If you have an AP set with Vodafone or T-Mobile logo, it means that your phone might be locked. Those Vodafone or T-Mobile are the service operators in the UK and that's where the phones come from. Not all AP sets have the logo. AP sets are Approved Products which means that these products are certified by sirim that your product is safe to use.

In other words, AP product not brought in by the authorised distributor like Midland, T-Choice for SE, Avaxx or Zitron for Nokia, FMG for Samsung and etc. The phones can even come from Singapore and may even have the M1, Singtel or Starhub logo. Remember to check the phone if it is locked especially those from Singapore and Vodafone.

AP sets has different level of QC. Big AP companies like Final Choice, GTMAX, Nefion, Telstra, O'Connors have extensive QC checks. Others like MSL, YS, PLANTRONICS or names not mentioned above, are slightly cheaper than the above. Whether they replaced their parts with other stuff, its another question.

AP set actually pay government tax but is juz that they are not taxed by the Local Authorised Dealer. AP set is normally distributed by small handphones companies and they might stop business anytime.
Futhermore if there's major damage on your AP set, the AP companies might not have enough equiptment to fix it. At the end, they still have to send it to the authorized dealer (eg. Zitron, Avaxx).


There are recon set might be known as water set, so beware while you buying.
Recon set are second hand handphones from overseas, they juz change the phone cover (might not be original cover) and do some servicing inside and sell it as an AP set with warranty 1 year summore. As I know FMG will not fix phones other than FMG warranty handset (even they are paid they will not fix)

Like what everyone else have said, a phone without a sirim sticker is considered as illegal and thus cannot be sold here. But I'm gonna assume that if the phone is not available here, it should be better. And besides, if you bought the phone from overseas and bring it back here to use, don't tell me it would be illegal to use it right?

Speaking of buying a waterset from a shop, they might say that you did not inspect it properly before buying and thus you are at fault. So yeah guys, if you wanna buy a phone, do yourselves a favor and do these few things:

Check for sirim sticker (this is a MUST. Everyone should know this).
Cross check IMEI numbers on the phone and the box
Ask for warranty card.
Ask if the warranty card needs to be sent to wherever necessary.
Check all the features of the phone (iow, play with the phone, make sure everything is working).
Check for dead pixels.
Check the firmware if possible (*#0000# for most nokias). This way, you can check if it's old stock or not.
And of course, make sure you get the propper set. As in nothing missing like the handsfree and stuff.

Sorry, deviated a bit from what is a waterset, but really, people should know these stuff to avoid getting cheated.

Btw, watersets are usually sold without accesories, only phone and charger. So sometimes if you add up buying the accesories elsewhere, it might cost near the same as buying a proper set

AP set might use compatible (non-original) replacement parts, charger and battery.

AP set is approved products. usually its taken in from other countries which is much more cheaper than the local authorized set.

is your question suppose to be "does all AP set have that logo?"

well if thats your question, than not really...though if you have an AP set with that logo, it might make your fone look cooler, but on the other hand, cud mean that your fone might be locked...those t-mobile and vodafone are just the service operators in the UK and theres where the fones come from....another thing is...not all AP sets have the logo...AP sets just means Approved Products which means that these products are certified by sirim that your product is safe to use...

in other words, AP product just means products that is not brought in by the authorised distributor like Midland, T-Choice for SE, Avaxx or Zitron for Nokia, FMG for samsung and etc. the fones can even come from Singapore and may even have the M1, Singtel or Starhub logo...so its not necessary that all AP sets will have a logo...some may have some dont...if they have, remember to check the fone if it is locked esspecially those from singapore and vodafone.

neway just to add on..

AP sets has different level of QC. (big ap fellas like F.Choice/GTMAX/Nefion/Telstra/OConnors) have extensive QC checks.

Others like MSL/YS/PLANTRONICS or names not mentioned above, are slightly cheaper than the above....whether they replaced their parts with other stuff..its another question.

U dont see much different in nokias BUT for samsung it is .. 6 months diffference in warranty...imagine lcd damage after 1 year (for AP) ..

AP set just different warranty from authorised set.

Upgrading means the upgrading of the phone's firmware. AP sets can be upgraded as well, but you need to pay each time you upgrade.

