Apple iPad Knockoffs Surfacing In China

According to Reuters, iPad clones have infiltrated the Chinese market and can be found in malls such as in Shenzhen, near Hong Kong. The prime differences? They are substantially bulkier than the originals and they run on Windows 7.

Apple partners aren't overly concerned about this development, however.

"It's important to keep in mind that the most profound aspect of Apple's consumer electronics is not the outside case, but the software that runs on it," said Nick Gold, senior account executive for Baltimore, Md.-based Chesapeake Systems. "No pirate knockoff can come close to replicating this end-to-end user experience that only comes when the user is using a legitimate Apple device, along with the iPhone OS and associated apps."

Gold doesn't think the market for iPad imitations will make any significant dent in Apple's iPad sales. "Who would choose a fake over the real thing?" he said. "It's only in that scenario that their business would actually be adversely affected in a direct sense."

According to Reuters, the Chinese-made version of the iPad costs about $410, a bit less than the least expensive Apple iPad, which goes for $499.

There's more than meets the eye for Chinese consumers who can't wait to get their hands on the iPad, according to Marc Wolfe, CEO of New York-based ProActive.

"Unlike a cheap Rolex that people buy just for looks, an iPad needs to perform a computer function that consumers purchase with a purpose," Wolfe said. "I don't think they will gain anything from these lookalikes."

Gold says knockoff devices surface in the first place because many people want to own Apple's electronics and be associated with the brand.

"Apple has been public about their plans to dramatically step up their retail presence in China, and as that presence grows, it seems obvious that many consumers in China who have wanted Apple devices but perhaps didn't have access to the real thing, will soon be able to get their hands on actual Apple hardware, procured through legitimate means," Gold said. "This could represent a very large, almost totally new market for Apple.

Added Gold: "Without the 'special sauce,' Apple's very advanced operating system and large ecosystem of very well-designed third-party apps, these imitators will only ever be 'skin-deep.'"