Element Vapor Case

10-Dee-Q said:

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Can u explain why u said so?

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Just from the pictures, the black looks like spray on paints.

Anyway, if you are so unsure why not just return the both of them and order them from elementcase.com? That would be 100% genuine. I understand you would have to wait longer but if you are worrying so much, then maybe it's worth to wait for a 100% authetical product?

Hope you let us know which is real.

I have a manufacturing background and i work for a company that spends billions of dollars manufacturing in China. When looking at the comparison photos between fake and real those differences appear to be your typical manufacturing variations that would be the result of any mass produced product. I'd be willing to be that if you sorted through a pile of "real" cases that you would find similar variations. Its not perfect, and the inspection process is most likely visual and manual so these minor types of "defects" if you want to call it that, is really normal. I just compared my 2 cases that i have left (a black and a silver one) against those pictures and i could see features from both the real and the fake ones that you have in the picture. I know one thing for sure though....mine definitely has an anodized finish. Another thing i know for sure is that these may not be as "real" as you would like them to be, but if you can't tell the difference, then who cares? FYI, i also bought some Beats by Dre Studio noise cancelling headphones in China for 45 bucks. Are they "fake"? Probably......but they look and sound just like the original ones i have as well. If they look and sound like the real ones then the only reason they are fake is because they weren't purchased through the legitimate channels. In that case, are they really fake?

On their Facebook page they said that their aluminum cases are all made in the USA. If true, that would nix the idea of a Chinese supplier. I'd post my pics there and ask if they are fake...

here's the most obvious differences
the black one is sharp on this part
where th esilver one is "bevelled" about 2 mm
both are very well made cause i can't find any "roughness" at all

another thing is the silver one supposed to be anodised as well ?
cause in my silver one is like finnished in brushed with very fine lines
like brushed aluminium.

10-Dee-Q said:

here's the most obvious differences
the black one is sharp on this part
where th esilver one is "bevelled" about 2 mm
both are very well made cause i can't find any "roughness" at all

another thing is the silver one supposed to be anodised as well ?
cause in my silver one is like finnished in brushed with very fine lines
like brushed aluminium.

Click to expand...

My silver one which I purchased very early before any knockoffs had the 2 mm bevel. It always bothered me a little because at the joint the other side isn't beveled. It seemed like a design flaw in the original.

10-Dee-Q said:

here's the most obvious differences
the black one is sharp on this part
where th esilver one is "bevelled" about 2 mm
both are very well made cause i can't find any "roughness" at all

another thing is the silver one supposed to be anodised as well ?
cause in my silver one is like finnished in brushed with very fine lines
like brushed aluminium.

Click to expand...

The silver one should be anodized as well. If you have a multimeter you can verify by doing a conductivity test. If properly anodized it should not conduct. The lines that you see are more likely the result of tooling marks left behind by the CNC machining process.

So, I've returned one of my Vapor 4 cases to Element yesterday and will be getting the Vapor Pro. . But I still have one more Vapor 4 that I bought off of eBay a few weeks ago and I'm looking to sell it. Anyone interested??

I'll let it go cheap. It's the Black/Blue version.

Hit me up if interested.

Thanks

archrider said:

My silver one which I purchased very early before any knockoffs had the 2 mm bevel. It always bothered me a little because at the joint the other side isn't beveled. It seemed like a design flaw in the original.

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hmm my silver one is beveled on the left side top and bottom ( the cap portion)
where the right part is sharp (the frame portion)

MrSandman said:

The silver one should be anodized as well. If you have a multimeter you can verify by doing a conductivity test. If properly anodized it should not conduct. The lines that you see are more likely the result of tooling marks left behind by the CNC machining process.

Click to expand...

so this supposed to be the best way to check wheter your case is fake or real ?
cause as far as i remembered, all the "fake" one doesn't feature anodized finnish ?
if that so how to test it ?
what voltage / watt ?
thank you very much

and can you please test yours wheter or not it conduct any electricity using the multimeter ?

and for those who own the original vapor in silver colour can anyone post their close up picture ?
i want to see the finished to compared to mine,
i would greatly thankfull for that.

thank you very much.

Zord said:

So, I've returned one of my Vapor 4 cases to Element yesterday and will be getting the Vapor Pro. . But I still have one more Vapor 4 that I bought off of eBay a few weeks ago and I'm looking to sell it. Anyone interested??

