Phone 6s won’t charge (with two exceptions)

[Wolfpup]

I bought a 6s when it came out, and replaced it with an SE when the 6s quit charging a year ago.

Until it quit charging, it spent all its time in an Apple Smart Battery case, so the connector was never exposed, was always connected to the case.

The case charges fine, and when connected the phone must be getting a data connection of some sort since it sees the case, and reads the charge level on the case, and reads whether the case is charging, but while the phone claims it’s charging from the case, it actually isn’t.

The phone’s been sitting around for a year, and I just accidentally noticed that...it started charging st some point.

It only charges without the case, and with one of the two conditions is true:

-I have it on the floor....somehow that much press the connector into the right position.

or:

-I physically press up on the bottom of the connector, which presumably puts pressure on the connection, pushing the pins down and together.

I can’t find any useful information on this. 99% of info is “there’s lint in the connector!” But there is not. It was never even exposed, always connected to the case. I’ve NEVER removed any lint from a ligning port. (And my iPad thankfully is holding up way better despite being babied far less and used 100x more).

Any thoughts? Could I potentially sell the thing to like Best Buy or something, despite the port being flaky?

Love that new fast setup feature on iOS, although it got stuck on an Apple logo forever. I forced a reboot, and from there it came up and seemed fine.

 

[Minho]

When troubleshooting charging issues, I would do the following (in order):

# Always try another Lightning cable and charger, preferably Apple original or MFi certified units.

# (I know you said you already checked this...this is for the benefit of others :>) . The [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lightning_(connector)|Lightning cable 8-pin connector] should be sitting flush with the housing and completely inserted. If it is not, there could be lint/dust/debris inside the port impeding a proper connection. You can clean it out with fine point tweezers or a dental pick. Just be careful not to damage the pins inside the Lightning Port.

# Change the battery. The battery is the weakest link in the entire phone (especially the 6S) and certainly for charger related issues. It is also the easiest thing to replace. Use a battery utility, such as coconutBattery (for Mac) or 3uTools (for Windows) to test the battery prior to removal. Anything less than 70% of design capacity will require replacement.

# If the battery is in good condition, you can use a [https://www.amazon.com/s/ref=nb_sb_noss?url=search-alias=aps&field-keywords=USB+Ammeter|USB Ammeter] to determine if the phone is really drawing current when it says it's charging. If it isn't drawing current, then I would change the Lightning/Charge Port.

# If a new battery and charge port still don't resolve the issue, then you either have faulty replacement parts (possible) or a logic board issue. There is an IC (commonly referred to as Tristar) responsible for communicating with the charging device and uncertified chargers can damage it. Unplug the battery and connect a known-good (preferably Apple original or MFi) charger to the phone. A properly working phone will show an Apple logo and boot loop. If the Tristar IC is bad then the phone will not do anything.

 

[Justanotherfanboy]

Teeny bit of rubbing alcohol on the tip of a q-tip (May have to pull off some of the “fuzz” unless it’s a generic, lol), vigorously swab out lighting port... wait 30 seconds, TAH DAH!!! =)

Worked at a mobile shop for 6 years- probably seen this work well over 100x for “dead” charging ports... they build up basically like an invisible layer of corrosion (not sure that’s the precise word I’m looking for...); at any rate- I can almost guarantee you that will work.

If not... @Minho response was VERY good for next steps! =)