Shun Substandard Mobile Phones, Experts Warn Consumers

The ICT revolution kicked off a lot of business opportunities in the country making the Nigeria market to be referred to as the largest in Africa. Unfortunately, it opened up the nation to all forms of dubious business activities; one of such is the thriving trade of fake and substandard mobile phones.

THE MOBILE phone industry growth in Nigeria, which was kicked off following the revolution of the ICT opened the country to several business opportunity benefiting everyone but the nation is unfortunately likely to pay for it unless some key regulation ideas are urgently addressed.

One of such is the volume of unregistered mobile phones that are brought into the country by brief case carrying mobile phone dealers and mobile manufacturers who are taking advantage of the corruption in the Nigerian society.

Recently, a Chinese man identified as Lin Tian Huan, was arrested at the popular Computer village, home of ICT products in the country by the task force of the Phone and Allied Products' Dealers Association of Nigeria, PAPDAN, an association of traders in the computer village for being in possession of 10,000 substandard mobile phones.

He was found with fake and substandard mobile phones which passed for Nokia and Samsung brands.

Upon questioning by the police at the Computer Village, Huan said he illegally imported over 10,000 pieces of different models of mobile phones products into the country.

Standards Organisation of Nigeria, SON, recently sealed a Chinese warehouse stocked with suspected substandard phones during its enforcement exercise in Ikeja.

SON discovered that the warehouse had mobile phones that were not registered with it and could not be linked with neither registered manufacturer nor importer.

According to the director-general of the Standards Organisation of Nigeria, SON,  Dr. Joseph Odumodu, more than 80 percent of the mobile phones and other related computer accessories at the market are not genuine.

In China, where most of the fake and substandard mobile phones were said to originate, a mobile phone recently exploded and caught fire in a bus.

Reported by the Guardian UK, CCTV footage from the bus in Nanchong city, in South-West China, showed the phone battery exploded in its owner's hand and caught fire. The incident happened as the passenger was changing her phone batteries.

The Daily Mail UK also reported that a shop worker died after his mobile phone exploded, severing a major artery in his neck.

It was believed that the 20-year-old man just finished charging the phone’s battery before placing it in his breast pocket. Alarmingly, local reports claimed the incident was the ninth recorded mobile phone explosion in China since 2002. 

In June 2007, a welder Xiao Jinpeng, 22, died from chest wounds when his mobile phone exploded while at work at a mill.

Although there are no record yet of mobile phones exploding and killing people yet the large number of mobiles that enter the country including the fairly used ones worries stakeholders.
And indeed, that worries the NCC too compelling it host on its website warning on the danger of fake or substandard mobile phones saying that beyond technical issues, it also has its health hazard.

The NCC said that before mobile phones are sold in each market all models of genuine phones are tested to ensure they are safe for users, including testing to make sure they meet national and international standards for exposure to radiofrequency emissions.

All mobile phone batteries and chargers must undergo the same stringent testing to ensure they meet all levels of safety. Genuine mobile phone batteries are tested under intense conditions to ensure they can handle varying conditions of use.

Counterfeit and substandard mobile phones, batteries and chargers on the other hand are not subject to such comprehensive testing and therefore the safety of fake phones cannot be verified or guaranteed.

According to the Commission, around the world, there are incidents where mobile phone batteries have exploded and injured people. Upon investigation these incidents have been linked to the use of counterfeit or sub-standard batteries. Counterfeit and some third party manufactured batteries do not meet all of the safety requirements that prevent these incidents. Non-genuine batteries may not have safety circuits which regulate voltage, current and heat within the battery, without these the battery can short circuit and explode or heat up and burn people.

The NCC stated that fake phones, batteries and chargers are made from cheap, substandard components and may contain chemicals, which are dangerous to the environment and human health.

It added that the cheap and low quality components used to manufacture fake phones and accessories are untested, uncertified and can be a safety hazard for users saying that the substandard components in fake phones often malfunction with the potential to injure users and damage property.

It said further that fake phones can also contain dangerous chemicals and metals, such as lead and mercury noting that these are associated with a range of adverse health effects.

Fake phones, the NCC observed have been known to cause  a drain on mobile phone networks thereby reducing network speed and reception for users stressing that some of them have unpredictably short lives.

The Commission said that they are not registered or certified to operate on cellular networks because they are produced from cheap and substandard components that can damage service in a network area adding that testing has shown that counterfeit and substandard phones experience high levels of dropped calls and failed connections.

Recently, the Nigerian Communications Commission, NCC, said that the task of checking the in flock of fake and standard mobile phones into the country was beyond its power because several loopholes in the nation’s boarder make it possible for all kinds of phones to come into the country.

According to the Secretary General of the Mobile Manufacturers Forum, MMF, Mr. Michael Milligan some of the tell tale signs of counterfeit mobile phone products are  the price and the poor quality saying consumers should look for inaccurate printing, misspelled words, crooked label placement and signs of defective workmanship.

He added that they do not come with warranty saying that all genuine mobile phone manufacturers offer a limited warranty that covers the handset, software and accessories.

He said:“Look out for words like ‘Replacement battery for…’ or ‘Charger compatible with…’.. Genuine products tend to only state which model handset the product is for” saying that to avoid fakes, consumers should always buy mobile phone products made by registered manufacturers and sold by trusted retailers.

“If you are looking to replace a battery or charger then you should refer to the original manufacturer’s information to make sure you purchase the appropriate battery or charger for your model of phone,” Milligan said.

According to the International Telecommunications Union, ITU, One out of every five mobile phones sold in the world are illegal or unlicensed copycats saying that the Middle East and Africa which include Nigeria, Turkey, Egypt, Iran account for 38.2 million units.

Also shipments of gray-market China-made mobile phones reached their peak in 2011 with a total of 250.4 million according to IHS iSuppli report.

On the effects, the ITU  said that it results to loss of revenue due to non-payment of customs duties and sales taxes saying that the danger it posses to public security is the absence of valid IMEI or “no IMEI” number which are potentially attractive for criminal activity and terrorism.

Also on security and privacy issues, ITU said in cases of theft or stolen phone, it is difficult to track the phone with invalid IMEI or “no IMEI” number while the operator experiences lowering of QoS of mobile telecommunication services such as loss in voice and data capacities, data transmit speeds, reduced coverage