Ahead of the Apple Watch going on sale April 24, the Chinese market is being flooded with fake versions of Apple’s wearable device — many of them bearing an uncanny likeness to Apple’s smartwatch, at a fraction of the cost.
Starting at less than $50, the “inspired by Apple” Apple Watch knockoffs are predominantly modelled on the cheaper Apple Watch Sport devices, but I’d be in no way surprised if we saw Apple Watch Edition replicas turn up at a later date, much as we routinely see fake Rolexes today.
Some of the devices claim to be genuine, while others are upfront about not being authentic — although there’s no doubt whose company’s products they’re being modelled on. In some cases, the knockoff devices run a version of Android, modified to look like the Apple Watch interface, but boasting about various advantages over Apple’s product, such as (allegedly) superior battery life.
You can see a couple of the Apple Watch-alikes below. Online retailer Alibaba is currently facing a government investigation surrounding its selling of counterfeit products. As a result, it is reportedly removing products advertised as “Apple Watches” at a rapid pace. We’ll see if it lasts.
Either way, this certainly isn’t the last we’ll hear about fake Apple Watches, particularly if the market turns out to be as big as some are predicting. Having previously railed against cheap Apple knockoffs, Jony Ive can’t be too happy about this.
Via: Quartz
Luke Dormehl is a U.K.-based journalist and author, with a background working in documentary film for Channel 4 and the BBC. He is the author of The Apple Revolution and The Formula: How Algorithms Solve All Our Problems … and Create More, both published by Penguin/Random House. His tech writing has also appeared in Wired, Fast Company, Techmeme and other publications.
9 responses to “China is already churning out Apple Watch clones”
The only peeps that would want a knock-off apple watch are ppl too cheap to spend $350 and don’t see a problem in wearing a $50 version. Either that or they’re from a very specific country that has a problem translating “copyright” into their language…not pointing any fingers.
Not surprised.
You guys should test a couple of these against the apple watch and see if there are any that are actually comparable.
I geting the real Apple watch becuese I am not a cheap jew.
Jew should be capitalized….
I love how they start knocking off smart watches after Apple finally releases one… I guess no one wants a fake Samsung Gear.
buyers beware… my order get “lost” and they don’t want to resolve any issue = lost money
It will go great with the Galaxy S6!
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