How to identify a fake Infinix phone

Back in August 2015, Team Hovatek raised an alarm about fake Tecno phones flooding the market, likely starting with the Tecno M3. We equally warned of a likelihood that cloned Infinix phones will soon flood the market and it seems that time has come. As you know, we provide free support to device users at the Hovatek Forum so we spot variants quite quickly.

What are Variants?

Variants are devices of the same model but with slightly different specifications or software configurations. For example, an Infinix Hot 2 X510 1GB RAM and Infinix Hot 2 X510 2GB RAM are variants of the Infinix Hot 2 X510. A difference in Build Number (Settings > About > Build Number) could also be an indicator of a variant. An example is the Infinix Zero X506 where you have the J608 or J609 Build Number for the 16GB ROM variant.

Do I have to worry about variants?

Infinix pushes out multiple variants for a good number of their devices but there’s not enough awareness about them. Many OEMs are guilty of this so I’m not castigating Infinix. The problem with these ‘silent’ variants is that the firmware are not inter-compatible i.e the firmware for one variant won’t work on other variants. I’ll highlight some scenarios:

• Infinix Hot 2 X510 has 3 known variants; 1GB RAM, 2GB RAM and 4G LTE variants
• Infinix Zero X506 has 3 known variants; 8GB ROM, 16GB ROM J608 and 16GB ROM J609 variants
• Infinix Hot Note X551 has 3 known variants; 1GB RAM 16GB ROM, 2GB RAM 16GB ROM and 2GB RAM 32GB ROM variants
• The Infinix Note 2 X600 has 3 known variants; H532-A1, H533-A1 and H533-B1 variants

There are quite a number of other Infinix phone models with at least 2 variants but I hand-picked the above because they have the highest occurrence of bricking due to flashing the wrong variant’s stock ROM. Now, I don’t expect the same firmware to work on two variants without a few problems here and there. The part I frown at is releasing variants like a silent fart. Silent farts are the deadliest….and thats me talking from experience!

What do variants have to do with fakes and clones?

Samsung and Xiaomi will be able to tell you much about clones / fakes; how much of your market share and name they could damage. Any brand that has a good market qualifies to be cloned, whether you manufacture quality or crappy devices. Multiple variants for the same phone model makes it easier for clones / fakes to penetrate.

If -for example – Infinix XYZ is launched and it spots 3GB of RAM. I then head to the market to grab one only to be told that the 3GB RAM version is out of stock but I can get the 2GB RAM version. I would naturally be shocked because what I saw in the advertisements was 3GB RAM. Nowhere was there a mention of a 2GB RAM version (well….maybe in the terms and conditions which nobody reads).  I then have to make a call to a phone freak friend to confirm if there is indeed a 2GB RAM version and that its original. My friend would likely be like “Ehn? When did Infinix release that one again?”. This lack of information (due to burnout from several new models and variants released too frequently ) has created more than enough room for a clone / fake to sneak in.

How do I identify a fake or cloned Infinix phone?

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If history is anything to go by then IMEI and Stamps (under the battery) are not reliable indicators. Tecno’s strategy was to verify using the IMEI and VC code. I countered that this was a joke as a Mediatek phone’s IMEI can be tweaked, same goes for other phone information. This was just a theory then but became a reality when I encountered a Spreadtrum based Tecno M3 which passed the IMEI VC test.

We began suspecting a presence of fake Infinix Hot 2 X510, Hot Note X551 and Zero 2 X509 after encountering some cases where all firmware resulted in BROM Error 4032. In such a case, the phone is either a new variant, has a damaged eMMC chip or a fake.

