Official Lightning Connector Support Lacking, Inspires Workarounds and DIY Mods - MacRumors
Skip to Content

Official Lightning Connector Support Lacking, Inspires Workarounds and DIY Mods

by

Though Apple allowed some select hardware partners to work on Lightning connector-compatible hardware accessories, most of those are not yet for sale. However, that's not to stop some enterprising users from making do with what they have.

NewImage
The Next Web has instructions on how to modify the Elevation Dock -- a popular Kickstarter project -- to fit the iPhone 5. The site says the modification, while not perfect, is "fairly straightforward" and takes about 25 minutes to complete.

The team behind the Elevation Dock is planning to ship a bolt-in swappable mount that will support the new cord in the next several months.

Also available is the $30 dockBoss+ iPhone 5 Kit. While rather clunky, the cable allows users to listen and charge the iPhone 5 or new iPod Touch through any 30-pin connector docking station.

Readers noticing other interesting accessories or docks for the iPhone 5 and the Lightning connector should send a note to tips@macrumors.com.

Top Rated Comments

ovrlrd Avatar
182 months ago
I have still not read a single valid reason why Apple is not selling a dock themselves.
Score: 18 Votes (Like | Disagree)
kas23 Avatar
182 months ago
This is the Thunderbolt port all over again. It has been almost 2 years and we still don't have many TB devices.
Score: 10 Votes (Like | Disagree)
182 months ago
I have still not read a single valid reason why Apple is not selling a dock themselves.

I guess it would'nt look too good selling an accessorie, they know will be damaging the phones painting when used... :/
Score: 7 Votes (Like | Disagree)
MH01 Avatar
182 months ago
I still have yet to see ONE valid reason why humans shouldn't be able to fly. Forget all those technical reasons and rationale, we've heard it. Just tell me one good reason why I cannot fly? Birds fly. I should fly.

ONE good reason! I DARE YOU!

Most of us are fat
Score: 6 Votes (Like | Disagree)
182 months ago
Flying Nerds

I have still not read a single valid reason why Apple is not selling a dock themselves.

I still have yet to see ONE valid reason why humans shouldn't be able to fly. Forget all those technical reasons and rationale, we've heard it. Just tell me one good reason why I cannot fly? Birds fly. I should fly.

ONE good reason! I DARE YOU!
Score: 5 Votes (Like | Disagree)
APlotdevice Avatar
182 months ago
I want to know why Apple doesn't have a version of this new connector with a Thunderbolt connector at the other end instead of USB...
That would be beyond overkill for starters. As people have pointed out, the memory in current iDevices isn't even fast enough to exceed USB 2.0 speeds. The only advantage I could see to using TB is that it can supply 10W of power natively.
Score: 3 Votes (Like | Disagree)

Popular Stories

Dynamic Island iPhone 18 Pro Feature

iPhone 18 Pro Prices Estimated Ahead of Apple Event Next Week

Thursday September 3, 2026 3:41 am PDT by
Less than a week before Apple debuts new iPhone 18 Pro models, research firm TrendForce has estimated the prices of the devices based on the latest hardware cost environment. TrendForce's price estimates compared to last year's models look like this: Model Starting Price Model Starting Price Change iPhone 17 Pro $1,099 iPhone 18 Pro $...
iPhone Handoff Feature

iOS 27 Introduces New 'iPhone Handoff' Feature

Wednesday September 2, 2026 12:35 pm PDT by
Apple has added a new "iPhone Handoff" feature to iOS 27 that will allow you to switch between two iPhones while using the same phone number on each device. This functionality was briefly mentioned during the WWDC 2026 keynote in June, on a slide that listed hundreds of new features coming in iOS 27 and corresponding software updates, but Apple never shared any further details at the time. ...
iPhone 18 Pro Dark Cherry Feature

iPhone 18 Pro Reportedly Starts With 256GB of Storage

Thursday September 3, 2026 9:22 am PDT by
While the iPhone 17 Pro has double the base storage compared to the iPhone 16 Pro, there will apparently be no further increase this year. Taiwanese research firm TrendForce today again reported that the iPhone 18 Pro models will start with 256GB of storage, like the iPhone 17 Pro models. Minimum storage capacities by model:iPhone 16 Pro: 128GB iPhone 17 Pro: 256GB iPhone 18 Pro...