No, AP sets and Ori sets most probably use Original accessories, unless some dishonest sellers changed them.

Price is different because of the warranty. If there's anything wrong with your phone, ie dead pixel, motherboard fried or LCD went dead, you can change it FOC if you're having an Ori set within the warranty period. But if AP set, you most prob have to pay for the repairs. And mind you, these arent't cheap. Therefore its advisable to get Ori even though you're paying a little more, its for the peace of mind.

easier way is, anything (sticker / warranty company) other than t-choice, thorus and midlands are not original.

international warranty? not really. you wont be covered if your phone go out of the country, so as other country set wont be covered in malaysia service centre too. example: ori singapore set in malaysia = waterset, not covered. so international warranty, i dont think so. though some phone in other country is covered in other country (i.e. European)

This is my experience from just having bought two Nokia phones within a week. One Original and one AP set.

AP SET
1. the box IMEI doesnt tally with the Phone's IMEI
2. the accessories like charger and battery does not have the Nokia Original sticker but the battery still has the 3D hologram. whether these are original or not is questionable. You can buy these types of accessories from Lowyat at a much lower price than the real original accessories. And my feeling is that these lower price item are being used.
3. if your phone comes with additional covers, the colours may not match the original set as intended.
4. if your headset, battery or charger is spoil, you must take it back and exchange from the dealer you bought it from and not from the AP distributor workshop. The AP workshop only warrants the phone itself. This also leads me to believe that the AP company only sells the phones itself to the dealers and not the accessories which is sourced by the dealers themselves. You draw your own conclusion from this.
5. different AP distributors will have different set of rules and also different length of warranty
6. AP set still have the KELAS Sirim sticker. It will also have the AP distributor cum "date sold" sticker.

So if your question is "should I buy AP or Original" -
1. it depends on how much savings - if a lot of difference then its worth it. If save RM100 or RM200, I think not worth it.
2. if you care about whether the battery or charger is original or not and worth the savings from the difference in price
3. if you are located in Klang Valley or outstation - this because most AP workshop are in the Klang Valley so imagine the trouble of sending your set back only to discover that the charger is not working. Then need to send the charger to the dealer. All these can be quite troublesome and the risk of losing your phone thru the mail system.

This note on how to tell if your Nokia is an Original or not -
Click THIS to see the picture.

i never trusted AP set & i always buy original but original always defective as well. lucky it's under waranty. Nokia 6280 - damn lousy phone.

Mine bought SE W800i ori from T Choice but not until 1 years, my rubber joystick already missing. Now my hp sometimes off by itself, camera don't function anymore, housing crack....

Hi, I wanna ask about the quality of the AP set? can anyone explain to me?

FYI,Im foreigner, and quite confused about AP set.

thank you

Mine bought SE W800i ori from T Choice but not until 1 years, my rubber joystick already missing. Now my hp sometimes off by itself, camera don't function anymore, housing crack....

Hi, I wanna ask about the quality of the AP set? can anyone explain to me?

FYI,Im foreigner, and quite confused about AP set.

thank you

hi.. anybody had +ve or -ve pn AP company?...

since has a lot of AP company now.. which is good and which is so-so...

in terms of service centre availability... and customer service also..

newbie.. planning to buy new phone.. but cant decide which AP company...

thanx.. guys..

guys as long as we buy zitron set, but not from those nokia store,the phone is still warranted by nokia?

hi, i new here. recently just bought a phone for my Gf. will there be any problem in claiming warranty service  if there is only the shop chop on the warranty card.?  the phone got matching IMEI with the box, Zitron sticker on battery, phone and charger.

No problem, as long as you don't remove the stickers in the phone.

Yes, but make sure the stickers are there. Proof it is a Zitron set.

No problem, as long as you don't remove the stickers in the phone.

Thanks fruitie. Anyway, here what i learn about IMEI, just want to post in this thread. i found the info in the old thread that already been closed.  ( 120 pages++ since 2004  )

p/s. i read that thread till page 37. siao if how to read all pages.  anyway i can/t quote the info as i not sure in what page ady. maybe you guys can re-clarify about this as i not sure this info is still valid or not.

original hp- IMEI number in the phone is the same with IMEI on the box.
          - IMEI number in the phone will have 2 (maybe more)extra digit append at the last which indicated the box  number.

