Functional Chinese knock-off of Apple's Lightning cable disassembled - Page 2

...but you didn't fix the count of pins? (pins 1-11+shield > 9)

 

Mstone made the count, it wasn't me.

 

Beside it doesn't change the fact that USB 3 doesn't have enough unused pin nor the Lightning port abilities to output all signals we need from a dock port for a mobile device. 

It would matter if you are using an audio dock, but analog audio has no bearing on this particular cable. It would on a dock, but it's best to use the headphone jack for analog out.

While I think it is pointless to criticize Apple’s decision to use the lightning connector, I was pissed that even Apple was not able to provide adapters or other accessories on launch day—this just exasperates the knock-off issue.  Soon, other unapproved accessories (docks, car chargers, etc.) will come to market, and Apple may be scrambling to play catch-up.  Since analog audio-out is on the bottom of the iPhone 5, and power via Lightning was reverse engineered, a dock with audio out is the next step IMO.  I’ll buy the first car adapter I see—Apple-approved or not—as long as it has decent reviews.

Edited by gordy - 10/31/12 at 12:01pm

 

My only deception with Apple is the lack of public specs about the lightning port, we don't know much about it yet.

such cheap fraud!...

wow, someone trumped my getting a 14.99 win8 upgrade though the "yes-i-really-did-just-buy-a-computer-so-i-can-try-a-"new"-os-that-only-has-cool-task-manager"...
Edited by haar - 10/31/12 at 12:14pm

 

I was wondering the same thing... "Noise? On a digital line? Huh?" Sure, I suppose the lack of shielding could allow EMI or RFI to distort the signal somewhat and it wouldn't be wrong to call it "noise" but unless it's bad enough to corrupt the data stream it should be imperceptible.

 

I found myself wondering if a vested interest in selling $250 custom cables influenced his analysis.

Unless it is a cable for the Kindle. @#$%!!

 

What the article references is NOT an adaptor though. It is the USB-Lightning cable. There is no DAC, no analog stage, and no place for interference to induce the audible variety of "noise."

Lol, yep micro-USB has a direction to be plugged... I guess paying the lighting cable $19.99 while it should cost a quarter of that price -i.e. with a reasonable margin- is all too justified to remove that standard connector "confusion". The whole point of a proprietary connector when standard connectors alternatives exist is to have control and to make even more margin on the usual people, Apple could have gone with micro-usb and micro-hdmi but it would have missed the outrageous margin...

The reversibility is just one aspect of the design. You don't think the Lightning connector might be more rugged? It looks to me to be a more sturdy mechanical design being a solid potted/fused connector design rather than separate pieces crimped together. I like that it's a smooth detent design rather than a spongy friction fit that the smaller USB connectors are.

I can't say I like the idea of spending more, but it's clearly a better design. Mini and micro USB just aren't impressive in any measure except for how pervasive it is. Mechanically, it's not that sound. Mini USB 3 is a silly boondoggle as well, and Lightning can probably adapt just fine without changing the connector.

Well we will see how long they last, the only sure thing is that it will still cost you far more than if you were allowed to use non-proprietary aka industry standard connectors, and that will remain an unfortunate constant. I am all for standard connectors, what Apple could have done is to merge the above mentioned standard connectors side-to-side on its cord/adapters, you will still have the direction "issue" but the convenience of a single cord and ubiquitous industry standards.

I am not sure if DAC is inside of a data cable. I mean that is the point of putting DAC into cable which has lighting on one side and TYPE-A USB on another?

so, uh, will there be some kind of sticker or mark for authorized lightning cables to help uninformed customers such as myself?

 



I suspect that you're referring to DMCA (Digital Millenium Copyright Act). The law says that it's illegal to reverse engineer something that is encrypted for the purpose of restricting access:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Digital_Millennium_Copyright_Act

I don't believe it has been established that Apple's cable has encryption. If it's not encrypted, then copying is allowed (as long as no patents are violated). If it's encrypted, then making a copy could be a DMCA violation, although the law is not really settled in the courts yet.

