Fake Computers at Phantip?

[DogNo1]

I recently bought a new notebook (14 inch) computer at CSC in Phantip. It is a Lenovo G410

i-5 with an AMD Radeon HD 8570 video card. I've installed Windows 7 on it, and after finding and installing the correct drivers, I like it very much. You can select which programs to run on the HD 8570 - the rest all run on the integrated Intel video by default. When I got around to registering it on the Lenovo website, I found that there were no stickers on the computer anywhere. I finally located the PN and SN on the box and it registered OK but the absence of any markings on the machine makes me suspicious. Does anybody know whether the computers that are sold as name brand machines in Phantip are actually Chinese knockoffs? Of course the real Lenovos are made in China but I wonder if mine is actually made by a competitor. Its quality seems good so far and I have no real complaints. Besides, the price was reasonable.

[FalangBaa]

It sounds to me that the entire shopping mall where you bought it is a knockoff. The real IT shopping mall is called Pantip, not Phantip. You went to the phantom Pantip, Phantip. Also, check whether the name on your laptop's case says Lenovo or Lhenovo. You might also have installed Whindows 7, which is a Chinese knockoff of Windows 7.

Edited February 26, 2014 by FalangBaa

[DogNo1]

Phantip is spelled with the h after the p to indicate that it's a hard p, not a soft p. Both exist in Thai.

[FritsSikkink]

If the registration is ok then there is no problem. Maybe you are looking hard to find any.

[inzman]

I can't believe you can buy a real anything in Thailand. I would always assume first a product is fake, then it would have to be proven to be real. Come on now, this is Asia , copy everything here.

[FalangBaa]

I can't believe you can buy a real anything in Thailand. I would always assume first a product is fake, then it would have to be proven to be real. Come on now, this is Asia , copy everything here.

Never a truer word said! Everything is fake fake fake here. The smiles for one thing... And even when I try to buy the company of a beautiful woman, it usually turns out that she's a fake too, and I end up getting "more" anatomical appendages than I was looking for, but then of course "she" goes home empty-handed.

[FritsSikkink]

I can't believe you can buy a real anything in Thailand. I would always assume first a product is fake, then it would have to be proven to be real. Come on now, this is Asia , copy everything here.

Never a truer word said! Everything is fake fake fake here. The smiles for one thing... And even when I try to buy the company of a beautiful woman, it usually turns out that she's a fake too, and I end up getting "more" anatomical appendages than I was looking for, but then of course "she" goes home empty-handed.

There is a rumour there are fake tourists. They live in Thailand and sometimes even work there.

[rhythmworx]

Download this free program 'CPUID CPU-Z' it will show you info about the processor, memory etc... that you won't see in windows... post the screen shots of the CPU, mainboard, memory and graphics tabs and I am pretty sure I can tell you if it's real or not.

[DogNo1]

Wow! Not much sarcasm on TV, is there?

Rhythmworx: Thanks for the offer but I've already set up the computer and given it to the friend for whom I bought it. Incidentally, I liked the Lenovo G410 i5 so much that I bought the new model S410P i7 for myself. I'm really disappointed at the screen quality. Maybe because it's a "green" PC with an antireflection screen, the colors seem dull and the icons poorly defined. I've played with the display settings of the Intel integrated graphics a lot but can't improve things. The Nvidia GT 720M only kicks in when 3-D images are displayed. It's unlike the G410 where the AMD HD 8750 kicks for any graphics intensive application. You can even set the display to switch to the 8750 for applications you select. Obviously, newer isn't always better! ?

[DogNo1]

After upgrading the Nvidia driver through device manager I found that it had installed a utility called GE Experience. Through it, I was able to switch the notebook's default video mode to the Nvidia 720M. It's still a cool screen but the colors are better than before and since I set them to maximum intensity, the screen's definition has improved. IT House at Phantip, a Mac store, finally found a 4 GB DDR3L SoDIMM for me and installed it. With 8 GB of RAM, my machine is now pretty fast (boot time for Windows 7 is 18 seconds) and I can have more tabs open in Chrome without it impacting performance. I still like the screen of my i3 Vaio better but the speaker quality and mic sensitivity on the Lenovo are far better and the Lenovo is about a pound lighter. I think that I got a good deal for 18,200 from Advice. I haven't tried out all of the notebook's functions yet but except for its cool screen, it seems to be good machine. I like to stream music from the Internet and it's awesome to have the notebook's speakers fill the room with good quality sound including a respectable bass.

Edited March 3, 2014 by DogNo1

[negreanu]

I can't believe you can buy a real anything in Thailand. I would always assume first a product is fake, then it would have to be proven to be real. Come on now, this is Asia , copy everything here.

Myth.

[Dave 74]

Almost everything in Panthip (presume that is where you mean) is fake.

It's almost a cultural aspect for all parts to be stolen from a machine you are in charge of, and then replaced with fakes. Even BMW in Chiang Mai had massive problems with this.

[namdocmai]

They also sell copy phones at Phantip, i wouldn't buy anything there if you expect to get the real deal.

When i worked in the chip-industry and there were chips produced that are not 100% according the standards then they always had to be destroyed, no matter if what or when. Nobody was allowed to bring one out of the factory.

Sometimes the production of a whole shift had to be destroyed, talking about huge amounts of chips worth a fortune.

[DogNo1]

I ended up getting the screen of the S410P replaced with a Sony 1600X900 panel that looks much brighter and clearer. After replacing the slooooooow HDD with a Samsung 840 EVO (250 GB), adding 4 GB of memory and installing the Sony display, I now have the machine that I wanted for about 4,000 less than a Lenovo model with the same specs would cost. I have one or two bad pixels about halfway down the screen on the left side. They look like a speck of dust on the screen but only show up when the background is light. I'm satisfied with the machine now. I hope that it will serve me well for 4-5 years.

[laowai1960]

I found that there were no stickers on the computer anywhere

No stickers on my Lenovo G700 but the model number and serial number is printed inside the battery chamber.

[DogNo1]

Thanks. I'll see my friend with his computer tomorrow. I'll take out the battery and see if I can find some stickers behind it.

[cobra]

If the registration is ok then there is no problem. Maybe you are looking hard to find any.

Not necessarily,

Many product registrations are merely to harvest email and contact data for commercial purposes,

Unless a high-end product with substanial warranty, I doubt serial #s are cross-checked for legitimacy.