charging is not supported with this accessory

I found out that in my case it's a problem of bad contacts. If I fidget with the USB plug pulling it out or pushing it in a little bit, I eventually find a position in which everything works. I verified this over and over and over. After I find the right position, and the phone is charging, if I push the USB plug all the way in the error message appear again, proving that it is a question of good contacts in a certain position. I bet that most of the people experiencing the problem would be able to make their cable work with the same expedient.

"OK, so what is your explanation? I've seen lots of USB extension cables that are data only."

As I said, this is NOT the case here. As for "What is my explanation" it looks like the very small voltage drop in the six feet causes the iPad to refuse it. Still, I came on here for ideas from others, not to be asked for my OWN explanation.

The connectors don't respond to wiggling or cleaning. The various odd suggestions (like turn on airplane mode) on other threads have no effect.

"I have a 6 foot Apple cord and my phone charges just fine with it. So it isn't the voltage drop in that length of cord. "

That is helpful information. Thank you. I guess I'll have to pony up for their cable.

I've also got an iPhone, 3G, and I keep getting that

'charging is not supported with this accessory'

error. Could it be the cable? The white cable sold

on Amazon with the electric / usb plug may NOT be

an Authorized Apple device, but a cheapo knockoff?

Does Amazon sell Authorized Apple cables, and chargers?

I only spent $60.00 bucks for the 'used' iPhone, with a chipped

screen corner.. and Net10 Unlimited data plan. I also can't

send photos I take to those who have iPhones.. I took a pic

of my dad to send to my brother, and red bang signs popped

up, but.. it allowed texts to go through OK!

(any solution to that error?)

Has anyone have unlocked or 'converted' phones to Net10

Prepaid with this kind of issue?

First, the charging problem has nothing to do with net10. It is either the cable or the connector on your phone. Inspect the connector with a magnifying glass. Check for damage or corrosion. Clean any dirt you see with a wood or plastic toothpick or a clean, dry toothbrush. Aftermarket cables are generally OK for any iPhone models before the 5. iPhone 5, 5c and 5s use a proprietary, patented cable that has an active circuit in it, so only Apple or Apple-certified cables will work.

Regarding your problem sending MMS messages, this is a feature that must be provisioned on your account. Contact Net10.

A lightning cable has microcircuits in the plug at the iPhone end. It is used by the iPhone to verify that it is an Apple cable or one from an authorized 3rd party manufacturer. It also does some signal processing, digital to analog conversion, and other housekeeping functions. See this analysis: http://www.chipworks.com/en/technical-competitive-analysis/resources/blog/system s-analysis-of-the-apple-lightning-to-usb-cable/

gciriani wrote:

So, the argument by Lawrence Finch goes down the drain in my case.

Don't know what your 'case' is but you asked about an active cable and he answered.

If you're having troubles with cables, have you tried cleaning the connector on your iPhone?

I've been following this thread, and I did read your postings. I'm just trying to understand the nature and drill further down on this problem.

At this point, thanks to your and PaulCB clarification, I understand that my cable is not in question. Now I'm trying to understand the nature of the contact on the USB plug portion. The problem by the way is excatly the same (same defect) with an Apple adapter or a Palm Pixi 110-240V adapter, or when plugged into my PC: I plug the USB in, but not all the way through (about 1/8" less than completely plugged in), and it works; I plug it further in for hte remaining 1/8" and the error shows up.

Does anybody have the schematics of the USB plug?

If it can help, another behavior I do not understand is that I cannot use my iPhone 3GS as a Personal Hotspot with the USB. If I plug it into my PC the iPhone does not appear as one of the internet connections available. So possibly this problem is related.

gciriani wrote:

Regarding the dock connector, I think the description I gave of the problem, rules out any problem at the other connector.

I don't agree. Pushing the USB plug in only part way can leave one of the 4 pins "floating" rather than grounded. This can be misinterpreted at the other end as a signal. But using Sherlock Holmes observation, if you have eliminated everything else what remains must be the case. You have tried different cables, different USB adapters, (presumably) different ports on your computer, and check with your carrier and verified that tethering is provisioned on your account. All that's left is a problem with the phone, and, as you have other problems with the dock connector that makes it the most likely suspect. Have you tried inspecting and cleaning it?

Lawrence Finch wrote:

Pushing the USB plug in only part way can leave one of the 4 pins "floating" rather than grounded. This can be misinterpreted at the other end as a signal. But using Sherlock Holmes observation, if you have eliminated everything else what remains must be the case. You have tried different cables, different USB adapters, (presumably) different ports on your computer, and check with your carrier and verified that tethering is provisioned on your account. All that's left is a problem with the phone, and, as you have other problems with the dock connector that makes it the most likely suspect. Have you tried inspecting and cleaning it?

