The Wholesale Forums

[ADC]

I was having a chat with my supplier in China this morning and we got on to the subject of fakes. She was saying that many of electronic items are not 100% fakes if you know what I mean. Apparently the factories that produce the originals quite often produce extra parts for the products. Then other factories will buy these parts and just assemble the complete product in their factory. This apparently happens a lot with Ipods and PSP's. I've dealt with her for a number of years and she knows I only ever buy a particular type of unbranded product, so she didn't have anything to gain by telling me this, but it's an interesting take on the whole fake argument though. When all the original parts are used but it's just put together by someone else. Is it a fake or isn't it? That is the question

[greedyboy]

Ultimately they are fakes. Unless the product is released by the brand owner anything else is considered non genuine.

What you describe is quite common. I know of a factory that does the same thing with sports equipment. Once again, regardless of the materials used, they are still fake.

[ADC]

I agree in the eyes of the law they are probably fakes.

But if I drop my ipod and smash the screen and knacker the hard drive. I then buy a new screen and hard drive and fit it myself and I then sell it, am I breaking the law? Probably not. But I am selling an Ipod that hasn't been assembled by the factory.

So if we take a stage further a company buys a few hundred smashed ipods and the company buys parts and fits them in the ipods and then sells them? Are they breaking the law? There are many companies that sell repaired ipods.

This is where the line between fake products and genuine becomes rather blurred.

[Beneddie1112]

Originally Posted by ADC

I agree in the eyes of the law they are probably fakes.

But if I drop my ipod and smash the screen and knacker the hard drive. I then buy a new screen and hard drive and fit it myself and I then sell it, am I breaking the law? Probably not. But I am selling an Ipod that hasn't been assembled by the factory.

So if we take a stage further a company buys a few hundred smashed ipods and the company buys parts and fits them in the ipods and then sells them? Are they breaking the law? There are many companies that sell repaired ipods.

This is where the line between fake products and genuine becomes rather blurred.

They don't become fakes, they become refurbished.

[Pete]

IF you package them in look alike packaging and try to sell them as genuine, they are fakes. If, as Ben says, you admit they are refurbished, meaning genuine products that have been repaired and are offred for sale in no box, or obviously not the original retail packaging, you are totally within your rights.

I can't begin to tell you all of the Canon printers I've bought and sold in plain brown boxes.

In the 1990's. Please to not contact me wanting a deal on printers!
.