Counterfeit (Fake) Headsets - How to recognize and avoid them; what are the differences?

After we have discussed the physical differences, the most notable were the variations in the headsets performance – battery times, sound quality and range. Even though some of the counterfeits actually performed better in several situations, the overall results shows considerably lower battery lives, range and voice quality.

First, judging sound quality and volume is very subjective. We tried to stay as objective as possible – the team members who were testing the headsets actually did not know if they had a real or a fake one. The overall results show a total score of 21.96 points for the real ones, and 17.83 for the fakes. If the numbers are converted in percentages, the counterfeit had ~25% lesser quality.

Our next test was to distance the headset from the phone to which it was paired to the maximum range at which the conversation could still be sustained. By sustained we mean able to clearly understand the other party. All the headsets were tested with the same two HTC Wizards, at the same exact location. The results again show about 25% difference between the original and fake ones. The overall range accomplished by the genuine ones was 423 feet, while the fakes scored 364.

The continuous stand-by time test was completely flunked by the fakes. They got a total of only 1320 minutes, while the real ones had about 2080 – 50% more ! Almost all fake ones lasted only about 50% of what they real counterparts did.

This should be enough to convince even the most skeptical users that the problem is real. Now we have to determine how widespread it is...