Different versions of the same thing!

[mowjo]

I noticed a lot of people have clones of things from places like FT, now I know most of you swear they are as good and sometimes even better than originals, but while looking on FT I noticed they have four different versions of the Istick one by Earl, one by BOU, one by Smart and the original, apart from the price they look exactly the same, same specs everything, so is there any real difference in them? as they just seem like re-branded originals and the chances are they come out of the same factory,,

Mow,,,

[markm]

This is my best guess.
The original was an overnight sensation, demand was so high that subcontractors were
Used to meet demand. Being China, the subcontractors kept the production lines running
Long after the original orders were filled, rebranding as they went.

I have no idea if this is what happened, but it's a familiar story for other products.

[mowjo]

Thanks Mark! I did wonder if that was the case, A few years ago I bought a generator for the boat, exactly the same as the Honda one, out of the same factory, different colour but less than half the price of the original, there was a big court case about it but Honda lost because I don't think copyright applies in China, which is why I suspect there are so many clones from China,

Mow,,,

[Deleted]

I bought the IStick and then the Smart 20, both are exactly the same in look and operation apart from name change and the screw type used between the two, I would say as mentioned above, they either came from the same factory or sub contracted.