Counterfeit ATmega328s

just followed through a little more:

name of the rip off company is: Shenzhen Henglian Electronics Co.

Cheers Don...

ATmega328s:

"Sparkfun sells counterfeit ICs" isn't a headline I would like to see if I was running a company... :)

Surprisingly, some people actually seem to be buying them...

Yes, of course: buy it for $0.50 and sell it for $5.00 on eBay :-) But the comments clarifies it: Sparkfun was very naive in thinking it could be used for soldering training and removed it very fast from their shop.

Yeah probably no good for solder training either, probably won't tin properly etc

It is a big problem in the industry and the longer the lead times get, the more the counterfeiters benefit

"Bill Naylor" wrote

It is a HUGE problem.

Hitachi (Renesas) suffer from it too.

It is usually visually obvious by looking at the package. The people doing this are pretty stupid.

Interesting...

Thanks Don.

ATmega328s:

I think that if you can't find the culprit, it is meaningless to file complaints.

Probably a good idea to pay through an escrow. Check that the companyy has existed for a significant amount of time before you start to trade with them.

You probably want to have a photo of the package. Buying a component today, which is manufactured in 2007, has it's own problems.

If you complain to the U.S. Trade Representative about counterfeiting, to the Embassy of China, and the China Semiconductor Industry Association, you might be able to find them. China does require all businesses to be registered with the Government, and there will be a paper trail somewhere.

In particular, the China Semiconductor Industry Association might well be interested. They're trying to make their industry more respectable. The last thing they want is companies boycotting China sources.

Also recognize that Chinese law tends to be rather tough. It's hard to get the attention of the authorities in China, but once you do, pain will be applied to somebody.

John Nagle