Problems charging iPhone 4

[antmanb]

I gather that this is a problem that some people are experiencing since googling does come up with various links to forums with suggested solutions but none of the solutions seems to work for me.

I have another 4 months to go before i can upgrade my phone so it's going to be a pain in the arse if I can't get a proper charge.

Out of the blue when i connect my phone to the proper apple charger i've used for the last 20 months without problem it now tells me that "charging is not supported with this accessory". It is hit and miss when i plug it in - sometimes i get the message straight away and it does nothing, sometimes if you look at the battery symbol it switches between a "z" shaped line to show it's charging and a picture of plug. If it keeps the z shaped line it starts to charge like normal, if it has the picture of plug it charges super slowly and sometimes stops and throws up the error.

There is no rhyme or reason to this. Added problem is that there's no point in taking it in to apple as I dropped the phone in the bath about a year ago - it dropped in and i fished it out straight away, dried it out and it worked perfectly well ever since until now. I know that apple shine a torch down the headphone jack if you take them in as there is something in the bottom that turns red or pink if the phone has come into contact with water and from then on refuse to do anything under warranty.

So has anyone else had this problem and found a fix for it? The one thing that does seem to work to get up to about a 90% charge is connecting the jack to the phone and then inserting the USB plug very slowly into the computer until its about half way in - the phone makes the sound to say its charging and if i leave the phone alone and don't touch it/use it it seems to charge to 90% before the "charging not supported" message comes up.

Any other suggestions from the knowledagble folks on FSU?

[CDANN1013]

Did you try recharging your phone into a outlet? Also, try switching USB wire.

Carol

[WildRose]

It sounds like the plugin outlet on your computer isn't working properly. I had the same problem a couple of years ago. Now I always charge from an outlet and never have a problem. Plus it's faster. If that doesn't work buy a new connection cord - they wear out. If you backup on iCloud then you never need to plug into a computer for anything.

[antmanb]

Unfortunately I've tried charging it from a power outlet, from the computer, with two different cables (that happily charge another iphone without a problem).

[Buzz]

Perhaps you should take it back to the store and see if they can help.

[antmanb]

I think I will, but I have a fear they won't help because of the phone coming into contact with water.

[michiruwater]

Well, if they don't, then you'll be right where you are right now. So, might as well, right?

[antmanb]

Genius bar appointment booked

[Buzz]

Of all the companies I have dealt with in my life; my experience with Apple's customer service has been by far the best. So I hope they can help you.

[antmanb]

Sadly my experience with apple in the UK is about the worst I've ever had. I was once fortunate enough to call the support line at 8pm UK time and got routed through to the US where the difference in customer service was like night and day. A problem apple UK had refused to accept was their problem and refused to sort for a number of days was immediately admitted, apologised for, and sorted in a short 10 minute call to the US. The customer services person escalated it all through his manager so they could bypass getting authority from apple UK and even gave me direct email address for him and his manager in case apple UK had a problem following their instructions. I think the UK part of the business could learn a lot from the US.

[Karina1974]

^^^Well, at least you got routed to the US and not to some call center in India or thereabouts where the people answering the phones aren't native English speakers. Frustrates me to no end when I call a company with an issue and then find out I have to simplify my explanations, and then deal with the answers not always fitting the questions I'm asking.

[tarotx]

This happened to My 4s. My son used it and soaked it with spit talking to suri >.< and I was told by a friend to leave it off and away from the charger for 24-48 hours and I left it a lone for about 30 hours and when I connected the charger it was fixed. Good luck!

[antmanb]

Good suggestion - i'll try that too!