14 DAY TRIAL // Samsung has launched its latest Galaxy S6 and Galaxy S6 Edge smartphones not so long ago and people went crazy over them in no time.
The two phones have been called Samsung’s best efforts to date, and albeit the microSD card slot and removable battery are absent on these models, the Korean tech giant is seeing an immense demand for them.
But the things is, as is usually the case with flagships, the phones are quite expensive, so even if you find the Galaxy S6 extremely appealing, you might have to put off purchasing one because squeezing this premium device in your budget just isn’t possible at the moment.
Or you could try getting a deal instead. However, as the story we’re about to share with you will prove, you need to be extremely careful when purchasing an expensive model from unauthorized re-sellers.
Samsung Galaxy S6 clones can fool you with their appearance
One Reddit user had such an experience and reports how he fell for a Craigslist scam. He bought a Galaxy S6 phone (presumably the SM-G920i model which is incompatible with CDMA networks) from a user who apparently picked it up from eBay.
The buyer and seller met, and before paying for the transaction, the device was tested with an AT&T GSM SIM to make sure it was unlocked.
According to the user’s own report, the phone worked and the hardware seemed to be legit. So he paid $500 / €462 for it and went on his merry way.
But even if the handset looked very similar to the actual Samsung Galaxy S6, it eventually turned out to be just a very impressive-looking clone.
The exterior might have looked authentic, but the insights of the device were less so. In reality, the make-believe flagship has a 1280 x 720 pixel display, a MediaTek MT6582 running on its inside and 1GB of RAM on board.
What’s more, even though the device says its running Android 5.0.2 out of the box, it’s actually running KitKat.
The clone is massively underspecced compared to the real deal
A quick performance test in AnTuTu revealed that the phone is far from matching the real deal. The Galaxy S6 and Galaxy S6 Edge are two of the most powerful handsets ever released on the market, scoring around 60,000 points in benchmark tests.
But as you can see in the images included in the gallery, the clone scored only 18,708 points, thus being placed below the Xiaomi Redmi Note, Xiaomi Mi 2, and ASUS ZenFone 5.
So if you have your heart set out on the Galaxy S6, you’d better think long and hard before actually purchasing the flagship from third parties.
Or if you do, be very attentive to details and check everything meticulously. In this case, there were a few clues indicating something was amiss, like the different text on the back, the odd looking lockscreen, and overall software, but the buyer’s enthusiasm prevented him from seeing those signs.