Clones / Fakes are inferior to the original, this is because the pirates don’t want to spend as much money as they should to re-create these devices. Some pointers to help you identify a fake Infinix phone are:

• Design / Physical appearance: During the emergence of fakes, they are easier to spot by placing side by side with the original. The positions of the sensor, front camera and LED will be a pointer. As the fakes / clones gain ground, pirates perfect the designs to look more like the original
• Under the back cover: This is often where dismantling / disassembling begins so the pirate would need to pay careful attention to detail in order to fool you here. Take note of the arrangement of the SIM slots, Battery (if removable or inbuilt), Speaker and SD card slot in the original.
• Specifications: You could install the Antutu Benchmark app then compare the specs to what is available online. You could also check Settings > About and Settings > Apps > All.
• UI: The User Interface (UI) will often look different from the original

If the pirate is able to replicate all these then I think the phone is worth buying  .

Where can I purchase an original Infinix phone?

To avoid purchasing a fake or cloned Infinix phone, you should patronize only reputable dealers.

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How to downgrade a Mediatek Android phone

Its usually thrilling to learn that a major update / upgrade has been released for your Mediatek (MTK) Android phone. The excitement however begins to wane when you discover serious bugs (lagging and overheating being one of the most unbearable) and just wish you were back to the times when your phone was – at least – stable. The good news is that you can easily downgrade your MTK Android phone to a more stable Android OS.

Why would I want to downgrade?

Its actually a good idea to downgrade when you just can’t cope with the bugs in an update. If other builds of the update still aren’t any better then you might want to downgrade and wait out the ‘Guinea Pig’ phase of the Over The Air (OTA) update.

How do I downgrade a MTK Android phone?

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First, you need to know what version of Android the phone was running on before the update / upgrade; this is the firmware you’ll need to download then flash to the phone. To downgrade:

• Download the firmware for the version of Android you wish to revert / downgrade to. The firmware should be for your exact phone model so you do not brick your Android phone by flashing the wrong firmware.  Visit this link to download some MTK Android firmware
• Install VCOM drivers on the PC following the guide at this link
• Turn off the phone (still with battery inside) and don’t yet connect it to the PC via a USB cord
• Flash the firmware you downloaded above to the phone using the SP flash tool guide at this link
• Do Not interrupt SP flash tool till flashing is complete (Green OK prompt). If you accidentally do then see  this link
• If the battery is removable then take it out and reinsert after flashing. Ignore this if the battery is inbuilt
• Boot the phone into recovery mode after flashing the firmware and do a factory reset (see  this link)
• Boot up the phone then follow the Setup Wizard

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How to Disable Driver Signature Verification on Windows 7, 8 or 10

So here's the deal (my theory anyway); Microsoft is trying to make their system more stable and secure, but to do that, they have to have some standards of quality for drivers used on the system. That's good in theory, but the problem is that the only realistic way of doing that means that Microsoft makes companies pay them to certify and then sign their drivers.

While I can't argue with the theory, the practice is that some of your favorite software and still usable hardware won't work and that's not cool. Even worse, sometimes you won't know what's wrong. There's no indication of what's wrong, just that your hardware or software isn't loading right.

WINDOWS 7

However, there's a trick to make Windows stop forcing drivers to be signed. Before giving up, try this trick. When booting, press the F8 function key a few times until you see this boot menu:

If you have ever loaded Safe Mode in any version of Windows before, this should look familiar. In fact, Safe Mode is one of the options, but in this case, the one you're looking for is a new option near the bottom called Disable Driver Signature Enforcement

Use the arrow keys to highlight it and then press the ENTER key. Windows will load like normal, but now it won't require Microsoft approved drivers.

WINDOWS 8 OR 10

Use an Advanced Boot Option

To do this, get to the Windows 8 or 10 advanced boot options menu. For example, you can hold down the Shift key while you click the “Restart” option in Windows. Your computer will restart into the menu.There’s also another way to do this. You can use the advanced boot options menu to boot Windows 10 with driver signature enforcement disabled. This isn’t a permanent configuration change. The next time you restart Windows, it will boot with driver signature enforcement enabled—unless you go through this menu again.

Select the “Troubleshoot” tile on the Choose an option screen that appears.

Select “Advanced options”.

Click the “Startup Settings” tile.

Click the “Restart” button to restart your PC into the Startup Settings screen.

Type “7” or “F7” at the Startup Settings screen to activate the “Disable driver signature enforcement” option.

