Chinese benchmarking outfit Master Lu has released its ranking of the most-faked smartphones in Q1 2020. Since the data is based on benchmark app appearance, we really didn’t expect the data to change significantly from that of the last quarter of 2019.

Worthy of note is the fact that most of the faked models in the top 9 listed are Samsung and Apple models with Xiaomi making the cut with a few models. The benchmark app detects underlying details that you cannot read from the “about phone” menu. As seen on the chart above, a total of 1,295,457 inspections were carried out in Q1 2020, of which the total number of fake phones reached 7,931 units.

The top five models on the list are; Samsung W2019, iPhone X, iPhone 8, iPhone XS Max and Xiaomi Mi Max 3. Samsung W2019 is the most-faked model with 498 units detected although we can’t tell if the app detects if a single device runs through it several times. Fake iPhone X models were detected 246 times, iPhone 8 213 times, iPhone XS Max 172 times, and Xiaomi Mi Max 3 was detected 127 times. It is also noteworthy that the Mi Max 3 is the only mid-range model in the top 5.

In terms of regional spread, the Chinese provinces with the highest number of counterfeit models in descending order include; Guangdong, Shandong, Henan, Hebei, Sichuan, Jiangsu, Hunan, Zhejiang, Jiangxi, and Guangxi.

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