KitKatKitKat
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Redhot Redmi has entered Singapore market, as well as the fake versions.
I'm posting this thread to WARN everybody who has purchased Redmi through unofficial channels in Singapore (Meaning any other channels other than their official website Xiaomi Singapore and Singapore's major mobile communication companies), or who failed to grab one during Redmi's last online sales and intends to find one as soon as possible due to frustration.
Redmi obviously has created a hype here, and their hunger sales strategy works. But there is nothing you can do. And the best thing you can do is WAIT!
Wait for the next sales! DONT BE FOOLED by those advertisements in some websites with very attractive prices like S$169. I know you won't even mind if the price is set at even S$200. "What a bargain!! And I don't need to compete with so many crazy people in a once every month online sales!" Maybe this is what you are thinking. Well, then you are in trouble. You may buy a fake version, and you are not even aware of it. Why? Because you have never touched or used a redmi before and the one you bought with ease just looks so real, "thanks" to the "brilliant
" replicating technology nowadays.
I'm writing this article painstakingly, why am I writing this? Because I've been through this. I was fooled. I bought a fake redmi from Qoo10.sg, and it took me 1 whole week to realize that my phone is a highly sophisticated fake version. There are plenty of symptoms before it finally triggered me to download some verification softwares to check the authenticity of the phone. The phone was really crappy, software crashes, slow camera, very bad battery (dead at 30%). Initially I was thinking "Well, that's because it costs only 200 dollars, and it's a MADE IN CHINA product". How ironic it is, this China product actually performs quite well, only if it's real.
I will list down my experiences with this phone, why I suspect this is fake, what is the proof, it's really a long story. But before you lost your patience to read on, let me tell you some key methods to check whether the phone is fake.
1. Download a software called "CPU Z" from Google Store, check the phone spec revealed by this software and verify against the advertised Redmi spec.
This is the screenshot of my test on the fake phone, notice the highlighted spec:
CPUZ:
2. Download a software called "鲁大师" from Xiaomi Store. Use "一键验机" to verify. It will tell you right away whether it's a fake phone.
This is the screenshot of my test on the fake phone:
鲁大师：
DO NOT USE the software "安兔兔“(which is more popular than the above two, I admit) to verify, why? The fake phone is so clever that it replaces your downloaded software version with an old version automatically, and it will show you the original genuine spec. OMG! And I'm really worried that the above 2 softwares may be targeted by the new fake versions as well...... Be very careful!
For those people who are really cautious or curious, you can additionally check the IMEI of the phone. You can get the IMEI from the back of your box or the back of your phone under the battery. Simply google this IMEI online. If you find some results, BINGO, most likely there are some other people querying this same number for verification purpose, you don't even need to click on the search results, the phone is a replica. This is how I ascertain for the first time that my phone is fake.
Well, there are many other ways to check, let me list down a few:
1. Check the box, all Redmi manufactured after 2013 July has a 20 digit authentication code covered under a layer of anti-counterfeit coating at the back of your box. If you can't find this coating, it may be fake.
Picture here, left one is fake:
2. Ask the seller to give you another set of redmi (Think of some reasons). Open the back cover, take out the battery, check whether the IMEI and Serial number are the same as your current phone. This sounds funny, but you will get to find out that they are the same for both phones if they are fake. I got 2 phones from a Qoo10 seller in different dates, one for personal use and the other for company lucky draw. I didn't bother to check when I get the phones from Sim Lim Square. And later when I verify with the lucky draw winner, I'm so surprised to find out that the 2 phones have the same IMEI and Serial number!! Why? Because they are the replicas of the original authentic Redmi phone!! Here is the picture, can it be more fake? And if you look carefully, there is a number behind the serial number, in my case, it's "001". This "001" actually means it's fake version 001, there is fake versions 000 and 002 as well as I get the information from the internet.
If you realize that your phone is fake, BE VERY FIRM TO ASK FOR REFUND, and spread this message because I believe there are already over thousand people being cheated in Singapore.
If the seller threatens you, please don't be afraid, leave the shop for your own safety first, and then call the police. By Singapore law, selling counterfeit branded product is a CRIME which will put the criminal (Yes criminal!) in jail for up to 5 years, or subject to a fine up to maximum of S$100,000 or BOTH. Check out the link below:
Is it illegal to sell replicas of branded goods in Singapore?
Once again please forward this message if you find it to be helpful. Redmi Note is coming, so please be aware, the replication industry might have already started production. Open your eyes big big!
