iPhone 6 / Lightning connector

Question

Level 1

17 points

iPhone 6 / Lightning connector

Hello,

I own an iPhone 6.

Since a few months, the lightning connector has been increasingly whimsical and erratic.

It has gotten to a point where i have to push the lightning cable HARD in the iPhone and play around with it so it will connect and charge.

Then a pray that there is not even a gust of gentle wind going on around the iPhone or it will disconnect.

I've tried cleaning it with at cotton swab, and blowing in it with compressed air but nothing will do.

I've also tried several lightning cables but clearly, the cable is not the problem, it is the connector on the iPhone 6.

Is there anything I can try?

Thanks!

iPhone 6, iOS 9.3.2

Posted on May 26, 2016 1:43 PM

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Answer 1

May 14, 2017 11:04 PM in response to BlazeStar

I had to use a paper clip to clean out the headphone jack and once I did that my handsfree buttons started to work again. proceeded to clean out the lightning port as well when I realized that it was the gunk inside that was causing problems with loose charging and crappy sound on the headphones.

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Answer 2

ChrisJ4203

Level 10

230,311 points

May 26, 2016 1:47 PM in response to BlazeStar

Take the time to use a magnifying glass and a flashlight. This will enable you to looking into the port easier. Then use a wooden toothpick to see if you can dislodge any dirt, dust, lint, etc. The way you describe forcing the connector into the port, you very well may have force any debris in too far to be removed.

You may need to make a Genius Bar appointment at the nearest Apple Store to have the device examined. Should it be the port that is damaged/non-functioning, then the phone would need to be replaced.

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Answer 3

BlazeStar Author

Level 1

17 points

May 26, 2016 4:35 PM in response to ChrisJ4203

man, I have to say...

I was sure it was a hardware issue, I had already proceeded to look in the lightning connector with a flashlight and everything seemed okay.

When plugging the cable, it was loose, and in my mind it HAD to be related to the connector being loose or malfunctioning or something...

My last resort before a costly Apple Store repair was to post here.

I read that reply and I was like "yeah thanks but there's nothing jammed in there, I checked that already".

But I still decided to play with the toothpick as suggested, in the spirit of "what harm could it do".

Well...

I have no word for the amount of compressed crap I pulled out of this poor lighting port.

Mostly, it was small fabric pills... I always put my phone in the pocket of my suits... and I guess the lightning port, by design, is somehow extremely efficient in capturing free fabric.

And yes, exactly as described, by forcing the lightning cable into the port, it had become a very even - therefore almost invisible - layer of extremely thick fabric crap.

So thanks for your reply, my port is back to normal!!!

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