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I need to charge my Apple iPhone, and I don't have an original Apple charger. I have a cable with one end being a male Apple iPhone connector (which fits OK the female socket on my iPhone) and the other end a standard male USB-A.

Can I use this cable to charge the iPhone from a standard cheap USB charger, e.g., a female socket on my laptop. If yes, should I use a USB 2.0 socket or USB 3.0?

Also I have another cable with a male Apple iPhone connector and a male USB C connector. Can I use it to charge the iPhone from any third-party charger that has a USB-C output? Or my laptop's USB-C socket? That is, won't any of the two devices be damaged -- the iphone or laptop or the USB charger? Also I have a fast-charging charger of my old Huawei phone: It has an USB-A socket I used it with a cable having a male USB-A end (I don't know whether it is 2.0 or 3.0) and a male USB-C end for the Huawei phone. Both the charger and the cable came with the old Huawei phone -- so my guess is that the charger is designed to negotiate the voltage with the phone similarly as USB-C chargers do. Can I use this charger with that USB-A to Apple cable to (fast?) charge my iPhone?

I realize that the best is to go and buy an original Apple charger, but at this time all shops are closed, and I need my iPhone urgently.

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    These things are all standard. If it fits, plug it in. The worst that will happen is that it takes longer to charge.
    – Appleoddity
    Jan 9 at 4:30
  • “I realize that the best is to go and buy an original Apple charger…” Nope. That is not the case at all. The original Apple USB A charger is 5W while the newer USB C charger is 18W or 20W. The difference will be charging speed and it completely depends on what iPhone model you have. If you have an iPhone X or an iPhone 11, it will take forever to charge with USB A at 5W. The reality is only you can test this stuff out. And if you have a USB C to Apple Lightning (what you are calling “male”) cable, use that connected to your laptop. (1/2)
    – Giacomo1968
    Jan 9 at 4:38
  • The Huawei charger might be better, but Android phones have different charging standards for some models so again, you would need to know exactly what Huawei phone you had. The best advice is to just try them out and see how fast you can get a charge. In general, all options should work but a USB C charger would be better. In the end you will not break your phone. It is all a question of how fast the charger and cable will work with the iPhone. (2/2)
    – Giacomo1968
    Jan 9 at 4:39

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Yes. Technically, You can use any USB charger (or port) to charge your iPhone.

  • If your charger supplies less than 1.5A it will charge, but slowly.
  • If it supplies 2.5A it will “quick” charge
  • If you are using a USB-C PD (Power Delivery)charger with at least 18W, you can Fast Charge where you get up to 50% charge in 30 mins

As far as cables, any data cable will do. It must be a USB-A or USB-C (depending on the charger) to lightning or USB-C (depending on your iPhone model). When you get a cable, make sure it is a quality cable with the USB logo.

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  • “When you get a cable, make sure it is a quality cable with the USB logo.” I don’t think this is a shopping advice question but rather someone who currently doesn’t have the original charger their iPhone came with trying to charge their phone with what they have at hand.
    – Giacomo1968
    Jan 9 at 5:23

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