The iPhone 15 generation swapped the Lightning charging port for USB-C. Problem is, the iPhone can sometimes refuse to charge without any error message. Here is a solution to fix the problem.
This is a bug that can be a little scary. Your iPhone 15 or 15 Pro starts to see its battery level drop, so you decide to charge it by connecting a USB-C cable, and nothing happens. No signal, no error message, and the iPhone does not detect the charger and therefore refuses to fill its battery. A problem visibly known to Internet users, but very little documented by Apple, the origin of which remains unknown.
We tested two solutions to resolve the problem. The first allows you to recharge the iPhone without correcting the bug, while the second allows you to repair the problem.
In case of emergency: wireless charging
If your iPhone has a very low battery level and you are looking for a quick and effective solution: consider wireless charging. Both the iPhone 15 and the iPhone 15 Pro are compatible with MagSafe (or Qi) wireless charging.
Even when it suffers from the bug preventing charging by USB-C, it is indeed possible to charge the iPhone using this mechanism. The obvious downside is that you need to have a charger or external battery compatible with wireless charging.
The solution: force restart the iPhone
This solution can be found on several specialized forums and videos on YouTube. We were able to test it and our iPhone 15 was once again able to charge via USB-C. This is to force a complete restart of the iPhone.
To do this, simply follow these steps:
- press the volume up button and quickly release it
- press the volume down button and quickly release it
- hold down the side (power) button
- you can release when the Apple logo appears on the screen
The iPhone will then restart completely. You will not lose your data, this is not an iPhone restore or reset. Once it restarts, you can then properly charge your iPhone via USB-C.
Hopefully this is a simple software bug that Apple can document and fix soon.