How to distinguish original Nokia phones

In the recent years, Nokia clone phones have started to invade the cellphone market. And a lot of consumers have also started patronizing these clones. But we can't blame these consumers for buying fake Nokia phones. Because the clones are almost mirror image of the original phones. And these fake phones are way cheaper than the genuine Nokia phones. Isn't that cool? A phone that looks like the original Nokia unit for a very low price.

But not all consumers like these clone phones. There are buyers who really want to buy an original Nokia phone but were tricked to purchase the fake one. And it's a big disappointment for those victims to find out that the features they were looking for are not available in the fake phone that they bought. So it's really an advantage if you know how to distinguish original Nokia phones from clones.

Most of these clones were originally manufactured in China. That's why fake Nokia phones were also known as China phones. These Chinese manufactured phones were repackaged and branded as Nokia phones when sold to the market.

Physically, a China phone has a lot of resemblance with the original Nokia unit. If you will put a China phone and an original Nokia unit side by side, I'm pretty sure that you will have a hard time determining which one is original and which one is fake by just looking at them. You need to do more inspections to be able to distinguish the original Nokia phone. Below are some simple tips to determine an original Nokia unit:

Nokia N95 Clone

Original Nokia N95

1. Scrutinize the external design of the phone. At first glance, a China phone and a Nokia phone looks the same. But if you will look closely, you will notice that there are slight differences in their design. So it's important for you to know the design of a genuine Nokia phone. If you don't know the real design of an original Nokia unit, try to visit nokia.com and look for the pictures of the phone that you want to buy.
   
   
2. Check the GUI (Graphical User Interface). Before buying, try to use the phone first, browse the phone menu and check it yourself if the interface of the phone looks the same with the original Nokia phone. China phones have numbered item lists in contrast to the unnumbered lists in original Nokia phones. In China phones, the menu key was placed on the left or right soft key. But in original Nokia phones, the menu key has a dedicated menu button on the keypad for s60, and for s40, the menu key is placed on the center button of the navigation key. These stuffs are the biggest difference between the GUI of the fake and original Nokia phone. Experience in using an original Nokia phone is a must in this technique.
   
   

   Nokia N95 Clone

   Original Nokia N95

   
   
3. Take a pic! Fake Nokia phones don't have the same camera specs with the original one. Most China phones only have VGA (640x480 pixels resolution or 0.3MP) camera. For example, an original Nokia N95 has a 5MP camera. But the fake N95 only have 0.3MP camera. With a 5MP camera (make sure you set the camera resolution to maximum settings), your captured picture must have a file size of at least 1MB. If the picture that you take has a file size of less than 100kB, then the N95 that you are inspecting is a fake one.
   
   
   
   

   Nokia N95 Clone The power of ZERO. In the home screen of the phone, press and hold the zero (0) key for about 2 seconds. If the web browser opened, then it's a genuine Nokia phone. If nothing happened after holding the zero key, then the phone is fake. You can also type this code in the home screen *#0000#. In an original Nokia unit, the system information will be displayed when you key in that code. If nothing happened, then the phone is fake.