I am considering purchasing an iphone which the seller says is from China. Box looks normal, ie rectangular, not flat, phone says on the back "designed by Apple in California, assembled in China" but there is no warranty with it as it was a gift. Yet there is this little niggle - because its a Chinese iphone - could it be fake? Can you buy unlocked iphones from China? This one is sim free and states it is factory unlocked. I know you can from Hong Kong, but is it the same in China? Is there a sure-fire way to tell if this is the real thing? It all looks ok from photo. Thanks
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Is there a very easy way to spot chinese fake?
- Thread starter Lindat
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if its recognized by itunes its mostly not fake. try plugging it into itunes. also try downloading from the app store, check settings > general > about > see if anything says something like it cant read it or something. type the serial number in at this website to check if the warranty is still on. it will tell you if its still going or voided, it will also say if its an invalid number.
https://selfsolve.apple.com/agreementWarrantyDynamic.do
https://selfsolve.apple.com/agreementWarrantyDynamic.do
Official Chinese iPhones do not support wifi, for example. There is no need to order from China, the risks are far too high. Get one from the US, I think. Also, who knows, how long you can maintain the phone unlocked without upgrading to the most recent software.
Physically they will look identical but they will never function the same.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hKnkydhhRX8
The lag and power adapter are the big give aways on this one.
But that just shows how much they can look alike. The price is also often a give away.
The interface has some small differences as well.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hKnkydhhRX8
The lag and power adapter are the big give aways on this one.
But that just shows how much they can look alike. The price is also often a give away.
The interface has some small differences as well.
Where is serial number?
OK guys, help now required with the serial number.
I emailed the guy asking for the serial number and he said he couldn't find it, only the model number: A1303 FCC IDBCGA1303A IC ID 579C-A1303A
Does this sound like a real iphone?
Is that a real model number?
Where should this guy find the serial number?
It's not looking good so far is it? oh dear, shame.
OK guys, help now required with the serial number.
I emailed the guy asking for the serial number and he said he couldn't find it, only the model number: A1303 FCC IDBCGA1303A IC ID 579C-A1303A
Does this sound like a real iphone?
Is that a real model number?
Where should this guy find the serial number?
It's not looking good so far is it? oh dear, shame.
give me the link, and also tell him to go into settings > general > about, and scroll down to the serial number.
That isn't a serial number. They are printed on the back of the phone and available from the Settings>General>About. It is possible to buy factory unlocked iphones from Apple's Hong Kong store (I did).
The model number is right. But all that means is that they were able to copy some text from a legit iPhone. As thats printed on all iPhones.
Check this out!
Sorry "Pc's are junk". I forgot to answer your question.
The item is on ebay uk, item no. 220555114007.
I reckon its fake. The guy "can't find" the serial number despite having original packaging and me telling him to look under where sim card goes.
It's also not got any bids in 3 days with lots of questions asked.
Seems dodgy to me.
I'm going to avoid it with a barge pole.
Sorry "Pc's are junk". I forgot to answer your question.
The item is on ebay uk, item no. 220555114007.
I reckon its fake. The guy "can't find" the serial number despite having original packaging and me telling him to look under where sim card goes.
It's also not got any bids in 3 days with lots of questions asked.
Seems dodgy to me.
I'm going to avoid it with a barge pole.
The guy has 100% positive feedback with 112 ratings, what are you worried about?
It says "no returns accepted" but buyers are protected by law if the item is not as described. If you were sold a phone which is not an iPhone, you'd be entitled to a refund by law.
If you want a cheap iPhone, buy it.
People forge ebay accounts quite often. Not everything is safe one ebay, even if you do your research on the sellers. Just avoid the whole transaction. If the seller wasn't a fake, he would do a better job of not looking fake.
I didn't say everything is safe - I said that even if you get scammed you would be entitled to a refund if the item isn't as described.
Also, he doesn't look fake at all to me. The iPhone is an unwanted upgrade, so he probably wouldn't know where to find the serial number..
serial no is not printed on back of my phone, only physical place it's on phone is in sim tray.
or in settings/general/about. or on box.
but not phone.