Last week I had a talk with a disappointed customer who purchased an iPod Touch from flea market vendor. She came in with her laptop and new iPod questioning why her computer and iPod wouldn’t talk. Because her iPod wasn’t genuine, the Apple software didn’t recognize the device.
Many people have either knowingly or unwittingly bought a fake Rolex or Gucci item. I purchased a “Rolek” when I was a kid so I could show it off to my friends as a joke. It was easy to tell the difference. We’ve reached a point where the difference between the original and copy isn’t so distinguishable. Making counterfeit technology items has become a huge business.
Last year news spread in the computer world about an online vendor that had mistakenly sold fake Intel processors. Newegg.com, a very large online vendor of computer parts, had purchased a lot of “demo” processors that turned out to be very bad copies. However, over the last eight years both AMD and Intel CPU’s have been counterfeited. Many of them work similarly to the original and most consumers don’t notice the differences.
Routers and networking equipment are readily copied and reproduced because the technology behind the scenes is very easily duplicated. Just recently another distributor noticed a higher than normal return rate from one shipment of Cisco routers. Upon investigation the distributor discovered the internal components were inferior to the genuine product; however, the plastic casing was almost identical.
Gray market supplied counterfeit items have impacted computer manufacturer Hewlett-Packard (HP) so much that they have an internal committee dedicated to locating and removing imitations from the market. Over a three year span, HP conducted almost 5,000 investigations with seizures totaling $800 million. Products are then removed from the market and destroyed.
At the beginning of this year a group in Los Angeles was discovered and brought down. Within a very short amount of time they profited $10 million by importing and reselling gray market iPods and Sony PSP gaming systems. Apparently their operation was so complex that the group purchased components and assembled them in the US with fake labels.
After discussing this with the customer who brought in the counterfeit iPod she had one important question: “How can I protect myself from getting ripped off in the future?” I gave her a few suggestions in the store. I also told her I would be using her story and our conversation as the subject for this week’s article.
Possibly the best way to protect yourself – as a consumer – is to purchase items from known vendors. Avoiding street vendors and flea markets will eliminate a significant chance of receiving counterfeit items. Though it will lessen the likelihood of receiving a copy, I have known many people who have purchased originals at significant savings.
No matter where you choose to make your purchase, it’s a good idea to open the item in front of a store employee prior to leaving the store. You should inspect the box and packaging to make sure the item was not opened and nothing is missing. Most manufacturers seal the box with privately labeled tape. Though some only use plastic shrink and this is easily resealed.
If you did purchase a counterfeit then your first step should be to try and return it to the store. If the store is no help then the supposed manufacture may be able to assist you in retrieving your money. Many times, however, the consumer is out of luck because vendors rarely accept fault. Caveat emptor.
(Jeromy Patriquin is the President of Laptop & Computer Repair, Inc. located at 509 Main St. in Gardner. You can text him at (978) 413-2840 or call him directly at (978) 919-8059.)