I'm inspecting the connector with a watchmaker loupe; there are four contacts only. According to the schematics of the dock connector, they are # 16, 23, 25 and 27; respectively USB GND(-), USB 5 VDC(+), USB Data-, USB Data +. The same schematic also says

Legend pin 16

Pins 25 and 27 may be used in different manner. To force the iPod 5G to charge in any case, when 'USB Power 5 VDC (pin 23) is fed, 25 must be connected to 5V through a 10KOhm resistor, and 27 must be connected to the Ground (for example: pin 1) with a 10KOhm resistor.

The pins are all in correct position and shiny. For good measure I sprayed them with an electronic contact ckeaner, both on iPhone and connector side, with no change. But enough for this detour.

I know that the data pins work because I've been transferring photos to my PC without any problem. So the problem resides somehow with the interpretation of USB GND and USB 5 VDC, pins 16 and 23.

Dear Lawrence Finch,

Problem Solved!! The "charging is not supported

with this accessory" error was basically a 'cheap-o'

cable that wasn't authorized. I purchased an 'authorized'

USB / iPhone cable and the phone charges normally.

I even invested in a Otter Box Protective Gear with Holster/Belt

Clip for $45.00 on clearance rack at Wal-Mart. The 'real' solution

is simply making sure the charger and cable are indeed Authorized

Apple Supported Devices / Components. Knock-offs, and Cheap-o's

do not have the means to charge ANY device! It will cause Frustration

and Irritation! 🙂 (As far as Net-10, I use the slower Motorola Phone

to send, both images and texts. If I can't send pics or video clips, I

store to the Motorola 2 gig Data Memory Card, upload to my PC to

facebook or youtube. It would seem, Net-10 'service' won't allow me

much freedom or tolerance sending any size videos, pictures or texts.

The slower Motorola flip-phone did allow me to send both photo and

text messaging MMS and SMS.) Thanks Again! 🙂

Michael D. Lucas

76531 (New / Used iPhone 3G user.)

SOmeone needs to complie all this info on this thread; ultimately there are multiple go arounds but ultimately it's an apple software problem which encompasses not ony charging but low battery life, Wifi, and bluetooth problems.

I got rid of the 3GS and lost money, I bought 4 new in box units and they all behaved basically the same but not exactly I switched to older Samsung Galaxy S and I couldn't be happier.

I also noticed similar problems with my older iPod 4's due to the same software problems

Apple will not support the fixes on the 3GS' or the 4's, I think their motto is 'buy latest or else'... No more Apple for me, would like to support American but I need stuff I can rely on.

Hi, I posted earlier regarding this issue. I have an iPhone 3GS (actually, had three of them, sold two for 5c ugrades, I use the 3GS). The original Apple cable was too short for me to plug in the phone from the wall outlet charger and reach my desk, so I went online and bought a longer cheap cable for about $3.00. The cable never worked as a data cable, but it has for over two years worked just fine to charge my phone. The cable insulation is now cracking where the cables flex next to the end plugs, the printing has worn off the plug, but it continues to function fine to charge my phone. I'm just hoping you found your issue. Could be your cheap cable had a run of bad quality wire, too many ohms, or whatever. I've always noticed my phones charged faster and more completely (not kick out of charge early, say at 88%, which happened sometimes when using the Apple wall charger), when I charge them from a pure DC power source, and not a rectified AC charger. I don't know how clean the DC is coming out of Apple's charger, maybe you can find this on the net someplace, but that's been my experience. My phone charges beautifully from my Halo pocket power battery device, fast and right to 100%. My phone always also charges, with only an occasional rejection requiring a second try, from a cheapo $3.00 Asian-sourced cigarette lighter charger. That gets a pure DC feed, it just steps down the current. That's been working perfectly for over three years. There are also some good articles about charging circuits and how batteries build resistance to charging, which may be misread by the charging circuit, resulting in the rejection when plugged in. Good luck, I hope the Apple cable solves your issue.

I avoided Apple products for many years because I disliked their closed environment. With the release of the IPhone, IPad and Apple TV I decided to become an Apple user. Having just learned that I am forced to buy an offically licensed cable for my IPad, I am done. Why should I have to pay 10x the price for a cable so Apple can get more money out of me? My next phone will be android, no more Apple TV orders and my next tablet will not be Apple.

The company's creativity is dying, the products becoming stale and nothing new appears to be coming down the pipeline. You need to keep your customer base happy if you want to survive in a post Jobs world Apple.

Good Luck.

Funny you should say that. I just sold my unlocked 3GS, and was ready to buy a 5S, so I had to wipe my 3GS to sell it. The SIM card still fit in my old Samsung T-209. So I charged the old cracked glass clunker that still worked and although it does not have the functionality of the 3GS, I already have all that on my desktop. What thrilled me is that after starting to use the old Samsung phone, its been three days of using and talking and the battery still shows a FULL CHARGE. I'm thrilled. No longer a charger cord noose around my neck, and staring at the battery percentage. I'm having really serious reservations about getting a new iPhone now, or any new smartphone for that matter. These old beat up Samsung phones are for sale for five bucks: who's going to steal it? Peace of mind at last. Out of the fast lane. Be seeing you. (P.S. - no charging problems either)!