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27519
March 27th, 2018 01:00
XPS 13 9370, USB Type-C port questions, non-supported Apple iPhone
I have a question regarding the USB Port and what is supported and what is not supported. There are a total of three USB-C ports, and I am not sure if I have a bad USB Type-C or not.
Right side has 1 USB-C port. Everything seems to work, including connecting external display, connecting a iPhone through a lightning cable.
Left front USB-C : I tried connecting a wireless mouse, and it works. I tried connecting a iPhone with a lightning cable, and it will recognize/not recognize my iPhone, switching every 2-3 seconds. It will pop up "PC" and show the storage, but again, switching every 2-3 seconds. It does not start iTunes. Because of the pop-up, I cannot do anything, but just have to unplug. I have also tried connecting an external display, but it does not seem to work. From what I understand, it should work.
Left back USB-C (power) : This one, the power goes in normally, meaning I can charge. However, when I try connecting my iPhone, it will recognize my phone for one second, and automatically start up my iTunes. After that, however, it does not recognize my iPhone, and nothing shows. It does continue charging my iPhone though.
I understood (from whom?) that all the USB-C ports should be able to recognize my iPhone, but only the right one can recognize it. Do I misunderstand, or is there an error? As of now, if I want tether, I can only use the right side USB.
FYI - I have already updated to all the newest drivers and BIOS though Dell SupportAssist
jphughan
9 Legend
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14K Posts
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March 27th, 2018 07:00
I thought all of the USB-C ports supported display output and charging, but the left USB-C ports also support Thunderbolt 3, whereas the right side USB-C ports only support regular USB-C. But yes, all of them should work as "regular" USB ports that allow phones to be connected and charged. What you're describing sounds like either a firmware bug that still isn't resolved in the latest firmware or a hardware issue with your specific system. With the 9370 being so new, either one is possible, frankly. Are you connecting your phone using a regular Lightning to USB cable plus an adapter, or do you have an actual Lightning to USB-C cable? If the former, have you verified that other devices get a stable connection when connected through your adapter? I realize that it works on the right side, but the fact that the left ports are enabled for Thunderbolt could explain why they operate differently even with regular USB devices, even though they shouldn't be.
I know you mentioned you updated the BIOS and drivers, but if you haven't already, check support.dell.com and see if there are any updates to the Thunderbolt software or Thunderbolt firmware, since the latter is separate from the BIOS.
Lastly, just in case you weren't aware, you can tether to the iPhone over WiFi; you don't have to use a cable.
AticAtac
8 Posts
0
March 27th, 2018 14:00
I've noticed something similar.
Today I created a Windows USB Recovery Drive. Although I was able to create the drive by using the adaptor in the left rear port the machine will only boot from the USB drive when plugged into the right hand port. Windows recognises the drive in any port.
The XPS 13 Setup and Specifications document describes the ports on the left and right differently too.
jphughan
9 Legend
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14K Posts
1
March 27th, 2018 15:00
The ports on the left support Thunderbolt 3; the port on the right does not. As a result, the left-hand ports may be disabled at boot time unless you enable Thunderbolt boot support in the BIOS. I would have thought that option would only affect devices that actually try to communicate over the Thunderbolt protocol, but recent threads have indicated that this option also affects whether regular USB-type devices connected to those ports are visible at boot time.
L_UP
5 Posts
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March 27th, 2018 22:00
Yes, I have tried used SupportAssist to update to the latest drivers. I have also gone to support.dell.com to download the latest drivers (including uninstalling thunderbolt and reinstalling). The same thing happens only on the left side USB ports.
I have tried using both a lightning-usbA cable (with adapter) and lightning-usbC cable. Same results. Both cables work fine when I use the right hand side USB port.
As of now, the left side USB ports are good for using a wireless mouse, thumb drive. I am not sure if power consumption is affecting or not, but it seems very odd that it does not work.
AticAtac
8 Posts
0
March 28th, 2018 00:00
That explanation makes sense, thanks.
perpetoom
1 Rookie
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81 Posts
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March 30th, 2018 16:00
You need to manually alter options in the BIOS to allow boot from ports on the left side of your device (as @jphughan mentioned), without this probably only single usb-c port located on the right will be capable of that.
@L_UPDid you try to connect your Iphone to other device to eliminate issue from "Apple side"?
Rodor
1 Message
0
May 2nd, 2018 15:00
I've got similar problems. I can't can't connect any external monitor anymore. The problem started on the last few weeks. I've tried several monitors/cables at each USB port. I've got latest drivers and BIOS and windows 10 pro latest updates. Diagnostics also are passing and I've reset bios to default settings.