How To Identify Fake Xiaomi Mi Power Banks

XIAOMI, the Chinese company that a year ago started its operations in India is currently creating a lot of buzz with its flagship smartphone “Mi 4i“, a high-end Android phone launched at a highly competitive price of Rs. 12,999. Mi 4i is being sold in India exclusively through Flipkart and it’s next to impossible to buy it, due to intensely high demand and low supply. Xiaomi is also known for their PowerBanks and accessories such as eye-candy covers for phones. The pricing for their 5200mAh and 10400mAh powerbank is Rs. 599 and Rs. 999 respectively as seen on Flipkart.

“The Mi power bank is not just another powerbank” It features a simple design with aluminum uni-body casing that looks premium and beautiful. The device packs premium Li-ion batteries from LG and Samsung, USB smart-control chips and charging/ discharging chips from Texas Instruments for enhanced efficiency. Its surface is water and corrosion resistant, and it’s rigorously tested to withstand 5000 micro USB and 1500 USB insertion/removal cycles. It is compatible with all popular smartphones and tablets, and can automatically adjust the charging port output according to the connected device. Comes in 2 capacity – 5200mAh and 10400mAh with option to choose from seven beautiful colors.

As it was out of stock on Flipkart, So I bought a Mi 5200mAh power bank from e-Commerce site ShopClues that costed me Rs. 249 after applying a coupon. It was a great deal for a product that’s not easily available but my excitement turned into big disappointment after receiving the package. The Mi power bank sold by Shopclues was FAKE and they denied the refund.

As the Mi power bank is very popular, its counterfeit copies are being sold openly in most markets at a much lower price. The fake ones are difficult to identify unless you’ve tried a genuine one or are aware of the clones. Luckily, it’s really easy to figure out a duplicate Mi power bank and there are several ways to do so. Firstly, it’s advisable to buy directly either from Mi official site or from flipkart. Make sure to always buy a original power bank as a fake one can be dangerous and is risky for everyday usage.

How to confirm the authenticity of Xiaomi Mi Power Bank –

Method 1 (Simplest) – Check the originality of the product by looking for the anti-counterfeit label on the box package. Simply scratch the grey coating to find a 20-digit numeric code.

Then visit chaxun.mi.com, select language or directly visit mi.com/verify, enter the 20-digit serial number and fill the Captcha code for online verification. Hit the ‘Verify now’ button and it should show that it is Mi power bank, that means your product is genuine.

Alternative Methods – In case, you don’t have the product box then you can look for other ways to spot the differences between a fake and original Mi power bank. Check below:

1. See the LED lights, if they glow too bright and are uneven then you’ve a clone. The lights on real one are of even color due to a sheet of white shading paper.

2. Identify using ports – The indicator light holes on fake ones are bigger in size and appear deep black while real one has small. The interior of micro USB on fake one is black while on real one it’s white in color. (Smaller one is fake)

3. The label on fake power bank is darker in color and the font edges aren’t sharp. While on the real one it’s light in color and the fonts appear smooth.

4. Short circuit I/O ports with USB cable – The LED lights on the counterfeit product will glow up and blink when it is short circuited. While LED light do not light up on the genuine one.

5. Check while charging the power bank – While charging, all 4 LED lights one the real product turn off on pressing or holding the power button, and light up again on releasing it. Whereas, nothing like this happens on the fake one when the power button is pressed/ hold on.

6. Check the provided USB charging cable – The genuine cable has a black interior and doesn’t has a Mi logo imprinted. The fake cable has a white interior in the USB port, is flimsy and has a Mi logo engraved into it.