Amazon and Monoprice Offering Certified, Low Cost Lightning-to-USB Cables

monopricelightningcablesBoth Monoprice and Amazon are now offering low cost Lightning cables, priced at $11.77 and $14.99, respectively, for a standard 3-foot cable.

That’s a significant savings over Apple’s official Lightning cables that are sold online and at retail stores for $19.99.

Monoprice is known for offering high quality generic cables at a deep discount. In addition to the standard 3ft cable, Monoprice is also selling a 6ft cable for $12.56 and a Slimfit cable for $12.73. The cables are all MFi certified Lightning to USB charge/sync cables, made to work with the iPad, iPhone, and iPod. The Slimfit cable from Monoprice is set to ship out in the beginning of March, with the other two cables following later in the month.

Amazon is only offering a 3ft MFi Certified cable at this time, but it is available to ship immediately.

While there are cheaper lightning cables available, the offerings from Amazon and Monoprice are MFi (Made for iPad/iPhone/iPod) Certified, which means they have been approved by Apple. Other low cost Lighting cable options are unofficial, which has introduced concerns about quality and compatibility.

Apple has been maintaining strict control over the Lightning connector and accessories that utilize the technology, insisting that Lightning-related accessories are manufactured in Apple-approved facilities. As a result, the introduction of lower-cost licensed Lightning cables has been slow.

Popular Stories

iPhone SE 4 Vertical Camera Feature

iPhone SE 4 Rumored to Use Same Rear Chassis as iPhone 16

Friday July 19, 2024 7:16 am PDT by
Apple will adopt the same rear chassis manufacturing process for the iPhone SE 4 that it is using for the upcoming standard iPhone 16, claims a new rumor coming out of China. According to the Weibo-based leaker "Fixed Focus Digital," the backplate manufacturing process for the iPhone SE 4 is "exactly the same" as the standard model in Apple's upcoming iPhone 16 lineup, which is expected to...
iPhone 16 Pro Sizes Feature

iPhone 16 Series Is Just Two Months Away: Everything We Know

Monday July 15, 2024 4:44 am PDT by
Apple typically releases its new iPhone series around mid-September, which means we are about two months out from the launch of the iPhone 16. Like the iPhone 15 series, this year's lineup is expected to stick with four models – iPhone 16, iPhone 16 Plus, iPhone 16 Pro, and iPhone 16 Pro Max – although there are plenty of design differences and new features to take into account. To bring ...
iphone 14 lineup

Cellebrite Unable to Unlock iPhones on iOS 17.4 or Later, Leak Reveals

Thursday July 18, 2024 4:18 am PDT by
Israel-based mobile forensics company Cellebrite is unable to unlock iPhones running iOS 17.4 or later, according to leaked documents verified by 404 Media. The documents provide a rare glimpse into the capabilities of the company's mobile forensics tools and highlight the ongoing security improvements in Apple's latest devices. The leaked "Cellebrite iOS Support Matrix" obtained by 404 Media...
tinypod apple watch

TinyPod Turns Your Apple Watch Into an iPod

Wednesday July 17, 2024 3:18 pm PDT by
If you have an old Apple Watch and you're not sure what to do with it, a new product called TinyPod might be the answer. Priced at $79, the TinyPod is a silicone case with a built-in scroll wheel that houses the Apple Watch chassis. When an Apple Watch is placed inside the TinyPod, the click wheel on the case is able to be used to scroll through the Apple Watch interface. The feature works...
bsod

Crowdstrike Says Global IT Outage Impacting Windows PCs, But Mac and Linux Hosts Not Affected

Friday July 19, 2024 3:12 am PDT by
A widespread system failure is currently affecting numerous Windows devices globally, causing critical boot failures across various industries, including banks, rail networks, airlines, retailers, broadcasters, healthcare, and many more sectors. The issue, manifesting as a Blue Screen of Death (BSOD), is preventing computers from starting up properly and forcing them into continuous recovery...
Apple Watch Series 9

2024 Apple Watch Lineup: Key Changes We're Expecting

Tuesday July 16, 2024 7:59 am PDT by
Apple is seemingly planning a rework of the Apple Watch lineup for 2024, according to a range of reports from over the past year. Here's everything we know so far. Apple is expected to continue to offer three different Apple Watch models in five casing sizes, but the various display sizes will allegedly grow by up to 12% and the casings will get taller. Based on all of the latest rumors,...

Top Rated Comments

jca24 Avatar
149 months ago
I bought $2.50 lightning cables from dealextreme and they work just as well as the originals:)

Most likely not for long. The cheap chi-com crap will burn you!
Score: 11 Votes (Like | Disagree)
santaliqueur Avatar
149 months ago
You're welcome to your opinion and empty wallet.

A $20 cable will somehow empty your wallet out? Get a job.
Score: 10 Votes (Like | Disagree)
oneMadRssn Avatar
149 months ago
You really don't believe the most of the cheap knockoffs aren't coming out of the back door of the same factory that makes the officially branded stuff? In other words, the same exact cable, minus the logo?

Have you actually compared the dealextreme/dailysteals cables to the real ones? They aren't similar at all. If they really are coming out of the same factory but through a different door, then I would expect them to be at least of similar construction. They are quite different, and therefore I suspect the cheap ones are inferior enough for the risk to be not worthwhile, in my opinion.
Score: 10 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Thunderhawks Avatar
149 months ago
Yes .. All those overpriced little cables/plugs/adapters/cases Apple sells will eventually makes you spend A LOT more than you should.

Funny how people buy a $ 300 - $ 800 idevice and are upset about 5 dollars
price differences.

Then they drink some Starbucks coffee and don't worry that they can buy any size coffee at McDonalds for 1 dollar.

Let's not act as if we buy a new cable and adapter every day.
Score: 9 Votes (Like | Disagree)
japanime Avatar
149 months ago
Most likely not for long. The cheap chi-com crap will burn you!
You really don't believe the most of the cheap knockoffs aren't coming out of the back door of the same factory that makes the officially branded stuff? In other words, the same exact cable, minus the logo?
Score: 8 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Inakto Avatar
149 months ago
Most likely not for long. The cheap chi-com crap will burn you!
You're welcome to your opinion and empty wallet.
Score: 5 Votes (Like | Disagree)