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Customs seize potentially dangerous DS and DS Lite consoles
Customs officers have warned the public to be vigilant after seizing hundreds of potentially dangerous fake Nintendo DS and DS Lite consoles.
A Nintendo representative confirmed to Computeractive that it is also aware of fake DSi – the latest version of the DS, currently not available in the UK – and Wii consoles being sold online.
The fake DS and DS Lite consoles, which are being sold online as genuine Nintendo products, include power adapters that have not been electrically tested. The consoles are being sold online at prices far lower than the genuine Nintendo products.
"At best, these consoles would have led to disappointment on Christmas morning," said HMRC's Pamela Rogers. "At worst, they could have caused serious harm or injury."
A customs spokesperson told Computeractive that ELSPA, which represents Nintendo and other games publishers, is working to have the websites in question taken down.
In the meantime, the fake DS consoles should be relatively easy to spot.
"First of all, look at the price," the spokesperson said. "If you're getting the console for less than £70 there's probably something wrong with it. Also, genuine Nintendo products come sealed in a single box. The fakes come in a badly packed box with the power adapter supplied separately".
A spokesperson for ELSPA said that it was "continuing to work very closely with Trading Standards on this important safety issue."
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Price of fake consoles
Ignore the bit about price in this article - I just recently bought a DS Lite on the internet for full price (£120 - I bought it via the internet rather than on the high street because I was after a colour of console that isn't available in the UK) and, once this story broke, realised that I had been sold a fake. I know that when I was looking for a console, the seller that I bought from is selling dozens of these consoles every day through the site I used alone so there are lots of fakes out there still for sale. I am now trying to get a refund from the seller, but I'm not holding out much hope, so do be careful.
Posted by Katy, 08 Dec 2008
Why is it a fake?
Katy, you say you've been sold a fake. How are you determining that, exactly? What is the evidence that the DS itself, not counting whatever box it comes in, or what power supply it comes with, is not the real thing?
Posted by Stephen, 09 Dec 2008
Why is it a fake?
Hi Stephen. The reasons that I say that it is a fake are many and varied, and not just down to the box that it came in. Every single point of the many 'how to spot a fake' articles out there could have been written to describe the console I have - the manual looks bogus, the box is wrong, the console feels (particularly compared to the genuine console I have now bought from a high street shop) badly put together, it only holds power for about 20 minutes and the power adaptor that it came with makes an ominous buzzing noise when plugged in. Add to that that the seller I bought from removed all of his other consoles from his site the day after I complained and that he has yet to deny that it's fake, and I'm fairly sure that it is.
Posted by Katy, 23 Dec 2008
The world is not just black and white
Yes, we should all be careful not to buy fake DS Lite. But besides the genuine new DS Lite, there is also refurb DS Lite, good for the tight budget folks who want to own a DSL. But I guess Nintendo probably want all of us just buy their brand new stuff.
Posted by hereugo, 03 Apr 2009