The Samsung Galaxy S5 is available nationwide across telcos and dealers for RM2,399 outright. If you’re looking for cheaper alternatives, do beware of fakes. Imitation Galaxy S5 units have been spotted in Thailand and it looks just like the real thing. The back is very identical which even includes a heart rate sensor below the camera lens.
To cater for different budgets, it is available in 2 variants. The ultimate Grade 1 carbon copy of Galaxy S5 can be yours for just 3,300 Thai Baht (About RM330) after negotiation, while its lower Grade 2 version is offered at 2,800 Thai Baht (about RM280). With the Samsung branding stamped all over, it is hard to tell if it came from GooPhone, a Chinese maker which announced its plans of producing replica Galaxy S5 immediately after it was officially revealed.
The copycats have left nothing to spare and even the box looks like the original unit. The biggest give away is at back of the box where the specs are riddled with typos and obvious mistakes like “LTE Gate” and “OHO Display”. With device is switched on, the interface and wallpaper looks and feels like an actual Galaxy S5 with TouchWiz UI. However when you dig deeper, you’ll notice some design inconsistencies especially in the Settings section. Although the camera is written as 16MP, the picture quality is reported to be horrible which is expected for a cheap replica.
Since it is available in Thailand, don’t be surprise to see such devices appearing in our own backyard. If you see incredibly cheap offers for Galaxy S5, that should ring some alarm bells. Remember if it is too good to be true, it probably is. Thanks Shen for the images from Bangkok!
You can view more photos of the fake Galaxy S5 after the break.
