What to look for when buying headphones
1 place
If you are serious about headphones, buy them on official websites of manufacturers, from authorized distributors or from reputable electronics stores.
Of course, the original product can be found on bulletin boards, but the risk of running into a fake in this case increases. Suspicious to treat and sellers with AliExpress: some of them offer real headphones, but most – counterfeit.
Check the reputation of the store in which the goods are looked after. Deceived customers often share information about unsuccessful purchases. If the store was caught selling fakes or reviews about it can not be found, it is better to refuse the purchase.
2. Price
If the found headphones are 70% cheaper than in the official store, most likely, they are not real. As a rule, the high price of the original is due not only to the popularity of the brand, but also to the use of quality components. The sale of such headphones at a big discount is simply not practical.
3. Packing
Sometimes it is not difficult to distinguish the original from a fake. Counterfeit manufacturers rarely copy design, fonts and packaging material with 100 percent accuracy. Find a photo of the real headphones in the box and compare with what they sell to you.
4. Appearance and quality of materials
Visible burrs and uneven seams, traces of frozen glue, cheap plastic and a flimsy cable signal a low quality of the goods. Naturally, these signs can not be the genuine headphones of an authoritative manufacturer.
5. Sound
Even high-quality headphones are different in different ways: they are distinguished by accentuation of specific frequencies, nuances of detail and other characteristics. But if the sound is flat, the bass is unreadable, and the high frequencies are too loud, most likely, you are dealing with a fake.
6. The popularity of the model
As a rule, an abundance of fakes is the lot of prestigious headphones. If you buy EarPods or any Beats not in official stores, most likely, you will get a fake. But if you focus on the less popular models, the risk will be significantly reduced even if you buy from hand.
The fact is that the production of copies of running goods pays off much faster. What is not so popular, there is no point in forging. For example, you can almost be sure of the authenticity of the Beyerdynamic DT 770 Pro or Grado SR80E.
Which headphones are most often forged
1. EarPods
EarPods – headphones, included in the basic configuration of the iPhone and iPod. Users find it difficult to give up their usual headphones when they are lost or broken. That’s why EarPods are in constant demand.
There are dozens of fakes copying Apple’s headphones with varying degrees of accuracy. Some manufacturers forget to put the company logo on the box, others give themselves away as slots at the headphone mounts.
The most reliable way to identify a fake is to expose a dubious commodity compared to the original EarPods.
2. AirPods
AirPods – wireless headphones from Apple. Appearing on sale at the end of last year, the gags attracted the attention of users with a brand-name laconic design, compactness and convenience. But there is a significant disadvantage of these headphones – a high price.
It caused the demand for budgetary alternatives. As a rule, manufacturers do not try to sell pseudo-AirPods under the guise of the original, but openly call them replicas. There are quite a few such headphones. Some of them really turn out to be quite good, others are a normal Chinese marriage.
The main factor when buying AirPods is the price: even a used original is unlikely to cost $ 50.
3. Sennheiser Headphones
Sennheiser is a German company that has been making high-quality equipment for more than 70 years. Over the past decade, she has produced dozens of headphone models, many of which have become popular and have spawned thousands of fakes.
A common feature of many forgeries of German plugs can be called insufficiently elastic and too thick cable. In the rest it is necessary to rely on your feelings and comparison of the goods with the original.
With full-sized headphones, it’s less obvious, so try to follow the general rules.
Sennheiser struggles with fakes. The official website of the company contains a list of models that have been removed from production and can not be sold in stores. Also the manufacturer recommends paying attention to the presence on the package of QR code and stickers indicating that the importer is LLC Sennheiser Audio.
4. Headphones Beats Electronics
Many scold the frequency response Beats Electronics for biased sounding, others consider the headphones unreasonably expensive. High price and popularity are the main reasons for the fact that fakes are on sale not less often than original headphones.
Many fakes copy originals very reliably. But the basic rules for buying Beats can still be made.
Note the serial number on the bottom of the package: it should be printed on a sticker, not on the box itself. Too many hieroglyphs are a sign of counterfeit. Inside the pack of fake headphones there may be no tab, with which the tray is pulled out of the box (actual for Beats models with removable tray). The tray itself must be made of textured material, and not of glossy plastic.
5. Bluedio Headphones
Bluedio appeared on the market of Bluetooth-headphones recently, but right now you can stumble upon counterfeits of various models.
On the package of Bluedio headphones there is a hologram. In the original product it is blue with a noticeable overflow, for fakes – blue, overflow is barely noticeable.
If we are talking about headphones-plugs, pay attention to the ear pads: they should be elastic and keep the shape even after compression.
What if you bought a fake
If you find that you bought a forgery from your hands, contact the seller. Perhaps he did not know that he was selling a fake, and he would agree to return the money. If you purchased the goods in the store, contact their management. The chances of resolving the situation in your favor are small, but, perhaps, the sale of counterfeit was due to a misunderstanding.
And please, do not try to sell a randomly purchased fake under the guise of the original. Better help others: spread the information about the unscrupulous store, tell in the comments about your unsuccessful experience.
Read also:
- How to distinguish a real iPhone from a fake →
- How to distinguish original branded sneakers from fakes →
