I had a very disappointing and concerning experience at CPR Cell Phone Repair in South Orange, NJ, and I believe other customers should exercise caution when purchasing accessories from this business.
I purchased a charger that I was led to believe was an Apple MagSafe charger and paid $74 for it. After using the charger, I noticed that my phone became extremely hot while charging. That immediately concerned me because excessive heat while charging a phone can raise legitimate safety concerns.
I decided to inspect the charger more carefully. I could not find the Apple branding, model information, or "Designed by Apple in California" markings that I would expect to see on a genuine Apple product. The charger also appeared to have "EPIC" branding rather than Apple branding, and its physical appearance and finish did not appear to match the official Apple MagSafe chargers I found when comparing the product.
I also checked Apple's official pricing and found that genuine Apple MagSafe chargers are generally sold directly by Apple for considerably less than the $74 I paid. That made me even more concerned about exactly what product I had been sold and how it had been represented to me.
I showed the charger to several people who are familiar with Apple products, and they also questioned whether it was a genuine Apple charger. I additionally uploaded photographs of the charger to ChatGPT and asked it to compare the product with official Apple MagSafe chargers. Based on the photographs and the information provided, ChatGPT identified several differences, including the lack of expected Apple markings, differences in appearance and finish, and the overheating issue.
I contacted the store twice and specifically requested a refund because of the overheating and my concerns about the product's authenticity. On both occasions, I was told that the store does not provide refunds. Instead, I was offered an exchange for another product.
That was not an acceptable resolution for me, particularly when I had serious concerns about the safety and authenticity of the accessory. I ultimately disputed the $74 charge with my bank and was reimbursed.
I am posting this review because customers should know exactly what happened in my case. If you are purchasing an Apple accessory from this business, I strongly recommend exercising caution. Before paying, carefully inspect the packaging and product, verify the exact brand and model, and compare it with the manufacturer's official product information. If you are specifically looking for a genuine Apple accessory, make sure you can verify that it is actually an Apple-branded product.
This review is based on my personal experience and what I observed with the charger I purchased. The combination of the excessive heat, the branding and product differences I observed, the $74 price, and the refusal to provide a refund left me extremely dissatisfied with the transaction.
Customers should be very careful and do their own verification before purchasing accessories from this location. read more