Nearly a year ago, we told you the story of a Chinese flight attendant, who was allegedly killed from a shock she received when she answered a call on her Apple iPhone 5. Over the next several weeks, we passed along reports about people who were severely injured from a shock
they received by merely touching their iPhone or iPad. If there was one
common thread that ran throughout these experiences, it was that these
people had third party chargers on their devices.
Apple tried to get these third party chargers "off the streets" by instituting an exchange program and also by educating consumers. But go into any pharmacy in the U.S. and you will see the Chinese made chargers, priced low enough to entice buyers.
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Third party chargers can damage the U2 CI chip (circled) which is involved in recharging the battery |
cheaply made chargers, which do not qualify under the Made For iPhone
program (MFi), are a danger to your phone as well as your life. These
third party chargers cause damage to a component on an internal logic
board that deals with the battery. This component, the U2 IC chip,
controls the recharging of a battery on the iPhone 5. The cheaper
Lightning knockoffs burnout the chip which means that once the battery
is out of power, your phone is dead. Even when a brand new power cell is
placed into an iPhone 5, once the battery life hits 0%, the cell cannot
be recharged and the phone is essentially bricked.
The problem
is that the third party chargers do not regulate the charging mechanism
inside the phone, leading to the release of excessive voltage that can
damage the chips inside the device. Replacing a fried U2 IC chip can
cost over $100, so next time you reach into the bin to pick out a cheap
charger, remember that the money you save on purchasing the knockoff
part won' be enough to cover repairing the damages caused by the third
party charger. And of course, there is the chance that your life is in
danger too. For a few bucks more, you can purchase the Apple certified
part, keeping you and your phone safe.
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