iPhone 5 Knockoffs Showing Up in China Already

[CP1091]

Very doubtful.

[orange42]

I don't like this design much at all. I think the 4 has a perfect design. But, since it will obviously have better internals than my 3GS I'd still get it.

[Luap]

Originally Posted by MacRumors

Months before the iPhone 5 is expected to launch.........

Originally Posted by MacRumors

Apple is expected to release the actual iPhone 5 sometime in September.

[lukaszsw]

Originally Posted by grahamnp

People were knocking the IP4's design before it came out as well and then it launched and *poof*... nicest design ever.

It might be lacking some polish but I think that's a lot nicer than my 4. Not that it matters because I always use a case anyway and it looks like that one needs one because glass place like that would shatter in no time.

I don't know. I wanted ip4 as soon as it leaked. This one not so much. It brings back memories of scratched back on 3gs.

And how do you know people changed their minds anyway? Some may like rounded endges and others don't.

[SandynJosh]

At least Samsung had the decency to not put an Apple logo on their knock-offs.

[Savor]

Originally Posted by PBF

Ewwwww, looks über-fugly. The screen is smaller, the body is thicker. Hell no!!!!!!

This means you think the iPhone 3G and 3GS is ugly too because that is pretty much what it looks like to me.



When will people get it? Beauty is very subjective and you have been paying for the same exact phone for over four years now with slight modifications here and there with the OS, internal hardware, and casing.

Not since the first iPhone has Apple put out anything that revolutionary. An evolution (or rehashing) is what follows and an incremental update in the same slate designs. This is how technology works. They want you to get excited about a new phone every year and keep you coming back for more like new flavors in an ice cream parlor. After maybe iPhone 6 or 7, people will start getting sick of it as anything good will run its course. The market is fickle. Look at the iPod classic line. Nothing last forever.

As for the design itself, I do believe Apple will go for a bigger screen than the clone and go back to the rounder shape of the iPhone 3's.

[sevenpucks]

Looks like the Fuzzy cam photo from last week in San Francisco

[Savor]

And the sad thing, people are complaining which one looks better than the other when the difference is fairly minimal if you really think about it. A drastic change in design is like when Nintendo released the DS lite after the original model.

Beauty is subjective. No right or wrong. Some might think the 3's were the worst-looking and some think the 4 was ugly for the squarish shape, jagged sides, and fragile backside.

And then when the cycle of opening the box and holding it you hands gets you to say and think how sexy it is (honeymoon phase brainwashing), then these new proud iPhone owners still have the audacity to put it in a case to cover up the looks!

Wash, rinse, repeat.

This happens again next year. And the year after that. And so on....

Touchscreen smartphones and their OS are generally glorified app launchers like our laptops. Mobile OSes are basically like desktop OSes. Instead of clicking with a mouse, you tap with your finger and something happens to entertain you or make you more productive. Many smartphones nowadays generally can do the same thing like computers among computers. When you think of cars, they generally do the same thing. You drive it somewhere and it takes you somewhere. At the end, it comes down to cost, form factors, looks, and just your own preferences on how to get those same things done.

[Cod3rror]

Gotta love the Apple fans...

Everything is pathetic, knock off, ugly, not good, "Apple would never do that"... until it's confirmed that it indeed is an Apple then it turns to magical, amazing, revolutionary, fantastic design!

[SolRayz]

I don't know if this was already said, but it somewhat resembles a remake of the original iPhone.

[ageha]

Well, it looks worse than 4 but at least better than the predecessors.

[n8236]

These are awesome! I'm going to buy one when I go back to visit. My friends and family will get a kick outta this.

[wordphrase]

From the top, yes it does look like the original iPhone, I thought.

Anyone else fed up with China's bull? We owe them over a trillion dollars and they still have the stones to knock off all our stuff. It's one thing to copy, it's a whole other ball game when you try to con people. Talk about no class.

[Andeavor]

Originally Posted by getyup

Who's going to stop them??!?! Some loophole? LOL, sure, tell the Chinese government to stop allowing the sales of fake Rolex and see how far that gets you.

You should try traveling outside the borders of the US sometime. I'm in Bangkok all week and every electronics stall has fake iPads, fake iPods, iPhone 5, iPhone 5 cases, fake everything. There's no "loophole" it's just not something that is enforced outside of the US. Americans are the most litigious society in the world, and outside the US it's common to see street vendors and even shops all over the mall selling counterfeit merchandise.

I played with their "iPhone 5" knockoff, and for the most part it's crap, just like every other china-model iPhone has been to date... they're laggy and run a simulated java version of iOS. They do have an antennae that pulls out the bottom tho, so u can watch TV on it, hahaha... the only cool thing is it uses a full size SIM, not a crappy-ass microsim... but again if you don't travel outside the US you won't appreciate that as a benefit either.

Ok, that may be, but a family member of mine is a corporate lawyer who often has to deal with copycat manufacturers.

And I'm not in the US, just so you know.