I'll let it go cheap. It's the Black/Blue version.

Hit me up if interested.

Thanks

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Could you tell me how much?

Maybe I am thinking about this wrong, but:

1) if it is so hard to tell the difference between the original and a knock-off, then who cares. Just enjoy the case if they look and perform identically to you.

2) if it is SO important to verify it is original, then just order from element directly. The extra time/money is worth it.

I can't believe we are actually discussing electrical conductance tests...

10-Dee-Q said:

so this supposed to be the best way to check wheter your case is fake or real ?
cause as far as i remembered, all the "fake" one doesn't feature anodized finnish ?
if that so how to test it ?
what voltage / watt ?
thank you very much

Click to expand...

This is the best way to check if your case is anodized. Whether it's real or fake I don't know. Maybe the fake ones are anodized too. Lol. Most multimeters have a conductivity tester built in. There is no need to worry about volts or watts. You are simply testing the resistance of the case. You can also do the same by switching the meter to any ohms setting and touching the 2 probes to the surface. This is getting pretty funny. If you cant tell the difference then enjoy your case. Aside from the fact that I lose a bar of signal strength this is the best case out there. Lol.

Same thoughts here. Either spend the cash and get the good quality and know for a fact its real or take the cheap way and see what happens with the knockoff. I lost one of my key chain wrenches for my new case (came unscrewed) and I contacted Element and they took tare of it immediately and sent me out a replacement for nothing. Sometimes the extra money is worth it.

jbromer said:

Maybe I am thinking about this wrong, but:

1) if it is so hard to tell the difference between the original and a knock-off, then who cares. Just enjoy the case if they look and perform identically to you.

2) if it is SO important to verify it is original, then just order from element directly. The extra time/money is worth it.

I can't believe we are actually discussing electrical conductance tests...

Click to expand...

jbromer said:

Maybe I am thinking about this wrong, but:

1) if it is so hard to tell the difference between the original and a knock-off, then who cares. Just enjoy the case if they look and perform identically to you.

2) if it is SO important to verify it is original, then just order from element directly. The extra time/money is worth it.

I can't believe we are actually discussing electrical conductance tests...

Click to expand...

maybe you wont care
but its my hard earned money that gets me this cases
and i deserved to get the genuine one so i asked here for those people that bought directly from element case.
btw of course its SO important for me to verify it is original or not cause i paid the same amount as you guys,
im not trying to be cheap by buying from seedy market or ebay
i bought in apple store in HK and indonesia, please read my first post in case u missed it.

MrSandman said:

This is the best way to check if your case is anodized. Whether it's real or fake I don't know. Maybe the fake ones are anodized too. Lol. Most multimeters have a conductivity tester built in. There is no need to worry about volts or watts. You are simply testing the resistance of the case. You can also do the same by switching the meter to any ohms setting and touching the 2 probes to the surface. This is getting pretty funny. If you cant tell the difference then enjoy your case. Aside from the fact that I lose a bar of signal strength this is the best case out there. Lol.

Click to expand...

thx for the advice ill try this tommorow on my workshop
i have a car garage here, so i have the multimeter there
and i really think that those fake one are not anodized as its quite pricey right ?

S O F L Y said:

Could you tell me how much?

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How does $30 sound??

Zord said:

How does $30 sound??

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How can I pm or have your email?

I'm new with this forum

10-Dee-Q said:

maybe you wont care
but its my hard earned money that gets me this cases
and i deserved to get the genuine one so i asked here for those people that bought directly from element case.
btw of course its SO important for me to verify it is original or not cause i paid the same amount as you guys,
im not trying to be cheap by buying from seedy market or ebay
i bought in apple store in HK and indonesia, please read my first post in case u missed it.

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Dude, don't get mad at me. I read your post just fine. I know you paid full price for the case. This thread has been hijacked for over 2 days on this topic and a bunch of users have basically told you they can't tell the difference and your cases are just fine.

So, I'll try again, either:

1) If it is so hard to tell the difference that you need engineering equipment to distinguish them, then maybe you should just be happy?

or

2) If it has nothing to do with how they look/perform, and you just really just want an assurance that your case was manufactured in the US, then the extra shipping could be considered worth it...

I'm not going to argue with you or anyone, so this is my last input to the discussion.

S O F L Y said:

How can I pm or have your email?

I'm new with this forum

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I've accepted friend request.

