 knockoffs will get you a nice Amazon cable that just works.
You can try cleaning the port with a blast of compressed air.
Not to sound accusatory, but are you respectful of your cables? Some people treat their cables and phones like rag dolls then wonder why they don’t work (again, not casting aspersions, it’s just some people don’t realize even cables have stress limits). For example, you might unknowingly be winding them up too tightly causing fraying. Anyway, that’s just an idea.
The Hail Mary pass is to make an appointment at your local Apple Store and bring the original Apple-provided cable and show them it doesn’t work. If the problem is the cable, nicely ask them if they can just show some pity and toss you a free cable. Bring the non-Apple cables to show them you’ve already bought so many cables. If you bought AppleCare for the phone (even though it is probably out of warranty by now depending on when you bought it), that will probably help make your case.