iPhone 4 Mains chargers is it worth buying a cheap one

An article by eoutlet

The iPhone 4 does not come with a mains charger that you can plug into the mains socket, however it would be nice for apple to include a mains charger on a phone worth £500. Nevertheless they does provide a USB charging cable that you can plug into the computer. For those who don’t always have access to a computer buying a iPhone 4 compatible mains charger is a good investment, but how do you decide. Do you go for one of the cheap that cost between £3-£4 or do you go for the branded mains chargers for iPhone 4 like the Griffin PowerBlack Mains Charger for iPad, iPhone or iPod .

Well let’s look at the cheap chargers. For example on amazon there is a very popular mains charger
http://www.amazon.co.uk/Mains-Battery-Charger-Cable-White/dp/B002G22PIA
If we look at the ratings from the reviews, there is approx 10% of people who give the product a 1 star rating with comments such as

“Having read a number of reviews for this product, which on the whole were positive, I thought it would come in handy as a cheap replacement for a lost iPhone charger. How wrong I was.”

“On its first use, I plugged the charger into the mains and connected it to my iPhone, when it proceeded to explode instantly. Needless to say, I wouldn’t recomment this product to anyone.”

“This product worked once then failed. Far worse, my i-phone is now corrupted and needing repair. Coincidence? Perhaps but I doubt it. The product may be cheap, but the costs I now face are many times higher. Just don’t take the chance, it’s not worth it.”

“Bought this as part of an Amazon deal, and at start it seemed was working fine! However, after a few uses my iPhone now gives me errors that this accessory is not made for the iPhone and it doesn’t support it. After 2-3 times of getting this error I decided not to ever use it again, to avoid the risk of damaging my iPhone.”

“Unfortunately although this seemed like a real bargain,i have found that it gets stuck in the iphone and is really difficult to remove,so have since bought the apple branded charger,which is much better.”

“I was initially delighted with this cheap and cheerful charger. It stayed in my travel bag – probably used 8 or 9 times for – at a guess – less than 40 hours all up. The second last time I used it the charging light took ages to come on – and I suspected something was up… the last time I used it, after about 20 seconds of being pluggged in there was a loud crack and a spark within the unit – it’s clearly now broken. Even if it’s only a fuse I’m not trusting it again.
Poor reliability. Buy something else.”

“After only using a few times- could count on one hand- sparks are coming from the plug unit!!!”

“This worked for about 5 minutes before it broke, taking my iPhone down with it. Avoid.”

“I found this charger to be a poor fit for the iPhone 3GS, even without my switcheasy cover on it. The plug has soft buttons either side of it which feel like they should click and lock the plug into the iPhone port – they don’t. The only time I can successfully charge my iPhone is after much plug jiggling and if i manage to position the iPhone and charger in just the right place. More hassle than it’s worth – go for an official Apple product.”

Furthermore it seems trading standards are aware of this issue with mains chargers not only for iPhone 4 but for other devices such as mobile phones but it is very difficult to enforce.

Chris Holden, senior trading standards officer at Buckinghamshire County Council, told the BBC that investigations were shedding light on a much bigger problem. Some chargers carry a CE safety mark which officers believe to be fake. “The UK appears to be flooded with them. It probably runs into hundreds of thousands or even millions,” Mr Holden said. Futhermore “that the chargers were being sold for about £5 on the internet and about £6 in shops. Safe chargers, which have been checked properly, retail for around £15.”

We at eoutlet therefore believe it is not worth selling the cheaper mains chargers as we do not wish to cause distress to our customers by damaging their iPhones or cause a potential fire in the house. We ensure by only stocking those mains chargers by reputable manufacturers such as Griffin, Scosche and Cygnett that we can ensure the supply of our mains chargers for iPhones are of good quality and safe. As these companies use higher quality components in their mains chargers and ensure they comply with UK safety legislation, furthermore some with made for iPhone accreditation me it given the seal of approval by Apple.

About the Author: Eoutlet Team