Recently purchased this 3 meter Apple Thunderbolt 4 cable from a third party for a decent discount. Trying to determine if it is legit or a counterfeit?
I’ve attached some photos as well and Power-Z testing results
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[Edited by Moderator]
Did you purchase this cable directly from Apple or an Apple Authorized Reseller? If so, then it would be a genuine Apple cable. If not, then there is chance that it is a fake. Providing photos or test results won't make any difference.
Ref: Identify counterfeit or uncertified Lightning connector accessories - Apple Support
RDUMBProGuy wrote:
Price was really low (online third party seller).
... and that is a good indication that the provider of this cable either did not include important IC chips or inferior ones.
The bottom line? If you don't care about the equipment you will be connecting this cable to, then by all means, use it at your own risk.
I suggest that you, at least, see if it is MFi-certified: Mfi Licensed Accessories - Apple
Price was really low (online third party seller). I’ve connected everything and all seems to be working. My main concerns were the packaging looks a bit different than others I’ve seen posted. Also on the ChargerLab YouTube tear down of the 3m cable he shows the word “Apple “ printed on the inside of the black part of the connector edge and this cable doesn’t have that.
It seems as if the appropriate chips and reported chip data (from the Power-Z tester photos I included) are there. Completly understand the risk but so far it appears to be a genuine Apple cable and thus far is performing (at 3m) as would be expected while fully utilizing the potential of Thunderbolt 4 and USB capabilities of the cable
Again, my only thought was to double check with the community (for comparison sake) as the packaging looks a bit different than others I’ve seen posted. Also on the ChargerLab YouTube tear down of the 3m cable he shows the word “Apple “ printed on the inside of the black part of the connector edge and this cable doesn’t have that.
https://youtu.be/7P8Rgrs51yg?si=4OS7Y1DWhr2Fwh9J
Could it be possible he received an engineering sample and that is the reason for the Apple being printed where he showed it was or maybe he received a fake?
Of course there is always the possibility of a very sophisticated fake maybe making its way to market. Hopefully my photos (if is or later is found to be fake) can help the community become more aware if that turns out to be the case. If it indeed continues to perform as expected and is a genuine Apple cable, then I will count myself lucky to have found such an amazing bargin on this 3m Apple Thunderbolt 4 Pro Cable.
The link about the lightning connector (same one as the canned Apple Support rep response that was sent) is not helpful in this situation due to this appearing to be the 3m Apple Thunderbolt 4 Pro cable not a Apple lightning cable.
Thanks for taking the trouble to help inform others that these kinds of cables do exist, but potentially can still be problematic. It again, just enforces the fact that users should not buy cables based on cost alone, especially if they are being used with Apple devices that are too expensive to replace should these cables damage them.
... i.e., Caveat emptor rules here!
Is this a genuine 3 meter Apple Thunderbolt 4 cable?
