If you are ever going to buy a memory card for your phone, or for anything, there are a lot of things that you have to be mindful of when buying. Also, there's lots of places that are worth avoiding if you want genuine cards. This topic will guide you to make sure your card is legit.
How do I tell whether a card is fake or not?
There's a number of ways. Your card might be performing poorly (reading and writing speeds are slow), it might fail suddenly, or you might have what's called a "swap". There's much more to that though.
Real memory cards will perform well and have a long life expectancy.
Files can be read, retrieved, and written at reasonable speeds. However speeds will decrease overtime. For fakes, they do fail unexpectedly, and have way less read/write speeds than real cards. (If you previously have a real card of the same type, you will recognize this easily)
Case swaps
Case swaps happen a lot with fake sticks. What this basically means is that the scammer opens up the memory cad, takes the chip out, and replaces it with one of a smaller size. In the end, the card will say that its a '4GB', (for example) while inside it can be anywhere from a 32MB (or even less =\) to a 2GB card. Cards can also be remade into "fake" sizes that do not generally exist. Nevertheless, it is sold at the price "advertised" and it leaves you at a loss and the scammer at a profit.
Incorrect Partitioning
For the tech-savvy, this is just as drastic as Case Swapping. For those who aren't, partitioning is like dividing up space so each "block" created is seen as a different device when it is being read. However, sometimes, counterfeiters can manually create partitions (those blocks) to different sizes, and make any remaining space completely oblivious to the device and the computer. Also, they may purposely destroy the partition table to simply screw up the card more. (Partition table tells how each partition is arranged, how big, what letter assignment it gives [G:\], etc.) With the proper tools, you can fix the partitioning to be their proper sizes, but at the end of the day, the card is fake.
Packaging and Appearance
Fake packaging is going to be the first way to detect a fake card. What counterfeiters don't and probably can't perfect is the packaging. The legit companies make fades, and designs not only to make the product look appealing but make it hard to copy. On top of that, the packaging might be put in a special way for the same reason. Take a look at this picture:
Can you figure out which one is the fake and which one is the real deal? Left is fake, right is real, and for some of the most obvious reasons. First off, the real package has a more vivid touch to it, and by the looks of it, physically running your hand over it will give off a different feel as well. Second, the "All Rights Reserved" circle next to "Ultra" is smaller on the fake than the real card. Back on the top, you can see that the fonts are noticeably different. (Wrong font style, and size means its FAKE.) Moving down to the bottom left, there is a sticker FROM "Sandisk" indicating that this is real. On the bottom right, there is a checkmark label which stands out more on the real package. Take a look at the memory stick, you can see that you can see the wavy (at lack of a better word) design on the sticker. This is another security feature. When you shine a light at the right angle, you can see the design which is much more lively (at the lack of a better word, again), then the fake. This is similar to the weave design on the back of checks. Now this is just for Sandisk Ultra II cards. Just keep this in mind even when buying from retail stores. In Addition to observing packaging, you have to be aware of what types of memory cards they are for whatever you are buying. If such a thing does not exist on the manufacturer's website, it's a guaranteed fake if someone else is selling it.
Here in this picture, we see a Sony/Sandisk 4GB High Speed in its packaging. Ironically, at the time, high speed cards only went up to a max of 2GB. Perfect example of counterfeiters selling "non-existent" products.
If you aren't sure what package you should look for, look it up online.
Appearance
My favorite part of the guide. Where we tear apart the memory cards. Appearance are still not as good on fake cards as they are on real cards. As with packaging, improper fades of colors can be used, physical body can be wrong, or wrong fonts used. Let's take a look at a Sony Memory Stick Duo card.
As you can see, the fake card fails with all that I've mentioned. The design is wrong on the fake card, and the wrong font is used. Also, quality is also different in comparison with both cards. Take a look into the housing section below.
Housing
The casing on fake cards can be iffy. Meaning they can break, wear out, etc. very easily to rubbing or other means of contact. Real cards won't do this at an alarming rate. Also, the housing might make the memory card slightly bigger which means you have to jam the memory card in order to insert it into your device.
Security
Security can be put in place on memory cards. On all Sandisk, Sony, Lexar, and similar memory sticks, there is a copy protection called MagicGate. Simply, MagicGate just tells if the stick is fake or not. The reason for this is that real cards will have this. Fake cards, will definitely not and will NOT ever pass a MagicGate test. Other protections include serial number identifications on the manufacturer's site.
Fake Serials
Fake cards will always have a fake serial. You can definitely check this by calling up support and asking them to verify this for you. If the serial is not in their systems, you can flag it as an automatic fake. Also, serials might follow a specific pattern depending on the type of memory card. If the memory card fails to follow that pattern, it is a fake. For example, if SD High Speed cards have a serial beginning with "SHSC" and ends in "1234", and a card has "SHSC-xxx-xxx-1337", it is fake. (Since it didn't follow the pattern completely.
I'm pretty sure that support will hunt down the scammer and give you some sort of certificate for redemption.
How can I verify that my card is real?
Use the serial identification as mentioned above, check the housing, read/write speeds (if you know how to gather them), and use MagicGate for the products that has them. Also, fake cards might not be able to perform certain functions that a real stick could.
Are there sites and places that I should avoid buying cards from?
Definitely. There are scammers all about, and you have to be the one that makes the final decision on whether or not to buy that card or not. Here is a list of a couple of blacklisted sites:
eBay - 99% of cards that are posted here are fake. End of story. If you have the time, and patience to buy from the seller, check the feedback of the user before buying. It's really hard to go after that seller and get your money back.
Amazon - Fakes can float here as well. I'm not saying that 100% fakes are shipped here, but it happens.
http://www.tigerdirect.com/ - Users have confirmed purchasing fakes. There are no refunds.
www.memorybits.co.uk - User confirmed fakes.
There's more than that. If you stumble across any other sites, feel free to post.
So where can I buy?
All of these sites are confirmed. Explains why they are up as well doesn't it?
www.mobymemory.com
www.dabs.com
www.mymemory.co.uk
www.newegg.com - Good deals every now and then, and fast shipping.
www.sony.com
www.estarland.com
www.cclonline.com
www.play.com
www.zipzoomfly.com
www.newegg.com
www.shop1.frys.com - They have good deals
www.allmemorycards.co.uk
www.divineo.com - It's a gaming site but they sell memory cards as well. They do CODs (US/Canada) if that is more convenient for you.
Final Words of Advice
Trust your instincts. Ask yourself? Is this buyer trusted? Where am I buying the card from? What have other users said about this user/site? Is the card overpriced? These are all questions that come to mind when buying a memory stick. Also, if you have used any of the sections of this guide to verify your card and it fails, it can be a fake. Also, try more than one check as a card can fail one test and pass the others. It's up to you whether or not you see the card as fake. Also, not to insult but follow this rule - > K.I.S.S. Keep It Simple Stupid. Just take the original, and regular memory stick. The other difference between all the versions are read/write prices, and the enhanced versions always cost more money than the original one. If you know what you are buying is going to be of use, get it, but keep the possibility of fake sticks in your mind. If you have no idea about the improved versions, just stick to the originals.
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