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thadoggfather

macrumors P6
Oct 1, 2007
16,109
17,030
My knockoff arrived!

I like it! good enough fit, relatively comfy, looks good not cheap. cost $26 i believe

38mm, s/m

QUvrMKH.jpg

lyQsclR.jpg


CNtC0iB.jpg

xfzVJBp.jpg
 

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pdxa4

macrumors 6502
Aug 4, 2008
330
53
I've had this brown one (38mm) for about a month. Really like it, fits the watch great, looks good, comfortable, and is holding up fine. Here's the eBay link. It's a US seller with quick shipping:

http://www.ebay.com/itm/191658679652?_trksid=p2060353.m2749.l2649&var=490727906538&ssPageName=STRK:MEBIDX:IT

View attachment 598167

Ok I just made an order with this seller for the midnight blue 42mm version, will be curious to see how it looks and how robust it is.
 

dfine1966

macrumors 6502
Apr 9, 2011
425
46
Ok I just made an order with this seller for the midnight blue 42mm version, will be curious to see how it looks and how robust it is.
I ordered the 42mm midnight blue from the same seller. It should be delivered today. I will post pictures and my impression once I get it.
 

dfine1966

macrumors 6502
Apr 9, 2011
425
46
Ok cool, I'll wait for your review.
Mine does not arrive until Sat.
Received my 42mm moonlight blue(the don't call it Midnight Blue) leather loop today. This is from Sellforless. Came in a yellow envelope in a plastic bag. The only good thing I could say about it was the blue color was nice. Just like some of the other bands, you can see the metal from the band outside the confines of the watch. The adapter seemed like a loose connection. Also, the end of the band the goes in the watch groove was a little long and hanging out the side. I put in for a return right away. Here are a few of the pictures so you can see the problems. Hopefully I just got a dud, and yours is fine.
 

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pdxa4

macrumors 6502
Aug 4, 2008
330
53
Received my 42mm moonlight blue(the don't call it Midnight Blue) leather loop today. This is from Sellforless. Came in a yellow envelope in a plastic bag. The only good thing I could say about it was the blue color was nice. Just like some of the other bands, you can see the metal from the band outside the confines of the watch. The adapter seemed like a loose connection. Also, the end of the band the goes in the watch groove was a little long and hanging out the side. I put in for a return right away. Here are a few of the pictures so you can see the problems. Hopefully I just got a dud, and yours is fine.
Ok Tks for sharing. Sorry that it didn't work out for you. Hopefully the return process is easy for you.

Will see what I get and I'll share the results when I receive it.
 

dfine1966

macrumors 6502
Apr 9, 2011
425
46
Ok Tks for sharing. Sorry that it didn't work out for you. Hopefully the return process is easy for you.

Will see what I get and I'll share the results when I receive it.
Return process actually went pretty well. I just submitted a few hours ago and already accepted and set to return tomorrow. Good luck, hopefully you get a good one.
 

Defender2010

Cancelled
Jun 6, 2010
3,131
1,097
So it seems after 22 pages of fake leather loop chat, the manufacturers have not managed to fix the same issues that keep reoccurring on almost all these bands. Maybe they would sell more if they just fixed the metal showing and the spaces at the connectors. Perhaps there will never be a perfect fake band...
 

nicho

macrumors 601
Feb 15, 2008
4,250
3,250
So it seems after 22 pages of fake leather loop chat, the manufacturers have not managed to fix the same issues that keep reoccurring on almost all these bands. Maybe they would sell more if they just fixed the metal showing and the spaces at the connectors. Perhaps there will never be a perfect fake band...

i assume it went the following way.

1) cheap manufacturer rushes to make leather loop. it has issues.
2) cheap manufacturer makes loads of said leather loop.
3) all sorts of resellers buy and resell the one same make of leather loop, some reselling to each other in a murky chain.
4) some sellers have lots of stock left over of the exact same problematic leather loops.
5) issues never get "fixed" because that would involve destroying too much stock.
 

pdxa4

macrumors 6502
Aug 4, 2008
330
53
Return process actually went pretty well. I just submitted a few hours ago and already accepted and set to return tomorrow. Good luck, hopefully you get a good one.

I received the strap today, and went to test it out right away.

I saw similar to you regarding the fit. Can see the exposed metal and the connection is also loose.
The color is fine but the "leather" does not look right. Now if I was satisfied with the fit then I would treat the leather with some product to see if that helped, but I will not be touching it for now.

