Availability of Apple's Lightning Adapters and Cables Slipping [Updated]

With shipping estimates for new pre-orders of the iPhone 5 through Apple's online store slipping to two weeks just an hour after pre-orders began earlier today, customers are also snapping up Apple's supplies of Lightning adapters and cables.

Alongside the iPhone 5 announcement on Wednesday, Apple introduced a pair of adapters to allow users to continue using older cables and accessories based on the long-standing 30-pin dock standard: a $29 direct plug adapter and a $39 short-cable adapter.

lightning adapters cable shipping
Availability of the new adapters has already begun to slip significantly, with Apple now quoting shipping estimates of "October" for new orders through its online store. The company's $19 Lightning to USB cable, which comes standard with Apple's latest devices but which should be popular as a standalone purchase with customers wanting to set up multiple charging locations, has also slipped from 1-3 business days to 2-3 weeks.

Apple has also acknowledged that it will be launching HDMI and VGA cables for Lightning-equipped devices, but the company has not yet made them available for order.

Update: A number of readers have noted that the adapters have been listed as shipping in October since they first showed up in Apple's online store on Wednesday. Shipping estimates on the USB cable have, however, indeed slipped.

Related Forum: iPhone

Popular Stories

iphone 16 display

iPhone 17's Scratch Resistant Anti-Reflective Display Coating Canceled

Monday April 28, 2025 12:48 pm PDT by
Apple may have canceled the super scratch resistant anti-reflective display coating that it planned to use for the iPhone 17 Pro models, according to a source with reliable information that spoke to MacRumors. Last spring, Weibo leaker Instant Digital suggested Apple was working on a new anti-reflective display layer that was more scratch resistant than the Ceramic Shield. We haven't heard...
iPhone 17 Air Pastel Feature

iPhone 17 Reaches Key Milestone Ahead of Mass Production

Monday April 28, 2025 8:44 am PDT by
Apple has completed Engineering Validation Testing (EVT) for at least one iPhone 17 model, according to a paywalled preview of an upcoming DigiTimes report. iPhone 17 Air mockup based on rumored design The EVT stage involves Apple testing iPhone 17 prototypes to ensure the hardware works as expected. There are still DVT (Design Validation Test) and PVT (Production Validation Test) stages to...
iphone 17 air iphone 16 pro

iPhone 17 Air USB-C Port May Have This Unusual Design Quirk

Wednesday April 30, 2025 3:59 am PDT by
Apple is preparing to launch a dramatically thinner iPhone this September, and if recent leaks are anything to go by, the so-called iPhone 17 Air could boast one of the most radical design shifts in recent years. iPhone 17 Air dummy model alongside iPhone 16 Pro (credit: AppleTrack) At just 5.5mm thick (excluding a slightly raised camera bump), the 6.6-inch iPhone 17 Air is expected to become ...
Beyond iPhone 13 Better Blue

20th Anniversary iPhone Likely to Be Made in China Due to 'Extraordinarily Complex' Design

Monday April 28, 2025 4:29 am PDT by
Apple will likely manufacture its 20th anniversary iPhone models in China, despite broader efforts to shift production to India, according to Bloomberg's Mark Gurman. In 2027, Apple is planning a "major shake-up" for the iPhone lineup to mark two decades since the original model launched. Gurman's previous reporting indicates the company will introduce a foldable iPhone alongside a "bold"...
apple watch ultra yellow

What's Next for the Apple Watch Ultra 3 and Apple Watch SE 3

Friday April 25, 2025 2:44 pm PDT by
This week marks the 10th anniversary of the Apple Watch, which launched on April 24, 2015. Yesterday, we recapped features rumored for the Apple Watch Series 11, but since 2015, the Apple Watch has also branched out into the Apple Watch Ultra and the Apple Watch SE, so we thought we'd take a look at what's next for those product lines, too. 2025 Apple Watch Ultra 3 Apple didn't update the...
AirPods Pro 3 Mock Feature

