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Comment by playpause | Hacker News Reader

Why do you prefer Lightning to USB-C? Just curious.

I prefer it because it feels way better. The snap, and the way the plug feels secure in the socket.... I had a nexus 6p for a year and the plug was so damn unreliable and wiggly. Bought multiple different types but they were all bad. That said, I haven't used any Apple devices with USBC and I would not be surprised if they felt much better.

I have an iPhone and a MacBook with USB-C ports, and my experience has been the exact opposite. The lightning port on my iPhone is really weak, all cords can way too easily lose a connection so my music stops or it stops charging. The USB-C on my laptop snaps in really nicely, I'm never worried about the cable not being fully connected.

Sounds like you’ve got some lint in your iPhone’s charging port. I recently used a cocktail stick to remove a big lump of it from my wife’s 6s where she had the same issues.

Cable snaps in nicely now.

Yeah that's what I was originally hoping, but I've tried cleaning it out a few times with no luck.

Two of the usb-c ports on my 2016 MBP has been loose for a while

I understand what you mean about the feel but lightning ports have a fundamental physical flaw that is part of its design. The pins are on the iOS device side so if they wear down or break that device needs to be repaired. With USBC, the pins are on the cable side so any damage to them is just a simple cable replacement.

Is this an actual problem? In all my experience I've seen cables fall apart (mainly USB Micro or HDMI) but beyond lint, never had any issues relating to the actual ports.

The lightning contacts are flush with the port, so very unlikely to get damaged. On the other hand the USB-C has that fragile looking wafer on the device-side.

I agree. I will often knock out the USB-C cable from my MacBook when it's on my lap causing it to stop charging, whereas I can hang my phone from a lightning cable.

For usb-c, this depends hugely.

I've had phones were the plug felt very weak in the socket, and devices with a very satisfying snap and a very strong connection.

This is to say that usb-c is not inherently bad, it depends a lot on the hardware (and I'm sure Apple will get it right)

They didn't on the MBP - some of my dongles and cables even with high end equipment lose connections easily.

I've had a 6p for ~2.5 years now and only occasionally have troubles, and then only with certain plugs.

the snap. and things cant get IN the cable port.

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