Popular Science has a fascinating article about China’s cloning industry including information about an iPhone knockoff known as the P168 (see the above video).
Aside from consumer electronics products, the article also focuses on automobile and fashion industry look-alikes.
Apparently some cloning operations are so organized and efficient that they’re able to produce near-identical copies within a month of a new product’s release.
Quality has also gone up exponentially as China’s consumer class has started to demand well-made products as median wages have increased. This, in turn, has impressed companies like Samsung and Chrysler enough to offer to partner with to the counterfeiters to manufacture legitimate goods.
China’s iClone [PopSci.com]