Can I trust authenticity of AirPods 2 from Amazon.com?

[batman75]

I lost my AirPods 2 when I left them in the cabin on a redeye flight. So I needed another set.

This time I bought a pair of AirPods with wireless charging from Amazon.com for $179.99 + tax. Received but haven't opened them yet.

A few things tweaked my attention. One is while it says sold by amazon.com on the listing, on my order summary it says sold by Amazon.com services LLC. So this makes me wonder if it is really an authorized reseller product. Also I heard Amazon and FBA inventory can get mixed up which is a risk.

Finally the serial number stickers seem misaligned versus on the previous set I bought from my Apple store.

Should I keep it, or return and pay $20 more at Apple?

Here are some pics. Apple store box on top, Amazon one on bottom.

 

[alpi123]

The packaging does seem just slightly fishy but checking the serial number, the AirPods are genuine.

https://checkcoverage.apple.com/us/en/?sn=GMRYNF8UJMMT

Nonetheless, if they turn out a knockoff, you can always return them to Amazon (at no cost?).

 

[willmtaylor]

I lost my AirPods 2 when I left them in the cabin on a redeye flight. So I needed another set.

This time I bought a pair of AirPods with wireless charging from Amazon.com for $179.99 + tax. Received but haven't opened them yet.

A few things tweaked my attention. One is while it says sold by amazon.com on the listing, on my order summary it says sold by Amazon.com services LLC. So this makes me wonder if it is really an authorized reseller product. Also I heard Amazon and FBA inventory can get mixed up which is a risk.

Finally the serial number stickers seem misaligned versus on the previous set I bought from my Apple store.

Should I keep it, or return and pay $20 more at Apple?

Here are some pics. Apple store box on top, Amazon one on bottom.

View attachment 845649 View attachment 845647 View attachment 845645

From Amazon directly? Probably.

From anyone else? Probably not.

 

[Herrpod]

Amazon warehouses mix items and ship you the item from a warehouse closest to you. So the AirPods you order directly from Amazon might actually have been provided by a third party and it might be a fake. Order directly from Apple or Target.

 

[batman75]

I’m going to return them and order from Apple. I opened them and for some reason they seem slightly quieter than my previous pair which I bought in my local Apple store.

Also since I am buying from Apple do people think I should get them engraved with my phone number in case I loose them again?

 

[AllergyDoc]

Also since I am buying from Apple do people think I should get them engraved with my phone number in case I loose them again?

I wouldn’t. You might get lucky and have an honest person find them, but most likely they’ll be found by someone who couldn’t care less about having someone else’s phone number on their, free, iPods.

 

[brenard]

I agree. Some people will make no effort to find the owner. Finders, keepers.

 

[batman75]

As an update I returned the Amazon ones and bought the Apple Store ones. While the Amazon ones are fully functional, the Apple ones seem better to me (more volume, and faster pop-up of the battery indicator on the phone.

Could be wrong, but it feels to me like the one sold on Amazon were replicas.