IPhone dock connector seems to have bent pins, is this a hazard

The app you are referring to has a manual process you can try, but it is not for the faint of heart: http://blog.ramondeklein.nl/?p=257

Howto disable A2DP on the iPhone

The interesting directory is /var/mobile/Library/Preferences, where the iPhone stores the BlueTooth settings. These settings are stored in the PLIST format, so you need a PLIST editor (Mac or PC) or you need to convert them by hand. Transfer the com.apple.MobileBluetooth.services.plist to your computer or you can use iFile to edit the file on your iPhone directly.

Open the com.apple.MobileBluetooth.services.plist in your PLIST editor and make sure you edit the A2DPService section and store the devices you don’t want to use A2DP in the UnauthorizeList (without the letter “d”). This dictionary will probably not exist yet, so you need to add it by hand. You need to know the MAC address, but it is probably listed already in this file.

<key>A2DPService</key>
<dict>
  <key>State</key>
  <true/>
  <key>UnauthorizeList</key>
  <dict>
    <key>00:10:60:D0:91:D0</key>        <!-- This is the MAC address -->
    <date>2009-08-08T01:00:00Z</date>   <!-- Timestamp -->
  </dict>
</dict>

Transfer the PLIST file back to your iPhone and reboot the device. Once it gets back on, then the A2DP service should be disabled.

If you count the shield on USB 3.0, the "9 pin" version actually requires 10 pins, as the shield, while typically grounded, is not actually used as the signal-ground (and it cannot be used as such).

As such, if the lightning connector indeed has only 8 pins, there is no way it can support USB 3.0 while properly complying with the USB spec.

I would guess that if it supports USB 3.0, it would be with non-standard USB extension, much as many of apple's other USB addons (like their high-current charging facilities).

I'd like to further note that, from an electrical engineering standpoint, using the casing (which is called the shield) for anything but, well, shielding is considered very bad practice.

The entire point of shielding is to basically absorb any interference before it can each the inner conductors. If you are relying on the shield for carrying a meaningful signal (and ground is indeed a meaningful signal), it is no longer effective as a shield.

If it does support USB 3.0, I would hope they open the connector mechanical design up for wider adoption, as the current USB 3.0 micro connector is horribly designed mechanically.