Comments on: Shopping for iFauxnes

CNET picks out some fake iPhones while mobile shopping in Europe.

[Lukas_C]

According to Orange Slovakia, the iPhone 3G is already on the shelves - http://www.orange.sk/iphone/ ("New iPhone 3G from Orange since August 22.")

[waddlingduck]

Question:

I've seen some pictures of the iFauxnes on YouTube and blogs. Has anyone done any study of whether these are worthwhile devices in their own right? They might even be BETTER than a legit iPhone in some respects. Lets face it, most of these products come from China, where intellectual property is only protected until it springs from your intellect, and they're assembling the real ones too.

How close is everything? Will they mesh with iTunes? Perhaps they just show up as a flash drive and you can load whatever you want into (and out of) it.

You can use any GSM phone with AT&T if it's unlocked, which these likely are, my question would be: could I buy a 3G service plan intended for an iphone and use it with one of these? It may not even require a 2-year contract.

[vladimir.olexa]

actually, i played with it a bit. one of the phones actually had 2 sim slots. that's a pretty cool feature i wish the iPhone had. as far as the rest goes, however, it was pretty terrible. they tried to mimic the iphone OS in the worst way and it just didn't work. the touches are unresponsive, delayed and imprecise. likewise with the UI.

physical construction of the phones is also very weak. they feel cheap in your hand and are significantly lighter than the original iPhone. everything is made of really low-quality plastic.

i highly doubt the iFauxnes would be supported by iTunes. i didn't look for connectors so i'm not even sure if they have any at all. also, given the size and small weight of the devices, i don't think they even had wi-fi and/or bluetooth.

these phones are sold unlocked so you wouldn't have any problems using it with any of your local GSM service providers (as long as you have their SIM card).