AP hp- IMEI number in the phone is not tally with IMEI on the box.

so as long as there is the zitron sticker on the phone then can bring to any nokia center for warranty claiming and servicing rite?

thanks alot for the info ya

hi guys..recently i found a SE w910i with vodafone logo at the bottom end..
and some SE walkman phones with square orange logo instead od the 'W' logo..
i was wondering...is it the ori set or wut?
can anyone clarify this for me plxx...
thx in advance..

i find out 1 problem....i buy ori and i check all i shud....confirm its ori but dono why my K810i the color shud be 262k but i try software to check, its 65k

Press the following on your mobile *#06# and the-international mobile equipment identity number appears. Then check the 7th and 8th numbers:

IF the Seventh & Eighth digits are 02 or 20 this means your cell phone was assembled in Emirates which is very Bad quality

IF the Seventh & Eighth digits are 08 or 80 this means your cell phone was manufactured in Germany which is fair quality

IF the Seventh & Eighth digits are 01 or 10 this means your cell phone was manufactured in Finland which is very Good

IF the Seventh & Eighth digits are 00 this means your cell phone was manufactured in original factory which is the best Mobile Quality

IF the Seventh & Eighth digits are 13 this means your cell phone was assembled in Azerbaijan which is very Bad quality and also dangerous for your health

i don't think this is the true... it have more then 10 contries manufacture for the phone..how there classified with the few codes..

Bring it to the nearest SE service center to clarify that?

hi all, just want to double confirm whether ACCTON is also authorize distributor  for SE?

thanx...

i bought SE C702 4 weeks back,i bought them as a present for my upcoming sis birthday,and yes,at first i was so rush,i need to go back to sarawak at that night,i've been working hard to reach any of the cheap phone suppliers in Lyn,but none of them even picking up my calls,they said it was CNY holiday ,so i went to Mines,i thought of taking this C902,then there's one worker who assisted me said ,"better to take c702" and he explained why do i have to take C702.and yeah..there it goes,i bought them,but the price is super unbeliveable ,i was charged high-to-the-sky ,where the original price should be way cheaper than 1150.00 .(this is 4 weeks back) ,but when i came back to lyn,i just noticd the price is just 700+  .mine is AP,darn it,and the accessories and all are suck !thy are not original,i've reminded them before they procced to wrap the phone box,they said ,"why u want to get ORI ?AP and ORI same only" .start frm that day and onwards,i banned that phone shop.

can somebody help me...
i plan to buy a new N79 ori set... and i visit one of the shop in prangin mall, penang...
the guy stated to me...
Ori Zitron set is 1540 with 2 yrs warranty...
Can I know whether zitron gt offer such long period of warranty?

Dear forumers, I need some help here.

I just received my Nokia 3600 that I ordered. I was told that it's an AP set but i'm still not quite sure. The whole package looks to be brought in from Thailand. The phone has Thai keypad. The warranty card and manual are in Thai (the manual has English too). The phone does have a Kelas sticker and a sticker of a company called M-Link Asia. After googling I found out that M-Link is a Thai company that distributes Nokia phones. The thing is, there are no stickers of any local company on the phone. So is this a water set or an AP set?

Can somebody shed some light?
I bought an Experia original set form one of the reputable seller in lowyat. COD, check the phone, everything looks fine. Got thorus sticker on the battery and inside of the back cover.
The problem I have is on the warranty card, there is no company letterhead, no date of purchased, just model name and thorus stamp. I asked the seller and he said i dont need to have company letterhead stamp, and even receipt to claim. IS that true? He said because it is direct from the supplier, there is no company stamp. What should I do?

one question, is ori unit supposed to be sealed?

no i mean should the box of the phone sealed? and the seller should unseal it in front of us when we buy it?

what we are supposed to get when we buy an original set? i mean other than the whole set of fone, accessories etc, official receipt of the shop, we will get an official warranty card from the authorized distributor right?

the warranty card and ori distributor sticker in fone that matters right when noticing original right? assuming IMEI is same for box and fone.

