Teardown Reveals the Risk in Using Counterfeit iPad Chargers
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Posted May 13, 2014 at 4:46pm by iClarified · 20832 views
Apple sells its power adapters for $19 at its Retail and Online stores, and while you can grab a counterfeit version of the charger on eBay for a couple bucks, a recent teardown reveals the risk in using such chargers.
Ken Shirriff has done a great job of comparing a counterfeit iPad power adapter to a genuine Apple adapter over at his blog. The teardown revealed that most of the time, the counterfeit chargers are a 5 watt charger instead of a 10, are poorly constructed, and have major safety issues. The chargers look identical to each other than small differences in text. For instance, the real charger says "Designed by Apple in California" while the fake one does not.
The Apple charger has much more insulation. The upper (high-voltage) half is wrapped in yellow insulating tape. Some components are encased in shrink tubing, there are plastic insulators between some components, and some wires have extra insulation. The counterfeit charger only has minimal insulation.
The build quality of the Apple charger is much higher. In the counterfeit charger, some components are visibly crooked or askew. While this doesn't affect the circuit electrically, it indicates a lack of care in construction.
Flipping the boards over reveals that the circuitry of the genuine Apple charger is much more complex than the counterfeit. The Apple board is crammed with tiny surface-mounted components in every available spot. The counterfeit board has a lot of empty space, with just a few components. Note the reddish insulating tape in the lower center of the Apple board, another safety feature of the genuine charger.
Last year, Apple launched a USB Power Adapter takeback program which was an effort to help replace counterfeit chargers with real ones, after a few deaths occurred because of the chargers.
You can also check out his iPhone charger teardown here
Apple is raping you and your mama, and your father is taping it thru a samsung Galaxy. I don't give a Fuk what you think you GreyShit. All product apple make are crap, the so call innovation usb lighting cable is the worse ever, and I bet You apple intentions is to make way a lot more money by having you buy it 20 times a year($40 x 20 = $800) equals to 4 iphones you idiot. Only apple GayBoys like You support Thief Jobs ideas, wonder why The Fuk is 6 feet under. Apple is a Gay Cult, and you must be their favorite GayBoy. at the end everything is made in fuking china, so is the same crap anyways. perhaps your mother had you made in china too.
You are Just Trash Samsung Troll, with that name I could clearly see why you call your self that, you must be a frustrated Korean gringo wanna be. GO FYS TOO. Apple-Crapple enough saud.
where I live, the charger costs 90-100 euros, and that's more than 120 dollars. but still I prefer to buy the original even if I have to pay that much. Unfortunately buying from the internet is not always possible, because I would have to wait for a couple of weeks at best.. And there are uni projects I need to work on...
K - You are very stupid, regardless if the product is original or not, if you measure the voltage and wattage and its the same output as its the original one, the device does not have any issues, you can even go higher in amps and wont cause any issues. If your statement is true, why is it that every single univeral laptop charger never blew up a laptop or other devices. The difference between the chargers are, one uses quality parts and the other uses lower end products. I have original and general doesnt cause any issue. Apple is so stupid, and finding way to scare people to buy their crappy products, even the usb doesnt even last 6 months, its breaks apart on the ends. I never and any issues with Mirco USB. You obviously have no knowledge in electronics nor phones. Which points out your some 10 year old kid that has nothing better to do , then give useless comments and protect apple, I have both products. Crapple and Samsung.
I'm not the one trying to sound stupid like the defensive fanboy claiming himself that he expects. Apple - Samsung Apple made the front faced camera ON THE IPHONE, when the next samsung phone was released, it was on it. Apple bought Siri from a company and put it on the iPhone, when the next samsung phone was released, s voice was on it. Apple put the touch id (fingerprint scanner) on the iPhone, when the next samsung phone was released, it was on it. I don't know if samsung has rights or not to do so, but i know every time they keep copying Apple, and then they release ads mocking Apple, Microsoft and Nokia, saying that samsung has multi-tasking, (handle two apps at one screen) and many other things. It's really annoying considering the fact that Apple doesn't mock them. Apple invents, and samsung copies. So what's this "we" no one gives a damn about for a delusional ignoranting bitch like you? What are you, blind ASAIN who can't learn to open those mind raping eyes of his, poor fanboy, back to where you crawled out of.
Is this guy Tony for real?? If he understanded just a little bit of what is talking about it would be great! Just by looking its obvious that the counterfeit ones are made with low cost components that are known to after some use to be faulty, the capacitores are ridiculous!! And everybody knows that any counterfeit thing bought from china at a low price is just a piece of crap, its a known fact, just buy things from ebay and you will know it! Sure the voltage and amp are the same but how long will they last and how much heat will they take? Be sure to talk only if you know what you're talking about!!
The only action a bi bitch gay as hell like me only seeks androids pussy for the appreciation. I will bend over any appreciation. I'll take all blames real or myth either way.
Fukscrawn John - We all know your MR KANGAROO.. AKA K. Stop using peoples name and try to make a point. Apple didnt invent SHIT. They didnt invent multitouch, they didnt event a phone, they took ideas out there, and just made them more better looking, thats it, but after the iPhone 4, the design of the long NON HD panel sausage screen iPhone 5 is without a doubt the ugliest phone even existed. But they know stupid poeple like you would buy the same design over and over, as SJ would say, THERE IS ONE MORE THING.... We have been releasing the same design for years and yet you still buy it lol... Just so you know how quality and premium it is, go ask anyone you want, the power button on the iPhone 5 fails to work after 1 year exactly, and the 5S the power button rattles, at least on non of my phones on the same Samsung does that plastic or not. You pay for something that crap, and Samsung has a right to list high the price because the technology they put inside, is much more expensive at cost then it is to make your stupid phone. Try to hold your iPhone 5 in the winter -40 and see how it feels on your bare hands. OH ya you want proof, apple denied all this time that the power button didnt have an issue, until recently , when people complained... Now they are replacing it. The phone is shit just like their company.
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