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June 19, 2014

Why purchasing a knock-off iPhone charger might not be such a good idea

Many people that love their Apple products, including their iPhones, iPods and iPads, aren’t particularly fond of the high prices that Apple charges for accessories like chargers.  But, if you’re one of them, before you go out and purchase a “knock off” iPhone charger, you might want to take a look at this blog article first.

The fact is, there are literally millions of counterfeit iPhone chargers, as well as other Apple accessories, on the market in the United States as well as many other countries. It’s not as prevalent here in the US, but they are here no doubt.

Recently however in China there have been a number of reports of people seriously injured and even killed by their fake iPhone chargers. In fact, accidents like these happen all the time and not just in China but all over the world.

Which leads one to the inevitable question, is it worth your life to save a few dollars on a fake iPhone charger?

Another fact is that all of the fakes out there look practically identical to the real thing. It’s only on close inspection that a person will actually see the difference. Instead of the usual “Designed by Apple in California” they’ll see things like “Designed by California” and “Designed by Abble”.

While the outside might be just slightly different, the inside is vastly different and includes parts that are poorly made, to say the least, as well as having been manufactured without the normal safeguards that Apple uses, which are quite advanced.

Indeed, an authentic Apple iPhone charger is quite an impressive little bit of tech. It includes one of the most compact power supply switching units on the market that efficiently converts AC power into five volt DC output through a USB port.

Authentic Apple iPhone chargers also include a feedback mechanism that keeps output voltage stable by regulating the frequency, as well as an integrated circuit designed especially to run the charger.

Most of the fake or knockoff chargers don’t prevent short-circuits and don’t have the same overrides to prevent overheating or a surge in electrical current that, unfortunately, can prove to be deadly.

While there certainly isn’t an epidemic of people being killed by their fake iPhone chargers, there are plenty of iPhones that have overheated, damaged iPhones beyond repair and have even caused fires. Make no mistake however that 340 V of DC electricity, which these types of chargers have, is definitely enough to kill someone.

To their credit, Apple has already begun taking steps to make a counterfeiting more difficult, including their new Lightning connector which foils imposters using an authentication chip.  Being the busy little beavers that they are however, Chinese manufacturers have already figured out a workaround and started selling knockoffs. They are quite easy to spot though as their quality is ridiculously low and most are put together using, no kidding, masking tape!

Many critics were hard on Apple when the Lightning connector was introduced, saying that Apple was trying to keep people from using $10 adapters in order to line their own pockets. The fact is however that an Apple iPhone charger is made to a much higher standard and, literally, can save your life.

For all but the cheapest people out there, that’s probably the best reason to shell out a few extra bucks to get one.

Filed Under: Apple Accessories

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