Which iPhone model first used the Lightning connector?

The iPhone 5 was the first iPhone model to use the Lightning connector. Apple introduced the phone and the new connector on September 12, 2012, replacing the much larger 30-pin dock connector used by earlier iPhones.

Lightning was an eight-pin connector designed to be reversible, so users could insert it either way up. Its smaller size helped Apple make the iPhone 5 thinner while retaining charging, syncing, and accessory support. The connector also appeared soon afterward on devices including the fifth-generation iPod touch, seventh-generation iPod nano, fourth-generation iPad, and first-generation iPad mini.

A common mix-up is the iPhone 5s: it also used Lightning, but it arrived in 2013 and was not the first. Another is confusing Lightning with USB-C. Apple eventually moved the iPhone to USB-C with the iPhone 15 generation in 2023, ending Lightning's run on new iPhones.