iPhone XR Lightning port weirdness

[imrazor]

My iPhone XR will charge fine, but only when hooked up to a 'dumb' USB charger. If you hook it up to any device capable of syncing or data transfer (e.g., my old Mac Pro or CarPlay equipped auto) it will neither sync nor charge - usually. If you jiggle it a few times, it might decide to charge for a few seconds but then quickly stops charging.

This problem has come on gradually, with the phone first sometimes needing a little jiggle to sync, and then requiring more and more effort. Now its reached the point where hooking it up to any kind of computing device is an exercise in futility, and I can no longer effectively use the phone as a GPS device.

Anybody know what might be causing this? Gunk in the port? (How would you go about cleaning it?) A USB short or signalling problem?

 

[steelhauler34]

Have you tried a different cord?

 

[imrazor]

Yep that was one of the first things I tried.

 

[glenthompson]

You can try to clean the port with a can of compressed air. Does it make a snappy feel when plugging in? If it’s worn that may plow too much slop.

 

[imrazor]

@glenthompson Your question about the "snappy feel" got me looking closer at how snugly the connector was going in. And it was not going in flush with the frame of the phone. I found the tiniest head in my iFixit screwdriver kit and proceeded to gently root out the gunk in the port. So far it seems to be working well...