Technologies do not stand still, and so do iPhone models. These devices attract many status-seeking users who want to stand out from the crowd. They are easy to use, have excellent hardware, high-quality software, etc. The high price is the only drawback that forces you to buy used Apple smartphones more often than new ones. In addition to the original, there are often copies on the market that are very similar to the original and are practically indistinguishable. In order not to fall for such a device, it is better to make a purchase only from officials. It's certainly more expensive, but it's definitely original.
If you don’t want to overpay, you can play roulette in search of a good price from “gray” sellers. Just first read our recommendations that will help you distinguish the original from the copy.
iPhone model code
Next you can see the model code of your gadget. Depending on the electronic components, this code may vary: my iPhone 6s has the code A1688 - it has a universal cellular module installed that works correctly in networks around the world, except for LTE30 at a frequency of 2.3 GHz (such a network belongs to the American provider AT&T).
Here you can see all the available codes for all iPhone models today.
How to choose a used iPhone. Part 1: checking for originality
Greetings! In this series of articles, I will tell you how to choose the right iPhone of various models in the budget segment of the market. Today we will talk about how to check a used iPhone for originality
.
Go! DISCLAIMER
In this article, I
do not mean
officially refurbished iPhones at Apple factories. Such devices are no different in quality from new ones, they are sold from official resellers and there is no need to be wary of them
The essence of the problem
In our country, sales of so-called
“refrigerated iPhones”
from the windows of small shops and kiosks are very common.
These devices, in fact, are a kind of “Frankenstein”
- the original motherboard from broken, drowned or criminal (read - stolen) iPhones is bought by small Chinese workshops, after which
they “build up” non-original spare parts of very poor quality onto the board
- screen, battery, speakers, sensors, housings, sometimes even cameras or board components.
The resulting device is placed in a box, which was made right there especially for it, with non-original stickers, and this box is “tightened” with packaging film - it is the film that often misleads buyers who believe that once in the film it means new. But in fact, the device obtained through such manipulations has nothing in common with Apple
, except for the logo and iOS.
This is a very bad purpose for purchasing
- their quality is at the level of budget BQ, Texet and other “masterpieces” of the Chinese industry.
The danger is that, after purchasing it from a storefront, such a device quickly disappoints the owner
and is sent... that’s right, to Avito, Yulu and other trading platforms, as well as to various pawn shops.
Of course, under the guise of being original, “not repaired, not opened, one owner.” And by purchasing such a product at the average market price, you risk not only ruining your mood for a long time, but also getting bodily injuries
- for example, burns from the fire of a “battery from Uncle Liao.”
How to separate the wheat from the chaff?
The box is our first beacon
Often, if the box is available, it will make clear the nature of the origin of the iPhone itself. Pay attention to this photo:
Chinese box
And now to this:
Original box
Do you see the difference?
Let's look at it in order: - fonts
: clear, even inscriptions with equal spacing between letters, without missing spaces -
text
: on the original box, all the text is written on a backing and covered with a transparent protective layer on top, the non-original is written directly on the sticker -
typos on the non-original
: “iphone” with a small letter “P” ", "Sareal number" and other errors are impossible in the original Apple text -
certification badges
: are always present on the original boxes (and they are different), and are almost always absent on the "Frankensteins" -
quality of the stickers
: this is what you need to see "on eye" - save yourself a photo of the original boxes from this article in advance to compare head-on.
Attention - quality, fonts, certification, model
The next sign is the certification markings on the back of the iPhone.
Some analysis is required here.
These icons are applied to equipment depending on the country in which a particular device was planned to be officially sold. The so-called “Eurasian certificate”. How to find out the country for which iPhone is made? Looking at its model designation - the last two letters before the “/” icon will tell you about it. For example, the letters “RU”
mean that this is a PCT device assembled
for Russia
.
Such devices have both two and four certification badges. And if we see the letters “LL”
, we have before us a so-called
“American”
who does not undergo mandatory certification and, accordingly, does not have badges at all.
This is where the magic begins. If the iPhone model has the letters “LL”, and on the “back” of the device we see certification
- You don’t have to look at this iPhone any further.
Just return it to the seller and run from there. And, conversely, if we see, for example, “ZP”, but there are no icons
, the result is the same, the iPhone was carefully “reassembled” in China.
You can “Google” the country designations in the iPhone model. But, simply put, if you see “LL”
should be no
certification at the back .
If you see any other letters
, certification on the back
is required
. But the designations themselves may be different - as in the illustrations below.
It is usually a guarantee that the iPhone is not
is "reassembled", there will be a
"RU"
on the model and Russian stickers on the box. Why is that? RU devices are sold only in the Russian Federation, and devices for reassembly from the territory of our country are not supplied to China. Therefore, seeing “RU” in the model and the Russian language on the box, you can be sure of the originality of the iPhone. By the way, many sellers on Avito know about this and try to inflate the price when selling “RU” - keep this in mind.
Four designations
Two designations
The third sign we will discuss is the condition of the battery.
Just keep in mind that this sign alone will not give you a guarantee of originality!
It serves only as a reinforcement (or warning) factor. Starting with iOS 11, Apple brought a native tool to iOS to check the health of the iPhone's battery.
You can find this indicator in: “Settings - Battery - Battery Status”
The status is displayed as a percentage and indicates the remaining usable capacity of a relatively new battery - in other words, to what limit a given battery can currently be charged.
If the capacity is displayed, for example, as 90%, this means that the battery, having 2,000mAh from the factory, now reaches a maximum of 1,800mAh.
But what we are interested in now is not the operating time of the device as such.
Turn on the analyzer.
Let's say you're looking for an iPhone 7 (or 7 Plus). Buying this model new in 2020 is almost impossible. Therefore, devices that are sold on the secondary market will have an approximate age of 1-3 years. Therefore, if, when examining a used iPhone 7 (or 7 Plus), we see the battery capacity is 100%, this should alert us. If the device has such a capacity, it simply must be under Apple’s warranty, and this is easy to check on the official website. If the warranty has expired, there are two options. The first is that the battery is simply replaced with a new one due to wear and tear of the original one. The second is that the device is “reassembled” and has the most dangerous “Uncle Liao battery” in its belly. To understand this, we need the two signs described above. But if you found out during the telephone conversation that the battery on a fairly old iPhone model has a capacity similar to that of a new one, perhaps you shouldn’t even look at it in person.
Some signs of a “reassembled” iPhone coincide with the signs of a “repaired” device - that’s why we’ll talk about them in the second part of the article. If you have any questions about the nuances, I’m happy to answer in the comments. And join us on Telegram!
[CENTER][B]~~~
