Difference between the iPhone and iPad USB Cable?

Apple iPhone - Is there a difference between the iPhone and iPad USB Cable?

I find that when I try to sync my iPad that sometimes it is a very very slow sync. At first I thought it was my USB connection on my Mac.

I have two cables here one for iPad and one for iPhone and decided to abort a very long sync in iTunes and switch out the two cables. The following sync was faster.

Most of what I read on the internet says the cables are no different as far as hardware. but only in cosmetic appearance.

Just wondering if there is a difference and how do you tell cosmetically which is which?

iPhone iPad
There is no difference in any of the Apple Cables - the generic 30 pin cables (Griffin, Monoprice, Cablesdirect, etc) have slightly larger connection and will not fit in some of the cases, especially the iPhone 4 bumper but they do not effect syncing at all.

-----
I was told by an Apple tech over the telephone that the two do work differently and that I should use the iPad cable with the iPad. That's what he said, but who knows if it really makes a difference...?

-----
The only thing that is different is the wall charger, the iPhone wall charger is lower wattage and will take much longer to charge than using the larger iPad charger the USB to 30 pin cable is exactly the same for every iPod/iPhone/iPad

-----
is there any risk in using the iPad charger on on iPhone 3G?

-----
I do it all the time without issues.

-----
I use my iPad wall charger to sometimes charge my iPhone 3G. It does not seem to impact the phone negatively. One thing I do note (or did prior to the new 4.2 update and I don't think it is happening now) was that the phone would not show as being charged even if it was.

-----
It would seem the cables should be identical. However, when I used my iPhone cable on my new iPad, the syncing was sometimes erratic. Then when I tried to download my music files from iTunes, it simply wouldn't download -- even after several attempts. I then tried the iPad cable and, voila, it synced perfectly. Weird!!

-----
Weird indeed.
I've been syncing my iPod Touch (2nd gen), iPad, & iPhone4 all using the sync cables that came with my iPODs from 3-4 years ago, with no problems.

-----
I know that I have different results using the cables interchanged. Possibly there were other factors involved that effected my syncs. My husband is an electrical engineer and is usually right, swears there is no difference and that even the chargers can be interchanged.

-----
The various ipod/phone chargers, maybe. But the iPAD (wall-)charger is bigger-- delivers more juice -- & that one does make a difference; you can use the iPAD charger for the iPOD & iPHONE though. The iphone charger (or the syncing cable hooked up to my laptop) will eventually charge the ipad, though very slowly & with the charge-display saying "not charging".

-----
I've had issues with cables that have gotten dirt/dust or moisture in the dock end (corrosion). Those dock connectors are VERY fine and the different devices depend on somewhat different pins so if you get "lucky" you might have a piece of dirt or lint that is messing up just the pin one device needs while the other ignores that signal. That could account for apparent differences. I have one cable that is problematic in a similar way but when you carefully inspect the dock connector end you can see that it has some gunk/corrosion in the end of the connector. They are so fine that I despair of trying to clean it without damaging it but you can use compressed air or maybe some ultra fine sand paper. Short of that, I just replace cables that have become unreliable. The dock connector is one of the more fragile connectors out there.

-----
For your kind information both are different cable , even though they look the same. I work for an Apple Authorized dealer. If you use iPhone cable for iPad , honestly you are killing your iPad....

-----
This should settle the USB cable question. This is from the Apple support page.

http://support.apple.com/kb/index?page=search&src=support_site.home.search&local\
e=en_US&q=ipad%20usb%20cable

To charge your iPad , iPhone, or iPod, connect it to the 10W USB Power Adapter using a Dock Connector to USB cable . You can use the Dock Connector to USB cable that came with your device, or a compatible third-party cable.
http://support.apple.com/kb/HT4327

-----