Why Apple’s charging cable breaks so easily: YouTuber reveals a surprising reason

Almost every Apple user has already experienced it: All of a sudden, small cracks appear in the casing of the charging cable of iPhone, Mac and Co. But why is that so? A well-known YouTuber is now shedding light on the background. Two decisions by Apple are at the center of this.

Apple’s accessories are everything else a bargain. The iPhone manufacturer already charges 25 euros for a short (0.5 m) USB Lightning cable. The horrific price policy for original accessories makes it all the more annoying when the included charging cable for iPhone, iPad, Mac or other Apple devices gives up and breaks. Many Apple users are familiar with this annoying problem, including the author of these lines. The well-known YouTuber Apple Explained has given an answer to the question of why this is so in a new video.

Apple’s charging cable: design and environmental protection lead to breakage

Accordingly, should two decisions mainly responsible for the cable problem. On the one hand I have Apple’s design department pushed, one to install thinner and thus visually more attractive cable strain relief. Apple’s engineers are said to have objected that a less thick cable strain relief could lead to increased cable breaks. But since Apple’s design team always had the final word, according to Apple Explained, the engineers were simply outvoted.

Another reason is said to have been the decision Gradually avoiding environmentally harmful and toxic materials such as PVC in the products. PVC is used in industry to To make charging cables more durable and resilient. Dispensing with this should also help Apple’s charging cable break more easily. The rubber material Apple uses instead is more prone to breakage, according to Apple Explained.

iOS 14.5 brings a lot of innovations for iPhones:

Woven fabric instead of rubber: trend reversal for Apple’s charging cables?

After all Apple now seems to want to tackle the problem itself. For example, the new iMac (2021) will be delivered with a charging cable that is not coated with a rubber material, but with a woven fabric. The same applies to the USB-C Lightning cable for the included keyboard and mouse. Before that, the HomePod was shipped with a similar charging cable. That raises hope that Apple will have more products like a future iPhone ships with these charging cables or offers them separately for purchase.