iPhone Chargers: How to Spot Fake vs. Original

Fake vs. Original iPhone Charger [Video]

Video uploaded by Gva Electronics on November 20, 2016.

For anyone who has an iPhone I am sure this is a very familiar struggle. Chargers tend to break so often… and you need them for every room, for your job, for your car, for your portable charger… the list continues. Buying enough chargers can seriously break the bank if you go ahead and purchase chargers straight from Apple.

iPhone Chargers: How to Spot Fake vs. Original

Cheapies vs The Real Deal

So what do a lot of people tend to do? They will try to save some money and get cheaper priced chargers. This may be from eBay, maybe from China. Maybe even your local TJ Maxx has a great clearance sale going on. I mean, if there is a charger on sale for $5 why not buy it? It’s only five bucks. If it breaks it is not that big of a deal, right? Some people may beg to differ and disagree with you and this is why.

For some people, money is not an issue at all. They do not care that they spend $20 or more on a charger and buying a cheapie brand never even crosses their mind. But for the majority of people- most are always trying to find ways to save money. Short term, it may seem like buying $5-$10 chargers are such a great idea and you save all this money. But- tell me, how long do those chargers last for? How fast do they break? You may also be saying “Hey, that’s okay it was only $5, I’ll just go ahead and buy another $5 charger.” Yes, I may agree with you, because that is something I once used to do. But If you were to do the math, and calculate how many cheap chargers you have bought, how long they lasted you and how many times you had to rebuy because they broke so fast- you would see the math is higher than the price of an original iPhone charger.

Now, the original Apple charger may last a little longer than the cheap chargers, but I am going to let you in on a little secret not many know about. Every time you buy an Apple charger – keep that receipt. Apple chargers come with a one-year warranty. Which means… even if your charger breaks or starts to malfunction several months into usage, you can go ahead and exchange it for a brand new Apple charger. And that my friends, is where the math plays in. This is where $20 is WORTH it when you buy from Apple. You get a one-year warranty and you can exchange for a new charger an unlimited number of times (with a receipt of course) until the one year is over.

If we were to go back to the cheap $5-10 chargers. Those break a lot more frequently, and may cost less INITIALLY when you are spending money – but comparing within a one-year time frame, you will be spending more money on those cheapies over time. So my advice, after experimenting with both – is that you get what you pay for. You spend $20, but that is $20 you are spending for a whole year of guaranteed charger usage.

Now, another word of advice. Lots of Apple stores have become very strict in replacing new iPhone chargers as well. Since a lot of “China Cheapies” as many like to call them, make almost identical chargers to the original chargers. But, they are not made exactly the same. Apple associates are paying close attention to these details, so don’t think you can buy a cheap charger and easily replace it with the original iPhone charger when it breaks.

If you are curious here are the few differences between the chargers, which may or may not be limited to what will be listed below.

As you can see in this photo there are two chargers displayed. They seem pretty similar but take a closer look. One is a fake charger and the other is an Apple original. Apple’s charger is pictured on the left. It has a slightly shorter USB. Also the inside of the apple charger gives off some gold color as you can see, which the charger on the right does not have. Lastly, the white part of the chargers are not the same size, and the fake charger’s icon is gray while the one on the left is white.

If looking quickly at both chargers, it is almost impossible to see these differences or spot them off the top of your head, unless you are a professional. But trust me, Apple associates know their products and they will be able to tell the difference.

Moral of the story? Buy the Apple charger. It is more expensive but it is worth the price. It will last longer and you are paying for a one year guaranteed warranty. Don’t waste money on those cheap iPhone chargers. Trust me – I have been there and done that, and now I regret ever spending so much money on those.

I hope this article was helpful for you. If you have any thoughts or comments you want to share about your charger experiences with iPhone chargers, please feel free to do so. We would love to hear from you.

Links

• Power & Cables – iPhone Accessories – Apple Store
• If you are looking where to sell your used iPhone, you’ve come to the right place. At iGotOffer, we offer the best price for your used phone, and you will certainly get the right amount of money for it: Sell used iPhone online now!