5 Most Impressive iPhone Clones Straight out of China
There are iPhones, and then there are “iPhones.” A product as unique and successful as Apple’s flagship is bound to inspire mimicry and imitation. But, in some cases, its popularity attracts outright forgeries and clones.
That being said, some of the iPhone clones available today are pretty impressive. Of course, since iOS isn’t open-source like Android, these devices aren’t iPhones since they can only run Android. And, to be clear, we aren't suggesting that you buy any of these devices — since their quality is probably lacking and their listed specifications are likely inaccurate. Use the right arrow to browse the 5 Most Impressive iPhone Clones Straight out of China.
5 HDCPlayer Tech iPhone 7 Plus
We certainly don’t condone buying fake iPhone devices, or supporting the companies that produce them, but there are times where the results are noteworthy. Enter this fake iPhone 7 Plus produced by a Chinese firm called HDCPlayer Tech. Granted, the iPhone 7 is easier to fake than, say, an iPhone X, but this clone is so good that it managed to fool the experts.
Its only telling points were the shoddy Android-based iOS copy and its internals. In fact, when torn down, this iPhone looks nothing like the real deal — and doesn’t perform like it either. Still, the fact that a Chinese firm was able to produce a smartphone that can fool trained eyes at a glance is pretty impressive.
4 GooPhone X
When a new iPhone launches, China-based GooPhone is usually the first firm to start producing knockoffs. The iPhone X was no exception, and GooPhone's resulting clone actually doesn't look all that bad. But, of course, with a design as complex and refined as Apple’s latest and greatest, it’s nearly impossible to mimic perfectly.
The most obvious thing is the lack of an actual edge-to-edge display. The GooPhone X V6 has a rather large top and bottom bezel, and a slim bezel around the sides. Rather than “wrap” the display around the top camera sensor, GooPhone went for a rather obtrusive, software-based fake bezel. Still, without access to Apple’s tech, this is about as good as a full-on clone can get.
3 Hotwav Symbol 3
Moving on to less obvious clones, the Howav Symbol 3 isn’t trying to pass itself off as an actual iPhone X — but it does borrow heavily from that flagship’s design. That includes a fake notch on some models, which is actually just the same bezel material in a different color. Reportedly, the device is available with or without the fake notch.
While the design — and even the marketing material — echoes the iPhone X, the specifications certainly don’t. It runs Android 8.0, and only packs 16GB of internal storage and a meager 2GB of memory. But with a reported retail price of about $200, you could theoretically buy 5 of these devices for the price of one iPhone X.
2 Leagoo S9
On the subject of obviously-iPhone X-inspired devices, a small Chinese company called Leagoo debuted their own Android-based smartphone back in December. Again, this is another device that isn’t trying to pass itself off as an actual Apple product, but is obviously inspired by one. That’s equal parts commendable and amusing.
The device sports the signature notch, albeit with a slightly different design, as well as a glass and metal construction (but obviously not TrueDepth). Instead of an Apple logo on the back, the Leagoo S9 has a fingerprint sensor. The device isn’t great, by any means, but still sports an AMOLED display, 128GB of storage, 6GB of RAM, and a pair of 16MP camera sensors. Not bad for the “under $300” price range.
1 Dakele 3
This device is pretty old, but it’s still notable for one reason alone. When it launched ahead of the iPhone 6 in 2015, it actually boasted better specifications than that device — at least on paper. And though it’s three years old, you can still pick one up for about $100.
Apparently, the company that produces the Dakele 3 claims that it has a sapphire screen and an eight-core 1.7GHz MediaTek processor. It sports a decent set of cameras and 3GB of RAM, as well as a reportedly fast-charging 2,500mAh battery. All said, those are overall higher specs than the iPhone 6 it copied. But, of course, since it is an Android device, real-life performance is probably different (and not as good).