With my genuine Product Red strap (medium size)
i-3RMc2z8-L.jpg


Has the "B" stamp on the straps.
i-BpTJb4C-L.jpg


Fit is not good:
i-3d2drqN-L.jpg


Other side
i-N5rndGW-L.jpg


Not good enough really.
i-X2MnfF4-L.jpg


And for what its worth I did flip them around to see if that improved the fit but it did not help.
 

dfine1966

macrumors 6502
Apr 9, 2011
425
46
I received the strap today, and went to test it out right away.

I saw similar to you regarding the fit. Can see the exposed metal and the connection is also loose.
The color is fine but the "leather" does not look right. Now if I was satisfied with the fit then I would treat the leather with some product to see if that helped, but I will not be touching it for now.

With my genuine Product Red strap (medium size)
i-3RMc2z8-L.jpg


Has the "B" stamp on the straps.
i-BpTJb4C-L.jpg


Fit is not good:
i-3d2drqN-L.jpg


Other side
i-N5rndGW-L.jpg


Not good enough really.
i-X2MnfF4-L.jpg


And for what its worth I did flip them around to see if that improved the fit but it did not help.
It does seem all the band that have the B(Baseus) on it have had problems, (metal showing loose connection, band not fitting right.). I finally broke down and bought the oem apple midnight blue leather loop and it is worth it. Plus I got a corporate discount off the loop and saved 16%.
 

Qqueenie

macrumors regular
Dec 18, 2015
108
150
Baltimore, MD
Just got two in the mail from eBay! $17.62 each from seller jaminfy --- beige and red colors. Ordered on 12/16, shipped from China 12/18, and arrived 12/22. So far so good --- no exposed metal and everything seems solid/the magnet seems strong. I'll keep an eye out for separating leather.

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image.jpeg
 

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nicho

macrumors 601
Feb 15, 2008
4,250
3,250
Just got two in the mail from eBay! $17.62 each from seller jaminfy --- beige and red colors. Ordered on 12/16, shipped from China 12/18, and arrived 12/22. So far so good --- no exposed metal and everything seems solid/the magnet seems strong. I'll keep an eye out for separating leather.

View attachment 606744

View attachment 606750

the fit appears really good.

i'll be looking out for updates, i'm beginning to be tempted.
 

sean3

macrumors member
Dec 19, 2015
34
15
de_dust2
If you want the Leather Loop by Apple at a cheaper price, it just won't happen. I've searched and searched, and have yet to find a reliable knockoff offered at a discounted price that offers the premium the original Apple branded leather loop band offers. I've seen maybe one person find one, however it's nothing like the original band and has some trendy-hip seasonal designs instead of a classy elegant look. Trust me, save yourself the headache, if you really want the band, just go ahead and spend the money at Apple(or whoever sells the Apple leather loop). The real deal, really is the real deal. The magnet is very tight, the fit is comfortably snug, and it looks perfect. No gaps, no metal exposing, etc. This is after over a week of use, wearing it every day. I don't think you'll find a leather loop as perfect as the original anywhere, unless you're looking for patterns and different colors maybe.
 

thadoggfather

macrumors P6
Oct 1, 2007
16,109
17,030
If you want the Leather Loop by Apple at a cheaper price, it just won't happen. I've searched and searched, and have yet to find a reliable knockoff offered at a discounted price that offers the premium the original Apple branded leather loop band offers. I've seen maybe one person find one, however it's nothing like the original band and has some trendy-hip seasonal designs instead of a classy elegant look. Trust me, save yourself the headache, if you really want the band, just go ahead and spend the money at Apple(or whoever sells the Apple leather loop). The real deal, really is the real deal. The magnet is very tight, the fit is comfortably snug, and it looks perfect. No gaps, no metal exposing, etc. This is after over a week of use, wearing it every day. I don't think you'll find a leather loop as perfect as the original anywhere, unless you're looking for patterns and different colors maybe.


What about the one a few posts above you?

Looks pretty nice, but even with battery_sky occasionally revealing metal, I still like mine.

Also what other choice is there for 38mm ?
 
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sean3

macrumors member
Dec 19, 2015
34
15
de_dust2
What about the one a few posts above you?

Looks pretty nice, but even with battery_sky occasionally revealing metal, I still like mine.

Also what other choice is there for 38mm ?

