Smartwatches that take on the design of the Apple Watch can now be seen on a number of popular online shopping sites in China. Some are even selling accessories for the device and are using the same design interface of the Apple Watch.
Photos of the Apple Watch sold in the shops don't actually include the words "Apple Watch." The word "Apple" is instead replaced with the Apple logo, followed by the word "Watch."
Since the Apple Watch has been discussed a number of times and has appeared on the Web regularly, it created a solid impression of its design features among consumers. People can easily tell the Apple Watch apart from other smartwatches on the market.
As the Apple Watch nears its store debut, several stores in China wanted to take advantage of the device's popularity by retailing counterfeits of the device. Of course, prices for these devices are much cheaper than those for Apple versions.
One example is Alibaba's Taobao, which lists AW08 and the iWatch on its site. Both devices feature "digital crown" dials on their sides. They even came with Apple-inspired straps and the user interface graphics are reminiscent of Apple's upcoming wearable.
Instead of the Apple Watch OS, the listings also reveal that their own "Apple Watch" products run on Google's Android.
"Apple products are very popular in China, and it's possible that Chinese consumers will want to be seen to be the first person on their block to wear its Watch," said Matthew Forney, president of Fathom, a business consultancy firm based in China. "However, I think most of those consumers are aware that there has been an issue with fakes and copycats on Taobao and would be highly suspicious of the devices. And most people who buy them will do so knowing they are not Apple's real watch."
One of the shops called dealsmachine.com, a Chinese online store in English, describes its product as having Bluetooth, an SMS dialer, remote camera, pedometer, music and phone book. Likewise, the shop aliexpress.com wanted to give the impression that it's actually selling a leather wrist strap meant for the Apple Watch and not the Apple Watch device itself.
Lastly, taobao.com seemed to have a number of Apple Watch devices sold on its site, where the words "Apple Watch" can be seen as squeezed in between the Chinese characters on the top part of the ad, a strategy with the purpose of "revealing" and "hiding" the watch's identity at the same time.