My SE phone has a sticker that says COMSAT. Anyone heard of it before? Is it reliable and safe? I have a feeling it comes from Indonesia because it has "Indonesian" as an option in language.

COMSAT is MALAYSIAN AP COMPANY...so far i heard this AP company is the worst in MALAYSIA

In fact, it's worst among the worst.

Never ever get COMSAT.

ap set might be cheap

but think of the repairing cost
lol

my phone spoit once..repaired it..but its spoils again in about 3 months ?
it costs me 200 +
can buy a new phone if i kept that money..
lol..

the next phone im gonna buy ori

haha yea man

plus mine spoilt twice

end of august
and second time..
early october
its like less than a month
so i gave them to fix twice..
which cost me 400 +

now spoil again

fcuk !

im not giving them anymore man

hey ppl, im not very into handphones so i need some help here before i help my mom getting a new handp.
im planning to get a sony ericson w910i for my mom. and it seems there's ap set and ori set. and i was told that both is original, the only difference is the warrenty. ap cost around rm600 and ori cost around rm900+.
difference is rm300. i surveyed a few phone shops and they told me ap set comes with a 1 year warranty. but the warranty is from "kilang kecil". so is it adviceble for me to but the ap set?

I don't advice you to get AP, you search around the forum and you will know how bad they are ; especially COMSAT - must avoid.

Warranty play important roles.

Just go for ori.

I don't advice you to get AP, you search around the forum and you will know how bad they are ; especially COMSAT - must avoid.

Warranty play important roles.

Just go for ori.

thanks. yea. i just read some few threads here. and now i know how horrible the ap set warranty is.   i guess i gonna go for the ori set one then.
anyway out of topic, is SE w910 a good phone? my friend says the phone's keypad cracks easily. is that true?

You listed all out. Remember to check the condition.

I don't advice you to get AP, you search around the forum and you will know how bad they are ; especially COMSAT - must avoid.

Warranty play important roles.

Just go for ori.

True.. service much better also. How long is the warranty usually for Ori set?

one of my friends bought k850i from lelong.com, (she won the auction loll)
the seller located at sarawak,
it's declared as new unit,but without any sticker at all
no sirim,no ap sticker,no warranty card given,
just k850i with battery and charger,
the housing has no scratch,

so that unit can consider as waterset or what?
checked the firmware,it's the latest one..
any comments?
thanks

one of my friends bought k850i from lelong.com, (she won the auction loll)
the seller located at sarawak,
it's declared as new unit,but without any sticker at all
no sirim,no ap sticker,no warranty card given,
just k850i with battery and charger,
the housing has no scratch,

so that unit can consider as waterset or what?
checked the firmware,it's the latest one..
any comments?
thanks

probably waterset

if i buy original nokia(any one of the 3 ori distributor), i can service my warranty my fone at any Nokia Care no matter which ori distributor i bought from?

thanks
one more question, original the salesperson are suppose to unseal the box infront of us right? but then i remember last time my fren bought ori the box is already open, and the guy say they open to check the condition, accessories etc, then my fren demand an unopen box, he challenge him back to call Midland(was buying SE fone that time) on the spot to check whether that IMEI and all the accessories is ori or not.. at last he still get that opened box.

is it possible that they open to check the condition/accessories only?

he doesnt sounds fishy, but i dont like the fact that buying original but have to bear with the fact that the box has been opened by someone before you buy the fone.

anyone can confirm this cos i'm also planning to get a new ori nokia phone.

what i know is for pc hardware like motherboard, the box will be opened by the sellers. i ask them, they say need to put warranty sticker, but i don't belive them.

thanks Faith+1

i nid answers too
being fussy but i dunwan others to open my ori fone before i opened it

Huh. To guys, virgin is damn important to them.

Anyway, the box should be properly seal.

O.O to me not really important but lol off topic

alright properly sealed. i'll look around for different stalls regarding open box thingy before buying.

wow, AP really tat bad? My friends get AP for their phones..about 1 year ++ oledi...but the phone still ok...they didnt even send their phones for repairing... confusing la...buy the way Faith +1....is tat really you in your avatar? u look so pretty

Kinda risky I would said.

No warranty is a no no.

Better don't get it.

How much is the price?