Even before the official presentation of the iPhone 14 by Apple on Wednesday, clone devices can be purchased in China – including an iOS skin and “double pill”.
The new iPhones are not yet on the market, but Chinese manufacturers have already developed devices that imitate the new design of the iPhone 14 and Co. down to the last detail – at least the one that has been circulating in the rumor mill for months. The clone phones run Android which has an iOS skin. At least at longer distances, they could be interpreted as an Apple device, because there’s even an Apple logo on the back, as shown in an unboxing video on YouTube.
“Imitation is the sincerest form of flattery”
That there are clones of Apple devices is nothing new in itself. Fake iPhones were sold in China years ago, and there were even clone models for the Apple Watch that used a speculative design that, funnily enough, Apple didn’t implement at all. There are also countless replicas of Apple’s popular AirPods ANC earplugs – all apparently according to the motto: imitation is the greatest form of flattery. Apple can only take partial action against the products, trying to let its lawyers act on marketplaces such as eBay or Amazon.
The clone iPhone 14 that has now surfaced is said to be a “Pro” model. It comes with a “double pill” on the front, which appears to be out of date. On the back there is an enlarged camera module, as the rumor mill also predicts. The packaging looks very much like Apple, even comes without plastic film and can be opened with so-called pull tabs, as Apple has been doing since the iPhone 13.
Just an iPhone at first glance
The rear cameras do not all seem to be real and some are only emulated in software. If you work your way through the alleged iOS, you quickly find out that many functions do not work or do not work as usual, and Android also shines through in some places. In addition, the lower edge of the display is unusually wide.
The clone iPhone 14 seems to be available quite normally in electronics markets in China. There are already fake cases for the iPhone 14 to match the fake device. It is unclear whether they will match the original – they were produced by the manufacturers on the basis of the leaked alleged dimensions of the iPhone 14 models. Whoever wants to complete the fake experience once even found completely fake Apple stores in China; in smaller towns they are said to exist to this day. Allegedly, some of the employees there did not know that they were working in a fake store.
