How to make sure that you're getting a genuine Apple accessory
Fake Apple accessories can be unreliable and dangerous. If you are unable to verify where the accessory has come from, who has sold it or whether it has gone through a rigorous and thorough testing and safety process, then you may not be able to trust it.
A fake accessory could be a fire hazard or it could damage your Apple device. If this happens, you will have to pay to replace both your charger and your iPhone or iPad.
According to Statista, the global mobile phone accessory industry is worth billions of dollars, and this explains why some manufacturers will choose to make fake accessories that haven’t been tested. Because of this, you should spend your money on a genuine Apple accessory and not a fake one. Accessories made by Apple are of a high quality and are tested and if they don’t work as intended, you will be able to get a repair or a replacement.
Review the retailer
One way to make sure that you are getting a genuine Apple accessory is to review the retailer. A quality mobile phone or accessories retailer will not mislead you and will be upfront about where they have got their products from. If they are selling them at a lower price than Apple or other retailers, then you should also see if there is information about why the products are more affordable.
The way that a retailer provides this information will be different for every retailer. The Big Phone Store, which sells mobile accessories such as headphones, iPhone chargers, VR headsets, bluetooth speakers, and cases, puts this information on every product page. Its iPhone charger bundle (Lightning cable and adapter) is an official Apple charger but on the product page, the retailer explains that it is cheaper because the bundle doesn’t come in branded Apple packaging. Other retailers, like SellYourMac, will put that sort of information on their about, warranty or returns pages, so be sure to have a look at the website or ask a store assistant before you buy.
Check the returns policy
In the UK, consumer rights laws mean that if you have been sold a faulty good, you have the right to return it. Consumer rights group Which explains that the Consumer Rights Act allows you to return a faulty good to a retailer and get your money back within 30 days of it being purchased.
Other regions may not have laws such as the Consumer Rights Act, meaning that you will have to look at a store’s returns policy to know what you can do if you have been sold a faulty product or a fake Apple accessory. Many retailers will give you 28 days to return it while others only offer 14 days – if a retailer has a refund policy of some kind, this shows that they care about your satisfaction with the product and that they sell genuine products that do not break or stop working very often. Some may not accept refunds at all (if a product is on sale) so find out before you spend money.
How is it branded?
While Apple sometimes makes different versions of its logo for events such as WWDC (Worldwide Developers Conference) and for new product announcements, the Apple logo colors are black, white, and grey, explains Brand Palettes. Apple also uses these colors in many of its products, with iPhones coming in the colors of black, white, and space grey as well as a few others. Apple accessories are also white and grey and some may have a white, black, or grey Apple logo on them.
If you know these colors then it can be easy to spot a fake. If you are being sold a blue iPhone charger and the retailer claims that it is a genuine Apple product, be wary. If the Apple logo looks a bit different (it faces left, not right and doesn’t have a leaf at the top) then that would be unusual. While some products will not have any of this branding, by looking at the colors and comparing it to images found online, you can get a good quality accessory while still saving money.
There are so many different Apple accessory types that you can buy and you may come across many fakes that claim to be genuine. However, by doing your research, you can avoid dangerous fakes.