Police raid at Alex Photo & Prima Camera!!


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They just appoint some reputable battery makers with required specifications to produce it.

Mate, that's exactly the same and what I said.
 

Can anyone highlight to me how to check if the canon battery is genius or fake...?

Hmm....google for news about the. Shop u going to buy...hope something fishy comes up...price too good to be true? Google for real stuff images and the fakes....that's about it I think...fake crumpler I'm good to spot..heh..come to fake batteries...not really sure.
 

Recently, I bought 2 pcs of 2nd hand (looks very new though) LP E-6 from BnS here. The seller was selling for 80$ (fixed) for 2 pcs as he said he got no more cam using this type of battery. for 2nd hand, i find the price to be decent and battery info was readable on my 5D2. So bought them.

Then I got my 6D yesterday. Those batteries have communication problem. "THEY ARE FAKE". The batteries looks exactly the same as the You Tube video above. :confused: There goes my 80 bucks. ;(
 

What's the seller's nick on CS?
 

What's the seller's nick on CS?

Just checked. he has been selling that 2 batts for quite some time. anyway, l don't want to reveal yet coz, i am not sure he is the end user or trader.
 

mtunlinn said:
Just checked. he has been selling that 2 batts for quite some time. anyway, l don't want to reveal yet coz, i am not sure he is the end user or trader.

Ok. Please update when u find out more.
 

By the way, the youtube that was posted in this thread showed a very lousy made counterfeit LP-E6 which can be identified quite easily.

Wait till you see the super real counterfeit one, then it won't be so easily to spot. Just for everyone info, there are different grades of counterfeit products. Those lower grade ones can be spotted quite easily while those high end ones will required you to have the original product side by side to spot the difference.

Most of us are aware or being informed of counterfeit batteries (due to the warnings by camera manufacturers) but there are many more counterfeit photography products in the market which we are aren't aware.
 

Recently, I bought 2 pcs of 2nd hand (looks very new though) LP E-6 from BnS here. The seller was selling for 80$ (fixed) for 2 pcs as he said he got no more cam using this type of battery. for 2nd hand, i find the price to be decent and battery info was readable on my 5D2. So bought them.

Then I got my 6D yesterday. Those batteries have communication problem. "THEY ARE FAKE". The batteries looks exactly the same as the You Tube video above. :confused: There goes my 80 bucks. ;(


Huh? It have a message that says 'they are fake'??
 

For batteries, I will just get originals, brand new, from authorised shops such as SLRR, MS Color, Cathay or TK Foto.

I do not believe in getting 2nd hand batteries even if seller says only charged once. How do you even verify?

Penny wise pound foolish if you think you can save a few dollars on such essentials as batteries.
 

I do not believe in getting 2nd hand batteries even if seller says only charged once. How do you even verify?

You can't and who knows what happened to those batteries. Maybe he had them in the freezer or left them in the car under the sun for days. :-)
 

CID seizes fake Canon batteries
By Lim Yan Liang The Straits Times | 16 December 2012 Sunday

SINGAPORE - The batteries are carbon copies of the real deal, from the Canon branding imprinted on the battery shells down to the rectangular blister packaging they come in.

They even come with the golden hologram security label designed to fight counterfeiting. But unlike the Real McCoy, these fakes can be far less reliable and have even been known to explode.

Plain-clothes officers from the Intellectual Property Rights Branch of the Criminal Investigation Department and lawyers representing Canon raided two shops in Peninsula Plaza on Tuesday, seizing more than a dozen counterfeit batteries.

The batteries were meant for Canon's range of EOS digital single-lens reflex (DSLR) cameras.

The proprietors of Alex Photo and Prima Camera were questioned and invoices were also taken. Lawyers representing Canon hope to use the paper trail to identify the distributor behind the fakes.

This is believed to be the first raid involving fake camera batteries in Singapore, though similar operations have taken place in Thailand and Vietnam.

"Canon has always been pursuing counterfeit inks and toners, but because it's batteries, Canon takes a zero tolerance stance," said intellectual property lawyer Cyril Chua of law firm ATMD Bird & Bird, which represents the camera-maker.

"If your camera blows up in your face, it's really no joke," said Mr Chua, who added that in such a case, Canon would face "brand equity problems" and the challenging task of proving it was a fake.

Canon was alerted to the situation in Singapore when an end-user lodged a complaint with Canon about a fortnight ago.

While fake batteries are not a new phenomenon - Canon's first product advisory on the matter was in 2006 - those were commonly sold online, not at brick and mortar shops. Today, it is likely that the knock-offs are mixed with the real deal, and sold to unsuspecting customers, said Mr Chua.

While experts with the right tools can discern a fake security label, it is harder for normal customers to do so.

Third parties have also managed to make batteries that are compatible with original Canon chargers, and have defeated security measures that prevent cameras from displaying battery life and usage time with non-genuine batteries.

Analysts say that while counterfeiting of batteries was not rife here, a consumer should be wary of deals that are too good to be true.

"The best bet is to always purchase any accessories from an official reseller or store with a reputable reputation, and to avoid eBay or stores that may offer very attractive pricing but are not official resellers," said research firm IDC's Worldwide Digital Imaging research director Chris Chute.

Speaking to The Straits Times after the hour-long raid, Alex Photo owner Alex Yeo said it was the big profit margins that drew him to selling the knock-offs from a month ago.

"It was very attractive, each of the batteries I sold, I took half in profit," said Mr Yeo, 44, who sold the fake batteries for between $110 and $120 and faces a fine and/or jail. The recommended retail price for an original battery is about $139.

Ms Sherry Lim, who runs Prima Camera, said she took her stock of fake batteries from Mr Yeo on consignment and did not make any profits on them, saying she was unaware they were not genuine.

But Mr Chua said: "Of course they will say 'I don't know'. But come on, you're specialist photo shops, please don't tell me you do not know."

yanliang@sph.com.sg

CID seizes fake Canon batteries


 

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Already reported in another post :)
 

ageha said:
You can't and who knows what happened to those batteries. Maybe he had them in the freezer or left them in the car under the sun for days. :-)

Not sure about the freezer bit but leaving in the car on this blazing heat is a real possibility.
 

talk so fast after a raid?
not too wise to say anything without lawyer present
 

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