The only one who posted a legit looking leather loop was Queenie. And if you look at the last red leather loop image she included, there's an eyesore of a gap where the band connects to the watch case. If you don't care about that, then maybe. But give her a week to wear it out and really use it. Then we shall see. For the 38mm, exchange it for the 42mm :p I just feel from personal experiences you are better off spending the premium rather than wasting money on knockoffs and shipping cost over a few months with headaches and aggravation.

And sure. I'm sure 1/1000 of those knockoffs shipped out, there is a great knockoff. But the odds just aren't worth it.

Unless you don't care about looks and just want the comfort value. Then by all means you have yourself a winner.
 
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CarlJ

Contributor
Feb 23, 2004
7,012
12,216
San Diego, CA, USA
If you want the Leather Loop by Apple at a cheaper price, it just won't happen. I've searched and searched, and have yet to find a reliable knockoff offered at a discounted price that offers the premium the original Apple branded leather loop band offers. ... The real deal, really is the real deal. The magnet is very tight, the fit is comfortably snug, and it looks perfect. No gaps, no metal exposing, etc.
You make it sound like a good clone of the Leather Loop is a unicorn. It's not. There are good ones and bad ones out there. The problem is, ordering online, you can't tell which ones are good without someone else (preferably many people) having tried first. (And, of course, you can't ask the seller, "is this one good", because they'll all say yes.) And there's no guarantee that the seller who had good ones this week will have ones from the same production run (or factory) next week.

I have two real Apple Leather Loops, one black and one blue. The black I ordered from Apple when I preordered my watch. The blue I purchased in an Apple Store (just before all the new colors came out). I also have a red leather loop that I bought from freedomoclock09 on eBay, in mid-July, for $48. I've compared them extensively. This knockoff is about 90% as good as the genuine Apple ones, at one-third the price (I got it partly out of curiosity - others were reporting good luck with freedomoclock then - and partly because I wanted red and Apple doesn't make one yet). The grain of the leather is a bit more pronounced, but the two Apple ones actually vary considerably (black from very early on, has rather faint grain, while the blue has more pronounced grain). Curiously, on the red one, the "buckle end" is almost exactly 10mm longer. The leather feels very nice, the flexibility and magnets are indistinguishable from Apple's. I've worn all three extensively, and there is no difference in feel, nor any apparent difference in durability.

Given this, and the reports I was reading from others at the time, I'd say that there are more good knockoff Leather Loops than you might think, it's just very hard to tell good from bad without holding one (or reading reports from someone who has). Actually, I have an odd feeling that Leather Loops are a bit played out in the Chinese factories - last I looked, there were a lot more posts for knockoff Milanese Loops than for Leather Loops (kind of like the factories have moved on). And I got a quite nice black Milanese Loop from Amazon a few weeks ago, for $28. (If Apple ever makes one, I'll definitely buy it - the knockoff black ML is perhaps 75-80% of what Apple would do, quality-wise, but for day to day wear, it's good - I'd prefer Apple quality, but silver mesh on a black watch doesn't do it for me).

RedLeatherLoop.jpg
 

Qqueenie

macrumors regular
Dec 18, 2015
108
150
Baltimore, MD
But give her a week to wear it out and really use it. Then we shall see.

Yep, it does seem like the test of these (aside from exposed metal) is whether they start separating over time.

Third-party straps will always be worthwhile to me because I'd rather buy eight bands that are 80% as good as an Apple band than one apple band. I understand why others would prefer the OEM bands but the cost tradeoff is worth it to me.
 

AlliFlowers

macrumors 601
Jan 1, 2011
4,542
15,756
L.A. (Lower Alabama)
That's still nice if you have the 42mm watch. Apple does not make one for the 38, so we have to buy knockoffs if we want one.

If you want the Leather Loop by Apple at a cheaper price, it just won't happen. I've searched and searched, and have yet to find a reliable knockoff offered at a discounted price that offers the premium the original Apple branded leather loop band offers. I've seen maybe one person find one, however it's nothing like the original band and has some trendy-hip seasonal designs instead of a classy elegant look. Trust me, save yourself the headache, if you really want the band, just go ahead and spend the money at Apple(or whoever sells the Apple leather loop). The real deal, really is the real deal. The magnet is very tight, the fit is comfortably snug, and it looks perfect. No gaps, no metal exposing, etc. This is after over a week of use, wearing it every day. I don't think you'll find a leather loop as perfect as the original anywhere, unless you're looking for patterns and different colors maybe.
 
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