I'm posting this thread to WARN everybody who has purchased Redmi through unofficial channels in Singapore (Meaning any other channels other than their official website Xiaomi Singapore and Singapore's major mobile communication companies), or who failed to grab one during Redmi's last online sales and intends to find one as soon as possible due to frustration.
Redmi obviously has created a hype here, and their hunger sales strategy works. But there is nothing you can do. And the best thing you can do is WAIT!
Wait for the next sales! DONT BE FOOLED by those advertisements in some websites with very attractive prices like S$169. I know you won't even mind if the price is set at even S$200. "What a bargain!! And I don't need to compete with so many crazy people in a once every month online sales!" Maybe this is what you are thinking. Well, then you are in trouble. You may buy a fake version, and you are not even aware of it. Why? Because you have never touched or used a redmi before and the one you bought with ease just looks so real, "thanks" to the "brilliant" replicating technology nowadays.I'm writing this article painstakingly, why am I writing this? Because I've been through this. I was fooled. I bought a fake redmi from Qoo10.sg, and it took me 1 whole week to realize that my phone is a highly sophisticated fake version. There are plenty of symptoms before it finally triggered me to download some verification softwares to check the authenticity of the phone. The phone was really crappy, software crashes, slow camera, very bad battery (dead at 30%). Initially I was thinking "Well, that's because it costs only 200 dollars, and it's a MADE IN CHINA product". How ironic it is, this China product actually performs quite well, only if it's real.
I will list down my experiences with this phone, why I suspect this is fake, what is the proof, it's really a long story. But before you lost your patience to read on, let me tell you some key methods to check whether the phone is fake.
1. Download a software called "CPU Z" from Google Store, check the phone spec revealed by this software and verify against the advertised Redmi spec.
This is the screenshot of my test on the fake phone, notice the highlighted spec:
CPUZ:
2. Download a software called "鲁大师" from Xiaomi Store. Use "一键验机" to verify. It will tell you right away whether it's a fake phone.
This is the screenshot of my test on the fake phone:
鲁大师：
DO NOT USE the software "安兔兔“(which is more popular than the above two, I admit) to verify, why? The fake phone is so clever that it replaces your downloaded software version with an old version automatically, and it will show you the original genuine spec. OMG! And I'm really worried that the above 2 softwares may be targeted by the new fake versions as well...... Be very careful!
For those people who are really cautious or curious, you can additionally check the IMEI of the phone. You can get the IMEI from the back of your box or the back of your phone under the battery. Simply google this IMEI online. If you find some results, BINGO, most likely there are some other people querying this same number for verification purpose, you don't even need to click on the search results, the phone is a replica. This is how I ascertain for the first time that my phone is fake.
Well, there are many other ways to check, let me list down a few:
1. Check the box, all Redmi manufactured after 2013 July has a 20 digit authentication code covered under a layer of anti-counterfeit coating at the back of your box. If you can't find this coating, it may be fake.
Picture here, left one is fake:
2. Ask the seller to give you another set of redmi (Think of some reasons). Open the back cover, take out the battery, check whether the IMEI and Serial number are the same as your current phone. This sounds funny, but you will get to find out that they are the same for both phones if they are fake. I got 2 phones from a Qoo10 seller in different dates, one for personal use and the other for company lucky draw. I didn't bother to check when I get the phones from Sim Lim Square. And later when I verify with the lucky draw winner, I'm so surprised to find out that the 2 phones have the same IMEI and Serial number!! Why? Because they are the replicas of the original authentic Redmi phone!! Here is the picture, can it be more fake? And if you look carefully, there is a number behind the serial number, in my case, it's "001". This "001" actually means it's fake version 001, there is fake versions 000 and 002 as well as I get the information from the internet.
If you realize that your phone is fake, BE VERY FIRM TO ASK FOR REFUND, and spread this message because I believe there are already over thousand people being cheated in Singapore.
If the seller threatens you, please don't be afraid, leave the shop for your own safety first, and then call the police. By Singapore law, selling counterfeit branded product is a CRIME which will put the criminal (Yes criminal!) in jail for up to 5 years, or subject to a fine up to maximum of S$100,000 or BOTH. Check out the link below:
Is it illegal to sell replicas of branded goods in Singapore?
Once again please forward this message if you find it to be helpful. Redmi Note is coming, so please be aware, the replication industry might have already started production. Open your eyes big big!
