[UPDATE: For my latest post on Anker cables dated August 19, 2020, click here.] The 2018 versions of the iPad Pro have a USB-C port instead of a Lightning port, so when I bought my new third-generation 12.9″ iPad Pro last month, it was time to get some USB-C cables. I’ve been very happy with the Anker Lightning cables which I have purchased in the past (my reviews: 1, 2), so when I was looking to get a long USB-C to USB-C cable for charging purposes, I purchased the Anker PowerLine+ C to C 2.0 cable (6ft) from Amazon for $15.97. The first version I purchased had a problem, but Anker’s customer service was fantastic, and the replacement cable Anker sent me is exactly what I was looking for and I highly recommend it.
USB-PD
The 2018 iPad Pro ships with Apple’s 18W power adapter. If you want to charge an iPad Pro (or a newer iPhone) as fast as possible, you want to use a power adapter that supports USB-PD (USB Power Delivery), which can transfer up to 29W of power to an iPad Pro, and thus can charge an iPad Pro from 0% to 50% in about 60 minutes. (USB-PD can charge a newer iPhone from 0% to 50% in about 3o minutes.) Note that while you can use a USB-PD power adapter that supports more than 29W of power, such as Apple’s 87W power adapter designed for the MacBook Pro, it doesn’t charge any faster than a 29W USB-C adapter when used with the 2018 iPad Pro. Apple used to sell a USB-C 29W power adapter, and you can still find it in some stores; I bought mine in 2016 (my review). Apple has since replaced it with the Apple’s USB-C 30W power adapter ($49.97 on Amazon). From the standpoint of an iPad Pro, there is no difference between using a 29W or a 30W power adapter, but Apple’s 30W adapter does support some additional voltages so it works better with certain other devices like an iPhone 8.
In my office, I have a power strip on the floor next to my desk. My Apple USB-C 29W power adapter is plugged in to it, and I previously used an Apple 2m USB-C to Lightning cord so that I had something long enough to reach up to my desk, where I could fast charge either my iPad or my iPhone. (Currently, only Apple sells a USB-C to Lightning cord, but there are reports that Apple will allow other companies to sell them in 2019.) That was the cord that I wanted to replace with a USB-C to USB-C cord so that I could charge my third-generation iPad Pro 12.9″ at maximum speed.
There are three reasons that this Anker cord was perfect for my needs: length, durability, and cost.
Length
First, it is a long cord. Six feet is long enough to reach from the floor next to my desk to the devices on my desk with room to spare. Also, when I travel, it is nice to have a longer cord, whether I am in a hotel room or a conference room. Six feet is about six inches shorter than Apple’s 2m USB-C to USB-C cord (two meters is about 6.56 feet) but I haven’t really noticed that small difference in length.
Durability
Second, I like the PowerLine+ cords from Anker because they are very durable. As I just noted, I will take this cord around with me a lot, whether I am traveling out of town or just going to work someplace else in my own office, so I prefer a power cord that will stand up to abuse. The PowerLine+ line from Anker features a double-braided nylon exterior, which protects the cord and makes it almost impossible for the cord to get tangled up. The PowerLine+ cords also have a tough fiber cord and strong connectors at both ends. After using both Apple and Anker cords, I find that the Anker ones hold up better.
Cost
Third, Anker cords are inexpensive for the quality that you get. Apple sells its 2m USB-C to USB-C charge cable for $19. This Anker cable is $15.97 on Amazon. I wouldn’t mind spending $3 more than the Apple cable just to get the additional durability of the Anker Powerline+ cable. Getting all of that for $3 less than the Apple cable is a great deal.
Sync speed
Note that this cable uses USB 2.0 speed, so if you are using this cable for syncing, you only get normal syncing speeds of 480 Mbps. A USB 3.0 cord can give you faster sync speeds of 5Gbps, and a USB 3.1 Gen 2 cord can give you sync speeds of 10Gbps — assuming that you are connecting to another device that supports the higher speed. For example, at my home I use an older iMac which only supports USB 3.0, so when I sync my new iPad Pro to that computer I use the Anker USB Type C Cable, Powerline USB C to USB 3.0 Cable (3ft). You might think, why not just get a long six-foot cable which also supports USB 3.1 Gen 2 so that you get a long length plus the fastest sync? Good idea, but such a cable doesn’t exist right now. Here is what Sarah Witman of Wirecutter said about such a cable after talking to a representative from Anker: “It’s not impossible to make such a cable—according to [the USB Implementers Forum], a USB-C cable of any length can be certified as long as it passes all performance tests. But it might be bulkier than most people would want. A rep at Anker told us that the company’s engineers have found that a 6-foot cable with full USB 3.1 Gen 2 speeds would just be too thick.” If you are like me and you want a longer cord just to charge your 2018 iPad Pro, then sync speed doesn’t matter.
Customer support
For all of these reasons, the Anker PowerLine+ C to C 2.0 cable seemed perfect to me. Unfortunately, I encountered some bad news when I purchased this cord from Amazon, but it quickly turned into good news. When I received my cord, I plugged it in and started using it right away. And almost right away, I noticed that something wasn’t right. When I plugged it into my iPad Pro, the iPad beeped to indicate that it was starting to charge, then it would beep again and stop charging, then it beeped again, then again, and it went back and forth a few times before finally starting to charge. At the same time, the battery icon would flash green and then black and then back again. Clearly, there was a problem. It wasn’t a consistent problem — over the course of a few days, it worked great maybe 50% of the time — but for it to happen at all told me that something was amiss, and I had the same problem when I used the cord with different power adapters.
Anker advertises having good customer service, so I decided to contact Anker and take advantage of it. Anker was incredibly responsive. They quickly asked me for the serial number for the cable, which was located on a sticker wrapped around one end of the cable — which I had removed and discarded immediately when I unpacked the cable — and was also located on the box, which I still had. Anker said that if I couldn’t find the serial number, I could simply take a picture of the cable with my iPhone so that they could make sure that they understood the model that I had. I provided this information and explained the problem, and Anker immediately shipped me a replacement cable. That replacement cable has worked perfectly, every single time. Obviously, it would have been better to never have a problem in the first place, but the fact that Anker customer support was so fast and responsive actually resulted in me being even more impressed with Anker.
Conclusion
This Anker USB-C to USB-C cable has been perfect for my needs. When I’m working at my desk, my iPad often sits in a Thought Out Simplex Tablet iPad Stand (my review) and with the Anker cord plugged in the side, I can keep my iPad fully charged while I use my iPad, so it always has a full charge when I pick up my iPad Pro to walk away from my desk. When I travel, I use this cord with an older Anker product called the PowerPort+ (my review), which has since been replaced by the PowerPort Speed PD 5. That device includes a USB-C port which supports USB-PD for up to 30W charging, plus it has four traditional USB ports which support 2.4A charging.
If you have a new iPad Pro with a USB-C connector, the six foot version of the Anker PowerLine+ C to C 2.0 cable is a great cord for your charging needs. If all you need is three feet, you can save a few bucks on the shorter version of this same cord. Both lengths come in gray or red.
Click here to get Anker PowerLine+ C to C 2.0 cable (6ft) from Amazon ($15.97)
Click here to get Anker PowerLine+ C to C 2.0 cable (3ft) from Amazon ($13.99)
The USB-C cable market is so farked up, it’s hard to tell what you’re going to get, so these days, the only “USB-C” cables I buy are Thunderbolt 3 cables, because they generally support both PD and 3.0 speeds (with Thunderbolt support to boot). The only downside is that they are a little more expensive (the CableMatters ones on AMZN, for example are $23/26 for 3’/6′) and they are thicker.