The power pins (VCC) on your phone’s USB-C port aren’t “live” at all times, the standard requires communication over CC1 and CC2 to negotiate which side is receiving power and at what voltage. Otherwise, a specific value of resistor needs to be in place between those pins and GND to get “dumb” charging at the original 5V usb standard.
The ideal tool is going to be thin and rigid so that you can get to the base of the port and free up impacted dust/lint. Small enough plastics are going to be to flexible to be effective, anything too thick is going to increase the working time and risk putting pressure against the center tab, potentially damaging it.
I fix consumer electronics for a living, my tool of choice is a pair of ultrasharp tweezers I use for microsoldering. Far as household items are concerned, a real small sewing needle is definitely it. The eye can even be used to catch and pull out fluff.
I would not use metal simply because its hardness is going to be similar or higher than the hardness of the contacts themselves, which means there’s a chance it could scratch or break the contact entirely.
a simple sewing needle does the job
I use a toothpick as the metal could potentially short something
You’re not going to short anything.
The power pins (VCC) on your phone’s USB-C port aren’t “live” at all times, the standard requires communication over CC1 and CC2 to negotiate which side is receiving power and at what voltage. Otherwise, a specific value of resistor needs to be in place between those pins and GND to get “dumb” charging at the original 5V usb standard.
The ideal tool is going to be thin and rigid so that you can get to the base of the port and free up impacted dust/lint. Small enough plastics are going to be to flexible to be effective, anything too thick is going to increase the working time and risk putting pressure against the center tab, potentially damaging it.
I fix consumer electronics for a living, my tool of choice is a pair of ultrasharp tweezers I use for microsoldering. Far as household items are concerned, a real small sewing needle is definitely it. The eye can even be used to catch and pull out fluff.
You really won’t short something, and wooden toothpicks are at risk of splintering and leaving more behind than getting out if you’re not careful.
I would not use metal simply because its hardness is going to be similar or higher than the hardness of the contacts themselves, which means there’s a chance it could scratch or break the contact entirely.
You generally won’t be touching the contacts much, since most gunk like lint can just be scooped out. Just be a bit gentle and you’ll be fine.