[kalsta]

Originally Posted by dodgerbluetx

Huh?

So you want the iPhone 5 to have a handle?

I probably should have left off that bit about the handle.

Originally Posted by mdelvecchio

fallacy: correlation does not imply causation. many other factors.

First rule of replying to my comments: don't take them too seriously. I like my hyperboles, okay? But seriously, there aren't that many commenters here who seem to give a toss about how the phone actually feels in the hand, so long as the design looks ultra-modern. I don't see ergonomics discussed here very much, so I take it upon myself to jump up and down occasionally and say, 'I care!'

Originally Posted by mdelvecchio

not at all. hes talking ergonomics. even apple's hideous "hockey puck" mouse fit in your hand -- yet was not comfortable to use.

Exactly! The infamous hockey puck. That's a very good example of Apple's tendency to sometimes forget that form ought to follow function.

[GermanyChris]

Originally Posted by getyup

Who's going to stop them??!?! Some loophole? LOL, sure, tell the Chinese government to stop allowing the sales of fake Rolex and see how far that gets you.

You should try traveling outside the borders of the US sometime. I'm in Bangkok all week and every electronics stall has fake iPads, fake iPods, iPhone 5, iPhone 5 cases, fake everything. There's no "loophole" it's just not something that is enforced outside of the US. Americans are the most litigious society in the world, and outside the US it's common to see street vendors and even shops all over the mall selling counterfeit merchandise.

I played with their "iPhone 5" knockoff, and for the most part it's crap, just like every other china-model iPhone has been to date... they're laggy and run a simulated java version of iOS. They do have an antennae that pulls out the bottom tho, so u can watch TV on it, hahaha... the only cool thing is it uses a full size SIM, not a crappy-ass microsim... but again if you don't travel outside the US you won't appreciate that as a benefit either.

I'm American and live outside the US and see none of the things you talk about. I do agree that a full size SIM woul be nice.

You should probably try not to be so condescending. People benefit more from education the belittlement.

The appropriate response is here is Bangkok then your response about seeing street vendors selling knockoffs.

You don't see alot of knock offs outside of developing nations.

[ryanrich]

Pathetic, and a step backward IMO. If that's what the iPhone 5 looks like then I'll be staying with my iPhone 4 and switching to WP7 when it's upgrade time...

[OutSpoken]

Originally Posted by copykris

for sure

on a related note i distinctly remember people on here calling the leaked macbook air design a 'doorwedge that apple would never go for'

then of course when it came out and looked exactly like the 'doorwedge' mockup those same people turned their carts right around and fell over each other in praising 'another great apple design'

Exactly, but that's the usual trend on Mac Rumors. Lots of back peddling!

I genuinely loved the design of the iPhone4 when first leaked.. but if the iPhone 5 looks a lot like this knock off.. I don't think I'll be that blown away. Looks like a step backwards.

[mlmwalt]

These look pretty good.
I wonder if they're available on the fake Chinese Amazon site: Amizon.com

[kalsta]

Originally Posted by ryanrich

Pathetic, and a step backward IMO. If that's what the iPhone 5 looks like then I'll be staying with my iPhone 4 and switching to WP7 when it's upgrade time...

What if it has improved reception? What if it's more comfortable to hold? More durable? Faster CPU? No…? You're going to completely switch platforms because the look is 'a step backward'?

[gschumsky]

Here's a thought, if it hasn't been considered yet- I didn't go through all the posts, so if it has been said then my apologies:

What if Apple is giving fake specs and or fake mockups to these case designers in order to weed out all the companies that are or have been leaking information and or working with knock-off companies on the side (or even own the knock-off companies)?

Doing so like I mentioned could be used to test new companies to see if they would make a good partner or vendor, but also, it creates a pretty nice smokescreen for Apple so when the iPhone5 does launch, the final design will be a surprise because everyone is expecting the design that all the case makers and the knock-off companies have been selling.

[ryanrich]

Originally Posted by kalsta

What if it has improved reception? What if it's more comfortable to hold? More durable? Faster CPU? No…? You're going to completely switch platforms because the look is 'a step backward'?

I don't have reception issues on my iPhone 4, the CPU is more than fast enough for my needs, and I love the look of the device. If they bring out a device that looks more or less the same as a 3GS then I will be very disappointed.

To be honest I'm considering switching because of Apple's stance on jailbreaking and the fact that untethered JB's look to be history after 4.3.3. I was running iOS 5 beta and recently struggled for a good few hours just to get 4.3.3 working again because an unjailbroken iPhone to me is far too limited for what I want from my phone. Microsoft actually HELPS people to "jailbreak" their WP7 devices so that they can experiment and customise, whereas Apple tries their utmost to stop it's users from doing this, and I don't particularly care for that attitude.

[Drunken Master]

Originally Posted by sclawis300

with proper materials and design specs.

Just saying, before we degenerate into ad hominem attacks here.

[dennisjam]

I like that pone but i think that is so expensive....right?