Fake MBP battery?

[kimtrang]

Hello, my first post. I am worried about the battery in my early 2011 MacBook Pro 13", that was replaced by an Apple authorised service provider here in central Vietnam.

I am worried that it is fake. It is supposedly a DP brand and has the odd serial number of 012345678ABC. On battery power it has shut down twice at around 50%. After the shutdown, the Coconut Battery app says the has around 70% of original capacity on the first instance and 47% on the second instance. After recharging the capacity goes back to just over 100%.

I didn't get a receipt or case number from the service provider, but I paid by credit card. Will Apple take responsibility for this if it proves to be fake or defective? I am no longer in that major central Vietnam city as I am travelling to Ho Chi Minh city.
I am worried this battery could be a fire hazard.

 

[DeltaMac]

If you are travelling to Ho Chi Minh City, there are several "authorized service providers" there. If your part is an official Apple replacement part (with Apple icon on the battery, I suppose), then you should be able to at least ask about that at another service provider. If it is an Apple part, maybe they will swap it out (or they can tell you that you got taken with a poor copy)

 

[kimtrang]

I haven't opened the machine to see the battery. I emailed the authorised service centre and they told me the battery had 6 months warranty. I didn't want to voice my suspicions that the battery was fake so they didn't lose face. I also rang Apple in Vietnam and they said I could take it any authorised service provider.
I have done a SMC reset and have since taken it down to 33% without issue. The capacity now seems steady on 102% or so. That questionable serial number just seems odd.

 

[Aneef]

Hello, my first post. I am worried about the battery in my early 2011 MacBook Pro 13", that was replaced by an Apple authorised service provider here in central Vietnam.

I am worried that it is fake. It is supposedly a DP brand and has the odd serial number of 012345678ABC. On battery power it has shut down twice at around 50%. After the shutdown, the Coconut Battery app says the has around 70% of original capacity on the first instance and 47% on the second instance. After recharging the capacity goes back to just over 100%.

I didn't get a receipt or case number from the service provider, but I paid by credit card. Will Apple take responsibility for this if it proves to be fake or defective? I am no longer in that major central Vietnam city as I am travelling to Ho Chi Minh city.
I am worried this battery could be a fire hazard.

What model of the battery is Coconut battery showing?

 

[kimtrang]

What model of the battery is Coconut battery showing?

Model no. bq20z451. That checks out as the correct model. Manufactured on 15th October 2015.

The serial number and the shutdowns without warning that worry me. There is so much fake stuff over here. Fake coffee. Fake Marlboro cigarettes. Fake silk. Fake iPhones and Samsungs. I have always found everyday Vietnamese people to scrupulously honest and that if this battery does turn out to be fake, it won't have been a deliberate ploy by the reseller.

When it does shut down, regardless of the percentage it shut down on, it always restarts with battery at 0%.

http://english.vietnamnet.vn/fms/bu...ina-to-become-counterfeit-goods-hot-spot.html

 

[kimtrang]

After 90 cycles, this battery refused to accept a charge and the service battery indicator showed. I had it replaced at an unauthorised repairer in Ho Chi Minh. The repair man confirmed the battery was fake and was actually a very poor fake. The old battery was noticeably lighter and "cheaper".

The new fake battery was about $50 vs the $90 (2 million dong) i paid at the apple authorised repairer. The MBP now works perfectly. The machines behaviour was so erratic previously, I thought i had a logic board problem. The poor service guy gave it a good clean out and it now runs a lot cooler too. I guess i'd better buy a screwdriver. They also replaced the charger DC lead for $8 by cracking the adapter open, attaching a good second hand lead and then taping it back up. Good repair place. I've used them before when they replaced my keyboard for $40. It is at

10°46'12.3 N 106°41'18.6 E

7 Đường Tôn Thất Tùng
D1, Ho Chi Minh City

I think it is called H store. Just look for some modern minimalism amongst the cluttered PC stores.It is near the hospital on the five ways intersection, a couple of blocks north of the western end of 23/9 park.

 

[iMacDragon]

I'd report the first repair place to apple!, if they were supposedly an authorised repairer and supplied a fake battery!

 

[kimtrang]

I'd report the first repair place to apple!, if they were supposedly an authorised repairer and supplied a fake battery!

I tried. I can't find any link to contact them on apple.com. I could call, but i doubt if I could make myself understood with the language barrier.