Fake VS Real Guide: AirPods 1st & 2nd Generation

Last Updated on April 16, 2024 by Ch David

Looking to learn how to spot fake AirPods? Scared of getting scammed? Look no further, as we’ve compiled the most complete legit check guide for Apple AirPods.

We’ve got a separate guide for AirPods 3.

Let’s go to the 1st and 2nd gens.

How to know if your AirPods are fake

To know if your AirPods are fake or real, run their serial number on the Apple – Check Coverage service. Fake AirPods never have a valid date of purchase, while all of the authentic pairs have one.

Replica manufacturers cannot fake this.

Let’s check it out!

1. Serial number

• Not sure where’s the serial number of your AirPods? Here you can see Apple’s tutorial for all of the spots where you can find the serial number.
• Over there in the highlighted area, you will find a code that’s unique to every AirPods case.

Have a look at the picture below with an authentic Apple serial number so we can make it clear for you to find this code:

• Once you get that code written down, you will have to go to https://checkcoverage.apple.com
• Over there, simply pop in the serial number and this is how we’ll find if your AirPods are fake or real.

Here’s what the authentic results look like:

• An authentic pair of Apple headphones will come with confirmation points from their official website.
• This should clear out 99% of AirPods legit checks.
• However, it’s not impossible that someone might switch the case and put in fake AirPods. Very unlikely, but not impossible.

Therefore, this is why we’re not stopping this AirPods legit check guide here.

Finding it too hard? Reach out to our Apple experts:

2. Diffuser

• The diffuser found here must never ever be misaligned.
• The fake example we’ve attached above seems to not be properly aligned with the circle that sits next to it.
• Besides that, if you closely inspect the grille, you will notice a difference in quality.

3. Bottom

Having a look at the actual headphone, you will notice a grilled area — that’s what we’ll refer to as the diffuser.

Have a look at the real vs fake AirPods comparison below:

• As you can see, the shape of this diffuser is different.
• The shapes vary on authentic AirPods as well, but they should always come in an oval shape.
• Fakes, on the other hand, seem to get this diffuser shape closer to a circle, rather than an oval.
• Besides, highlighted in a square you will notice the difference in the two white strips at the bottom.
• Not only is there a difference in colour, but the fake AirPods have these strips placed at significantly deeper levels as well.

4. Lightning port

This is on the charging case of your AirPods.

• The metal outline that wraps this port is thicker on the fakes, thus having a different shape.
• There’s a difference in colour as well.

Relevant read: Check out our guide on how to authenticate Apple watches as well.

A quick mention:

• The steps we’ve written so far are the BEST ways to authenticate this item
• The next few steps are still reliable methods…
• … but they apply to non-top-versions of replicas available for this item

If in doubt, we recommend double-checking the steps we’ve explained above this line.

5. Charging case

• For starters, the circle button is placed higher than it’s meant to be on the fake AirPods case.
• Next up, the “Designed by Apple in California / Assembled in China” text is not only thicker on the fake AirPods case, but also printed in a different shade of grey.
• As a consequence, the spacing between the hinges and the text is different. We’ve highlighted the difference in the grey boxes.

Last but not least, we’ll address the difference found in the hinge area. Here’s a closer picture comparison:

• The way the hinge is segmented is significantly sharper on the fake AirPods case.
• That, once again, shows a lack of craftsmanship and quality, since fake manufacturers are compromising for the sake of a cheaper price.
• On top of that, the replica case used this mirror-like material on the hinge — which reflects everything more than the material found on the authentic case.

6. Light-up indicator

• The light-up indicator on the fake AirPods case is misplaced.

This flaw is not always found on the replica AirPods since it’s obviously a blatant mistake, but we felt like adding it to our guide just so you will be reminded to have a quick check of this detail as well.

7. Box

For obvious reasons, the quality lacks on the box that comes with the headphones since fake manufacturers don’t care that much about the small details.

7.1. Bottom details

For starters, we’ll have a look at the bottom side of the enclosed box.

Over here we can notice three things:

1. The space between the cover and the box is super tight on the authentic box. On the fake AirPods box, you can see there’s more space and that gap is fluctuating in width.
2. The font on the fake box is thicker than its authentic counterpart.
3. Last but not least, the lightning cable illustration on the fake box is truncated on the bottom part.

7.2. AirPods text

• Moving on to the side, the AirPods text is significantly different.
• For one, the classic San Francisco font is not used on the fake AirPods box.
• Besides that, the fake text has reflective properties, while the authentic box has this textbox simply printed in grey.

7.3. Profile stickers

• As you can see, multiple separate stickers are attached to the authentic box.
• Besides that, it seems like the fake AirPods come with Chinese text in the upper left corner.
• Whether there is or isn’t Chinese text anywhere on the box can vary based on the region where the Apple AirPods were purchased from.
• However, it looks like regardless of the region, the text found on the fakes is slightly thicker.

7.4. Apple logo

• Moving on to the side with the Apple logo, it seems that once again the fakes have this area printed with a reflective material, rather than simply printing it in grey.

7.5. Interior side

• Last but not least, upon opening the box you will notice the covering cardboard with instruction papers.
• Yet again, the properties of this text are different.
• The fake AirPods have “Designed by Apple in California” printed in black, instead of grey.

Shortlist: How to tell if AirPods are real or fake

1. Authentic AirPods were never released in any colourway other than white (for the time being).
2. The authentic AirPods connect faster to your phone. It’s estimated that it shouldn’t take longer than 10 seconds to connect the headphones to your device.
3. The battery life is significantly shorter on fake AirPods.
4. Some fake AirPods have a female voice audio file playing when connecting to your device — authentic AirPods only play a sound that’s specific to Apple.
5. Some fake AirPods come with a USB-C port instead of the classic Apple Lightning port.
6. Naturally, Find My AirPods under Find My will not work with the counterfeit version.

We’ve finished this authentication guide by mentioning there are technical differences in counterfeit AirPods.

It almost goes without saying that this happens since replica manufacturers don’t plan on perfectly replicating the Apple chips that are found inside the original AirPods — and most likely, nor do they have access to what Apple has developed.

Expert AirPods authentication service

If you have read this guide and are still uncertain about whether your AirPods are real or fake, the Legit Check App offers an authentication service to put your mind at ease.

Should you either not be confident in your ability to follow this guide or are simply lacking time, all you have to do is send us high-quality pictures of your Apple AirPods and we will get back to you with the results within 24 to 48 hours.

The results will also come with a report on why we believe your AirPods are fake or authentic.

Need our opinion on your item’s authenticity? It’s a service we provide.

Get a fully-detailed report for why you have a real or fake item. Takes less than 48 hours!

Alternatively, use our free resources: written guides and video tutorials.

Thank you for reading this,

Ch Daniel and Ch David