Limited edition vs. vapor pro

Maybe its buried in the ginormous thread but what's the difference between the limited edition black ops case vs. the vapor pro? Other then double the price of course.

Also (again maybe buried in this thread) how's the wifi/3g signal strength. I thought I read that the vapor case will decrease signal strength. After all you're adding more metal to the phone

maflynn said:

Maybe its buried in the ginormous thread but what's the difference between the limited edition black ops case vs. the vapor pro? Other then double the price of course.

Also (again maybe buried in this thread) how's the wifi/3g signal strength. I thought I read that the vapor case will decrease signal strength. After all you're adding more metal to the phone

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Not double the price, just $20 ($150 vs. $130). Difference is color and finish - shiny for the Pro Spectra, matte/grainy for the Black Ops - really a personal preference thing. Black-Ops also comes with a screen protector and carrying case (a case for a case!)

3G/wifi seems pretty much unaffected for 3G/wifi. GPS may be a bit off though appears to be the consensus.

jbromer said:

Not double the price, just $20 ($150 vs. $130). Difference is color and finish - shiny for the Pro Spectra, matte/grainy for the Black Ops - really a personal preference thing. Black-Ops also comes with a screen protector and carrying case (a case for a case!)

3G/wifi seems pretty much unaffected for 3G/wifi. GPS may be a bit off though appears to be the consensus.

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Close to double, the vapor pro is 79 bucks.

I didn't know there was a pro spectra at 120. So I should be comparing between the spectra and limited edition?

maflynn said:

Close to double, the vapor pro is 79 bucks.

I didn't know there was a pro spectra at 120. So I should be comparing between the spectra and limited edition?

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You are talking about the Vapor 4, not the Vapor Pro. Different case entirely. I will have to defer this question to someone else, never tried one.

The company's website describes the different cases better. Check it out...

Elementcase.com

jbromer said:

You are talking about the Vapor 4, not the Vapor Pro. Different case entirely. I will have to defer this question to someone else, never tried one.

The company's website describes the different cases better. Check it out...

Elementcase.com

Click to expand...

Thanks, I need to do more homework I guess.

Update: Vapor Pro Spectra: Nice!

I have had my Vapor Pro Spectra for about a week, so just wanted to share a couple comments. Nothing earth-shaking, just an observation or two.

Design: Based on some of the great photos on this thread, I went Silver/Silver, and it looks just amazing on the black iPhone. I have a few other cases, along with another aluminum or two, and this is the one I am using on a day-to-day basis. Super feel and impression of quality.

3G/WiFi: As others have measured, I did not see an affect.

GPS: Unfortunately, this can be off at any given time. Not so much lock speed, which is very fast, but actual location, which can be right on or off about a 1/2 block. [off topic: hoping for a report from one of you on the GPS with the E13ctron hybrid back]

Accessories: Just a couple surprises for me, both positive! For dusty environments, I REALLY like the zipper case that I purchased with it. Just what I was looking for. Also, it came with this microfiber back cover. I thought I was just going to throw this, but then I decided to just give it a try. I am really surprised, but I like this!

Anyway, a positive feeling about this. When I travel and need GPS the Magpul or my M-Tech carbon come out, but for most of my use the Vapor Pro Spectra is just great.

TEHi said:

Any words on the knock off version? Not that I'm a fan of counterfeit, just don't want to spend $150 for something that may not work. My average signal is 3 bars

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Got it, installed it, removed it.

The good: It came in a Vapor Pro box with a zippered case, certificate of authenticity (!) and tool kit with foam rubber "gasket" pieces for lining the case in key locations. It uses small, blacked Phillips-head screws rather than the larger hex screws of the genuine article. The workmanship is pretty good-- joints are flush, anodized color is consistent (though I had a small defect in the color of the black piece in one spot near an edge), and the machined aluminum is smooth, though with slightly visible tooling marks on the small beveled surfaces when held at an angle to the light. The vendor on Alibaba offered to exchange the piece with the color flaw, but only if I returned it to him in China first-- something I was not willing to incur the cost on. It did not appear to affect my 3G signal or GPS functionality at all.

The bad: It significantly degraded my WiFi capability. Where I normally get a full strength signal in my house, I was registered half that with this case. On my second floor, almost directly above my Airport router, where I normally get three out of four on the strength meter, I got no signal at all with this case.