First, if you have an Android product, get Battery Monitor from 3c. It's in Play Store, and it's free. What it does is show you the current flow into or out of your battery, with updated values every 60 seconds. With no charger connected, I see an outflow between 900 and 1100 ma on my Note 10.1. Seems about right for 7 hour life on built-in 7000 mah battery. Now connect charger that came with Note 10.1 tablet. Give app a minute to get new number, and you will see around 900 ma flowing into battery. Seems completely reasonable since the charger is rated at 2000 ma. Current first goes to run the tablet, and what's left over goes to battery.
Now connect this thing to the tablet, and you will see charge between -100 ma and +100 ma (depending on screen brightness and processor workload). Many people have said this unit doesn't charge (which matched my experience), and Battery Monitor says they are right. Seems the charger's total current output is limited around 1000 ma, regardless of the label saying 2000 ma capability.
Could it just be a bad unit? Well, maybe, but ... The case isn't quite the same. This real Samsung supply is completely rectangular. This one tapers, with the dimensions nearest the wall connector being about .120 less than at the USB end (for both X and Y axis). It's also about 0.05" longer. The original charger has part-lines from front to back, as would be necessary to get it out of the mold with parallel sides. The presumed-counterfeit has no part lines, which would require a tapered design for extraction from the mold.
Also, the logo is not the same size (.09 high on original charger vs .
13" on this unit), and the straight lines in the U and N are a little curved (in a way that the corporate logo police at Samsung would probably never let out the door). Lettering is perfect on original charger. And the disposable plastic film is completely different between the two.
Does Samsung have 2 chargers, one good and one bad, both with same part number? I suppose that's possible, but most unlikely. Not surprisingly, the charger I bought at BestBuy last night matches the original perfectly (both in appearance and performance).
The real charger comes in a nice box that says Samsung all over it, and has a hologram. This one comes "bulk packed" in a plastic bag, obviously without a hologram that says "Samsung Original."
99% chance it's a counterfeit, and 99% chance you will only get trickle-charging with this one if you try to use it with a Note 10.1.
Beyond that, I think the old saying, "If it seems to good to be true, it probably is" applies. Samsung (and BestBuy) get $50 for this charger. How is it possible for A-Mall to sell the same thing for $18.30 on Amazon (and be qualified for free 2-day Prime shipping)? Amazon obviously gets a significant cut of the $18.30, and the seller should be making a profit, plus paying for shipping to Amazon. Is the dealer price from Samsung below $10, as needed to make this possible? Doubtful.
99% chance it's a counterfeit, and 99% chance you will only get trickle-charging with this one if you try to use it with a Note 10.1.
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