I compared the cable I received with my original iPhone 4 and 3 cables. I cannot tell any differences other than a slightly different feel of the rubber/plastic material along the cable length, which by the way also differs between my genuine Apple iphone 4 and 3 cables. Another reviewer posted pictures on Amazon in which the cable in question appeared to have a slightly wider or larger connectors, but mine are identical in size, and appearance.I am very happy with this purchase and will purchase several more.
After my initial great experience with the cable (that I ordered from Amazon's merchant Cellular 5 Star), I ordered 3 more cables, and did not realize that the "default" merchant had changed to Importer520. I just received these 3 cables and they look similar to genuine Apple cables at quick glance, but on closer inspection, they all had surface blemishes and slight irregularities. They also had a suspicious looking "Designed by Apple in California Assembled in China" stamped on the cable length.
The cable from Cellular 5 Star was of very good quality that I could NOT distinguish from genuine Apple cables, but the ones from Importer520 are slightly inferior. The feel of the cable length material is good though, in that it is supple. It will coil and uncoil without keeping the bent shape.
I have contacted Importer520 to see if I can get a refund, but their stated return policy states that they will not refund shipping costs, which when I ordered was almost all the purchase price.
ADDENDUM June 16, 2011
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I purchased another "OEM" cable, this time from Item44Less and this cable is the worst of the bunch. The length of the cable is made out of a rigid plastic that does not bend like the more supple rubber-like material of the genuine Apple cables or even from Cellular 5 Star or Importer520.
ADDENDUM September 2, 2011
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I purchased another "OEM" cable, this time from C and J Accessories, which actually qualifies for Amazon Prime since their order fulfillment is through Amazon. This cable is clearly not authentic with the end that connects to the iPhone being larger by about 0.5 mm width and length. The other Amazon merchants cables were identical to design, but differed in quality. This cable actually differs in its design with its wider and thicker connector end. The length of the cable is also more plastic than a flexible rubber, compared to authentic Apple cables. I would say this is almost as bad as Item44Less.
ADDENDUM September 19, 2011
===========================
I purchased a cable from Niceeshop and it looks genuine except that the cable length material is not as supple as the genuine Apple cables. The cable length material is not as rigid as the Item44Less cable, but more inflexible (retaining bends) than the Importer520 cables.
SUMMARY (Ranked in order of similarity to an authentic Apple cable)
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1. Cellular 5 Star cables are the best and indistinguishable from my genuine Apple iPhone cables.
2. Importer520 is acceptable, but slightly inferior to Cellular 5 Star with some cosmetic blemishes. The cable length is made out of a high quality material.
3. Niceeshop is acceptable, but the cable length is not as supple as the Cellular 5 Star or Importer520.
4. C and J Accessories, although it qualifies for Amazon Prime, has its iPhone connector end as larger than the authentic one with a cheaper cable length material.
5. I would avoid Item44Less because of the rigid plastic cable material that does not bend and keeps the angular bent formation from its coiled position during shipping. The cable length material is the lowest quality (i.e. most plastic like) compared to the above four competitors.
Brandon (Shreveport, LA)
***(More to come on their durability after I've used them a couple of months)***
***UPDATE 8/28/11***
Got these cables almost 5 months ago, one connects to my iMac, one to my wall charger, one to my XP machine at work, and one connects to my car charger. All are working and none have presented any issues so far. A friend was looking for similar cables but purchased them from a different seller and found they didn't fit his iPhone 4 bumper. I thought on it a bit and found an excellent resolution. Just get an emery board (flexible fingernail file) and file down the edges of the 30 pin connector. PRESTO it fits now! SO if the seller does change the type of cable that is being shipped and you get one that doesn't quite fit the iPhone 4 bumper, I can tell you (from experience) that it will not hurt to file the 30 pin connector to fit the bumper. Hope the review and this update are still helpful to people looking for new charge/sync cables.
***UPDATE 3/25/12***
Had the cables nearly a whole year now and still going strong. I haven't checked this post in a while now but I noticed there were some questions about sync speed. My original Apple cable for my iPhone finally went out on me so I replaced it with one of these. I sync to a Mac, I have a 32GB iPhone 4, and I keep a lot of stuff on my phone. If I erase it and have to sync it from scratch, we're looking a a couple of hours but just moving a few hundred songs around, some voice memos, pictures and stuff only takes a few minutes. The cables I got were definitely USB 2.0 cables. I also got one of the new iPads (3rd gen), it's 64GB and I use these cables to sync and charge it with no problems. I'm about to order a couple of extras for my iPad now and this time, I'll make sure to post the seller I get them from on the update about the new ones. Oh yeah, the cable I use in my car has gotten stepped on, spilled on, heat, cold, moisture, and even slammed in the door a couple of times... still going strong. No breaks, no kinks, no exposed wire at the ends, it's taken a beating for nearly a year and still works like a charm. Still highly recommend these cables.
Buy USB Sync and Charging Cable Compatible with Apple iPhone (White) Now
When my dog chewed through my iPhone adapter, I didn't want to spend $19 in the Apple store for a replacement. I considered replacing the dog, but instead I decided to find a cheap, compatible adapter. I found this one and I thought, "Well, if it doesn't work, I'm only out a couple bucks." I bought two of them, and the disadvantages were apparent right from the beginning.First, as a previous reviewer mentioned, the business end of the cable is squared, not rounded. This wasn't a problem with my case, but it would be with others. Second, the construction and materials used leave a lot to be desired. There is no doubt when you look at this product that it is a cheap dollar store version, and that doesn't inspire a lot of confidence in it. Finally, my phone would not sync with iTunes. Considering iPhone users need to sync their phones to get crucial updates, that is a big problem. However, the cord did charge my phone, so it wasn't a complete loss. Or so I thought.
Within a week, through normal use, I broke the iPhone connector end on my cord. The plastic case came apart, and a few of the components fell out into my hand. The rest I had to carefully remove from inside the port on my phone. After a little tinkering, I was able to put the cable's connector back together, but it didn't fasten tightly. I remedied this by wrapping two small hair elastics tightly around it. The second cord lasted a few weeks longer, only falling apart recently. I was unable to repair the second. But hey, when held together with duct tape, chewing gum, and rubber bands, I still had one cord that charged my phone! Until just now.
The rigged up, cheap, piece of you-know-what cord decided about an hour ago to stop charging my phone completely. I don't know why. The components in the rubber-banded end are still secure, the connection is good, and it's plugged into a reliable power source. It occurred to me that though I saved a few dollars, I paid for it in hassles. Don't waste your money on this inferior product. Inferior is not even a strong enough word for what this product is; I don't think there's a word in the dictionary that quite captures the essence of crap that is this cord.
Read Best Reviews of USB Sync and Charging Cable Compatible with Apple iPhone (White) Here
I ordered this cable because the image shows a real style Apple cable with rounded edges. I have an OtterBox case that requires a rounded edge cable in order to charge it. I received this cable and it is a generic square ended cable, which is completely useless to me. Though it might work it would require I remove the phone from the case every time I wanted to use it, which is not an option.Want USB Sync and Charging Cable Compatible with Apple iPhone (White) Discount?
: 0:55 MinsThis video will show you this after market cable. It works great and it is not cheap construction either. Works on my iphone 4 and ipad. Charges great. It is the same size as the OEM cable from about which is about 3ft. Quality I would say they are about the same.
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