AirPods Pro 3 Just Months Away – Here's What We Know

Tuesday April 29, 2025 1:30 am PDT by
Despite being more than two years old, Apple's AirPods Pro 2 still dominate the premium wireless‑earbud space, thanks to a potent mix of top‑tier audio, class‑leading noise cancellation, and Apple's habit of delivering major new features through software updates. With AirPods Pro 3 widely expected to arrive in 2025, prospective buyers now face a familiar dilemma: snap up the proven...
iPhone 17 Pro Blue Feature Tighter Crop

iPhone 17 Pro Launching Later This Year With These 13 New Features

Wednesday April 23, 2025 8:31 am PDT by
While the iPhone 17 Pro and iPhone 17 Pro Max are not expected to launch until September, there are already plenty of rumors about the devices. Below, we recap key changes rumored for the iPhone 17 Pro models as of April 2025: Aluminum frame: iPhone 17 Pro models are rumored to have an aluminum frame, whereas the iPhone 15 Pro and iPhone 16 Pro models have a titanium frame, and the iPhone ...
iPhone 17 Pro on Desk Feature

All iPhone 17 Models Again Rumored to Feature 12GB of RAM

Tuesday April 29, 2025 3:36 am PDT by
All upcoming iPhone 17 models will come equipped with 12GB of RAM to support Apple Intelligence, according to the Weibo-based leaker Digital Chat Station. The claim from the Chinese leaker, who has sources within Apple's supply chain, comes a few days after industry analyst Ming-Chi Kuo said that the iPhone 17 Air, iPhone 17 Pro, and iPhone 17 Pro Max will all be equipped with 12GB of RAM. ...

Top Rated Comments

andalusia Avatar
165 months ago
This just shows how easy it is for Apple to make money, even at ridiculous prices. They are very, very clever.
Score: 19 Votes (Like | Disagree)
daneoni Avatar
165 months ago
Should be including these for free...especially the adapter. Why can't they just be nice to their customers once a while.

I read an estimate that these things alone will fetch Apple north of $100m in profit.
Score: 18 Votes (Like | Disagree)
iReality85 Avatar
165 months ago
I think this is completely unreasonable. $29 for a compact adapter, and $39 for the wired version? I understand that Apple wanted to update the ten year old connector, but to not even include a compact adapter along with the iPhone 5? This is borderline gouging, and to make it worse its forced gouging. There's going to be a lot of unhappy customers. Keep in mind- most Apple users aren't geeks; they don't post on these forums and don't watch the events. They are literally going to buy the iPhone 5, open it, and go, "it has a new connector? I can't plug it into all my accessories? I can't use my sound dock anymore at work? Not in my car?" The right thing for Apple to do would be to include a compact adapter with the iPhone 5 (at the very least, or even just for the first few months). I mean, it's bad enough that Lightning doesn't support video-out, or even guaranteed to work with some sound docks, so customers will need an adapter for that too.
Score: 14 Votes (Like | Disagree)
orfeas0 Avatar
165 months ago
This just shows how easy it is for Apple to make money. They are very, very clever.

yep... that easy...
Just change the shape of the charger and sell adapters, boom! We're rich!
And at 20$ for each adapter and 30$ for the cable adapter... Oh my god the ripoff!
Score: 14 Votes (Like | Disagree)
DMVillain Avatar
165 months ago
They were never available immediately, even after the keynote it said October.
Score: 11 Votes (Like | Disagree)
thatisme Avatar
165 months ago
I believe they should have included (1) of the adapters with each of the new phones. I know they will make more by selling them, but there is a certain amount of good will that they would have generated and they could have lessened the harsh feelings people have toward the overpriced cables.

It'll be interesting to see if they do a bit of price adjusting later on, or if they will continue to sell enough of these at the current price points. And, I wonder how quickly the 3rd party guys like monoprice will make Lightning cables and adapters available.
Score: 10 Votes (Like | Disagree)