Fake Vs Authentic Happycall Pan (Double Sided Pressure Pan)

Fake Vs Authentic Happycall Double Sided Pressure Pan
By SuperbMothers

Picture 1 - Happycall Double Sided Pans Jumbo Grill & Standard

This blog entry should have been posted on late April but due to our work commitments, it is delay till today. The information here are update to date as recent as 25 Jul 2012. Enjoy reading.

Forewords
In our world today, fakes or clones are everywhere especially when the product is popular. We all heard about imitation iPhone, fake eggs even fake Apple Store! Clones and fakes are spawning everywhere. As consumer like you and i, we are more worries the negative impacts produced clones and fake, especially the fakes; as mostly are made of toxic and inferior materials that endangers our health and being. The blog here is an update expansion of the Happycall FAQ aims to share more information how to check and get an authentic Happycall's cookware.

The rise of the fake Happycalls

Long before the Red Happycall invasions. The first gen Happycall (black colour, with no silicon gasket) already existed 4 to 5 years ago. They are brought in from Malaysia. Without the silicon gasket, the 1st Gen leaks whenever flipping side ways.

Picture 2 -Export version of Happycall Standard Pan, handles is a like duck's beak

In 2011, Lejel, a Home TV Shopping company from South Korea debuts the famous "Red Army" that invades the kitchen of the early adopters. The duck beak like handle without any hook hole (aka Standard Export, Picture 2) becomes the market talks of home makers around the town. By the 3rd quarter of 2011, the Standard Export version of double sided pressure pans become so popular, the second waves of adopters started to buy from forums and Gmarket (Now know as Qoo10 now) lured by the significant discount from Lejel's price. As the wildfire spreads, the wolves stealthy  sneaked into the hot market. In fact the first group that cries woke of the fake Happycall are the Gmarket's vendors themselves who are fighting for the market share. Out of the sudden, nobody were sure the Happycall pans they bought are genuine, as fakes imported from China from some early sellers, surfaced and cheated many unaware buyers. This is the begin of the fakes.

Picture 3 - Happycall Standard Domestic Version, note the handle has hook hole .

Towards the end of 2011, a few Gmarket's vendors began to sell the domestic Happycall Standard Pan (Picture 3) that has hook hole on the handles (aka New Happycall Standard) to break the fear factor. Initially, everyone thought the New Happycall Standard was a fake pan as handles is different from what Lejel is selling. The first few vendors are quick to declare the hook hole version as a new type and the old duck beak type as fake. This statement was not entirely wrong, as a matter of fact till today, fakes only occurs in duck beak type. With the new version, the new vendors smashed the monopoly controlled by the early vendors. However, Happycall still manufactures the duck beak type as export version but started to add new marking on the handle in the late 2011.

Sales of Happycall Standard Export slumped. Wolves are quick to react, majority, knowing the majority out there are still unaware of the fakes. The fakes and clones invades the neighbourhoods and pasar malam (night market) selling to aunties. Fly by night vendors whom advertise selling the new version or lower the price to lure new buyers but shipped only fake to them.

Today, there are more authorized retailers other than Lejel, like BHG, Courts, FairPrice Xtra, Isetan, John Little, OG, Tangs. However, the price of authorized retailers are still much higher than online purchase. Therefore more people still like to purchase online and we need to arms ourselves with the knowledge to get a healthy good deals.

Spot the Differences

1) Hook Hole vs Non Hook Hole Handle

Picture 4 - Duck Beak (Without Hookhole) vs New Handles (Hookholes)

The picture is done by us last year and it is quite self explain. The only fact that is not entirely correct is the  word OLD. Happycall still produce the non hookhole version. Korean domestic version are hookhole and there is a reason behind it.

Picture 5 - Happycall Merchandise Rack in Korea Shopping Mall

Picture 5 shows a typically rack selling Happycall's pan in a Korea's shopping mall. The pans are all hook up for sale, that explains the why Korea domestic version have hookhole. In contract, Picture 6 shows Happycall shown in our shopping mall like Isetan are all box up, thus no need the hookhole.

Picture 6 - Happycall Pan in box sold in Tampines Courts Megastore 

Here are the some pictures so some variations of handles of the Happycall Pan.

Picture 7 - Middle East variation of Happycall Ocher Deeper

Middle East Ocher Deeper (Picture 7), this is a variation contribute by one of the reader in the Middle East, it has the duck beak handle.

Picture 8 - Handle of Ocher Jumbo Grill

Picture 8 shows the handles of Ocher Jumbo Grill, which is almost the same as the new Red Jumbo Grill capture during our visit to Istean @ Nex Shopping Centre (Picture 9)

Picture 9 - Happycall Red Jumbo Grill

Happycall Jumbo Red (Older), Picture 10, the hookhole is similiar to New Happycall Pan but it has the the 3 circles designs instead of the single rounded rectangular design of all other Happycall Pan.

Picture 10 - Older Model of Happycall Red Jumbo

2) Stickers, Hologram & Boxes
a) Stickers

Picture 11 - Sticker on the inner of  the pan, the (R) logo should be visible

The Happycall Pans used to ship with a sticker inside the pan paste on the upper pan. For fake Happycall, the (R) is usually not visible and appears as a red dot. Newer fake pan fixed the (R) issue. Therefore from June 2012 onwards, newer Happycall Pan are not shipped with the sticker anymore.

b) Holograms (Authenticity Seals) 

Picture 12 - Happycall Hologram on the retail box

The authenticity seals (hologram, picture 12) is paste on the box for retailing set in shopping mall only. It resemble the one shown here taken from the Middle East set. As it is a hologram, the happycall logo is 3D instead of the low quality 2D fakes used.

c) Boxes

Picture 13 - Which are the real boxes?

Have you guess correctly, which is the real Happycall box? The answer is A & B. You can see that Fake Happycall Pan has similar boxes compare to the original one. Other than the hologram which it may or may not have on the box. You can't really tell which are the real one unless you examine the pans.

Picture 14 - Many paper boxes for Happycall Pan

Is the Happycall comes in brown paper like those in Picture 14 real? It really depends but usually fake pans shipped in colour box like those in Picture 13. Brown Happycall packing like the one above varies from sellers, you can see that i have at least 8 different design but all the content are real.

3) Stamps

The metal engraves on Happycall use to only 2 lines. 1st Line, Made in Korea, 2nd Line Original. Fake Happycall pan will usually have a very fast engraving on the metal which is not very easy recognizable unless you place the original and fake side by side. At the end of 2011, Happycall Pan start to engrave the 3rd line starting with AA0x, where x probably denote the batches. The latest we seen in Jul 2012 is up to AB04.

Picture 15 - New Engraves at Handles

Fake Happycall Pan, usually occurs in the duck lip Standard Happycall Pan. Above the Made in Korea engraves, the red metal part is usually concave as shown in Picture 15. However, Jumbo pans both Red Grill  (Picture 8) or Ocher Jumbo Grill (Picture 9), the groove is straight. 

4) Sealers

To be updated soon.

5) Weights
To be updated soon.

Original Happycall Ocher Deeper on Kitchen Scale 

6) Rivets, Silicon Sealers & Venting Hole 

Reference Website

Official Korea Website : http://www.myhappycall.co.kr/
Official Chinese Website : http://www.happycalltv.com/