Other companies manufactured the 30 Pin connectors legally so I assume that we will indeed see some such cables. They will probably not be knockoff apple like this one, but will instead be branded to manufacturers. I assume that these will be available on Ebay for shipping from Hong Kong like most knockoffs though. I have a knockoff non-working iPhone 5 on my shelf that I got from HK for $12 including shipping. I have an iPhone 4 and I'm waiting for the seventh generation, but I loved the design so I bought that to bide me time.

 

My current Android phone takes forever to charge using micro USB compared to my old iPhone 3G.  That's plugging it directly to an AC outlet.  When plugging it into my computer USB plugin the difference in battery charge times is even more noticeable.  The iPhone with the old 30 pin connector just charged my iPhone faster than does the micro USB charging my Android.  There is a slight difference in battery size though in which my Android is bigger but the difference is still extreme.  I don't know why this is the case as I thought they would have comparable results but it is.

Just to give you an idea and this is not accurate test results but just quesstimating.  If charging the phones from 0% battery the iPhone would be done charging and the Android would still be under but close to 50%.

 

Personally I think people blow this whole proprietary cable stuff out of proportion.  It's not as if you have to buy the wire separate when you buy an Apple device, as it comes packaged with one, unless you want to buy an extra one.  I don't see anyone complaining that most Android phones these days don't come with headphones causing you to have to buy them along with the purchase of your phone. 

 

People are going to complain about all the devices (such as alarm clocks and speakers) that used the old plug.  So if Apple was to have switched to micro USB this time around wouldn't that still make your devices incompatible?  All the people that complained about that would still be complaining.

 

I think this is just one of those things that people will complain just for the sake of complaining against Apple. 

 

In the same token, when they don't redesign the iPhone allowing you to use the same case you had with your previous iPhone, if you upgraded from a 4 to 4s, then Apple sucks and is doing nothing new for you.

Yes, but it uses pure silver plated, ultra pure copper wires that he hand braids(perhaps on his shaved naked thigh?)

Apparently somebody thinks this makes the digital signal even better!

 

I can see the king's new clothes, can't you? 

Edited by DESuserIGN - 10/31/12 at 5:02pm

 

I was not clear enough and others have already corrected me,  only the lightning to legacy iPod dock port adapter have the DAC inside the cable. 

There will be licensed third party Lightning connector devices. The conference on Lighting connectors is happening in the next couple weeks, I think.

So, these cable sellers are actually getting a cheap version, spice it up and then reselling it at higher than usual prices? The inside still a cheap counterfeit.

neiltc13:

MicroUSB is not "the sensible thing". It's a mechanically inferior connector which is less durable and doesn't do all the things Lightning can do. Lightning can support HDMI out and DVI out, and has dynamically-configurable pins so that it can support more interfaces in the future that don't even exist yet.

MicroUSB is also thicker, which is a consideration.

Apple knows what the sensible thing is far more than you.

Noisy cabling in digital is just as important than in analog, sometimes, even more important. It depends on signal strength, as always. With analog, noise is imposed upon the signal, but the signal can still be used in a noisy environment. With digital, if the noise to too high, the signal is completely lost. This is why digital broadcasting cuts off more suddenly than does analog broadcasting.

It's also why we see digititus on Tv sometimes. When the noise rises above a certain level, the equipment can't distinguish between the noise and the bits, so we get random blocks appearing on screen. If the noise is too great, the signal disappears altogether. Really cheap digital cables cause a lot of problems, even though many people don't notice it. A 99 cent USB cable may seem fine, but it can cause a retransmission of the data a number of times, slowing everything down.

USB3 is different from earlier implementations. It's more like FW in a number of ways. Transmission of audio and video streams is supported, unlike previously, where is was all packet based. It also relies less on a host for certain functions.

Still, it's much less versatile than the Lightning connector for third party hardware. Micro USB is almost useless for that purpose other than for some Midi equipment.

As you should know, we can do wireless sync. Wireless charging is much less useful, even though some companies are making a big deal about it. You still need to have a charger plugged into a wall. Where's the advantage? So instead of having a small box at your wall outlet, and a thin cable to your device, you now need a device on your table to put your phone on to. That's supposed to be better? And it's less efficient, requires more hardware in the phone, and the charger costs more.

Some advantage!

Those industry standards arn't very versatile when compared to Apple's. Why should they take several steps backwards?

 

Soooooo sloooooooow. Anywhere from 10-50GB over the air? It would take hours.