Your PC will boot with driver signature enforcement disabled and you’ll be able to install unsigned drivers. However, the next time you restart your computer, driver signature enforcement will be disabled—unless you go through this menu again. You’re now free to install drivers that haven’t been officially signed by Microsoft.

If this tutorial is helpful , please comment!!!

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MTN Free 10gb and N5000 Credits 4 Free Calls Feb March 2017

How To Get 5000 Credits And 10GB with Mtn

Migrate to betatalk Then load 2500 and you will be given 5000 credit bonus

Then tweak this imei 35736006068

Don't know how to tweak? click here

Then send free to 131 After you get a message saying that you have validated your device bla bla

Then dial *102# Instead of 4.5gb (3gb night and 1.5gb day you will be given 6gb night 3gb day 1gb extra and 500mb for whatsapp I just subscribed so I have tested it so try it also.

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How To Tweak Imei Number On Android Phone

Are you tired of paying too much money for data bundles? 
If your answer to that question is yes and you use an MTK Android device (Tecno, Infinix, wiko , Gionee...) then today is your lucky day because I plan on teaching you a trick through which you can get unlimited amount of data by changing your Android imei if you are smart enough and my guess is "You are quite smart, right?" 

With this trick you can kiss buying data plans goodbye, truth be told I haven't bought a single data plan for months now and I have never for once lacked Data(megabytes). 
How? You may ask, By tweaking my imei!! 

By tweaking, I mean changing my imei number. By changing your imei number you are able to enjoy Unlimited data opportunities.

Let me explain this process with an example. 

In Nigeria, when you purchase an Infinix Hot Note you are entitled to 2015MB from Mtn, If you don't want to buy the device but you also want to enjoy the 2015MB, all you have to do is change the IMEI Number of your phone to that of an Infinix Hot Note and then you Send the assigned command and you will get the 2015MB. 

Let me explain how this is possible;

IMEI means International Mobile-Station Equipment Identity. 

Every mobile phone and modem have a unique 15-digit Imei Number, It's just like finger prints of a phone. No two phones have the same Imei Number, but phones of the same brand usually having the same starting sequence.



E.g - All Infinix hot note imei start with 358429063 that is what I call the identification number. So when you change your imei number to something like "3584290630360721" and send the command. When Mtn or any other telecom company which we plan to trick sees the identification number which is "358429063" they assume you use a hot not and you are given your data. 

Now I believe you understand how Imei works, So let's head on to the process of changing your imei number

How To Change Imei Number

Note :- I strongly advice you copy your phones original imei before changing!!!

To do this we need to install two apps. 

• Imei Analyser Imei analyzer apk

• MTK engineering mode MTK engineering mode and download

First we start with the imei analyser.

The imei is a very delicate number so you can't just randomly generate numbers and tweak 'em you have to first analyse it. 

This is how we do that;

Let me use the infinix hot note example again. 

First we get the identifying number of the phone we want to change to. 

"358429063" the first nine digits of an imei number are the legit numbers the rest can be tweaked but do not change the first nine digits. 

After getting the first nine, you randomly add any 5 numbers.

So we have 14 digits now. "35842906312345" remaining one more number. 

This last number is called the "check digit" so it cannot be randomly added. 
If you do, you'll end up having a bogus imei number that doesn't work. 

This is where the Imei Analyser comes to play. 

Now open your Imei Analyser and input the 14 numbers we have gotten into the box provided. And click analyse. 

It will analyze it and give you the complete imei number including the check digit. 



After you've gotten the full imei, write it down, close imei Analyser and open MTK engineering mode. 


After opening MTK engineering Mode

click on MTK Setting

Then, swipe your screen to the left to view more options. 

Then select CDS Information

Then select radio information.

Then select phone 1 if you want to change the imei for SIM1 
or phone 2 for sim 2

press E on your keypad it will drop down some options, for sim 1 select AT+EGMR =1,7,""

For sim 2 AT+EGMR=1,10,"" 

After that put the new imei between the "" like this AT+EGMR=1,7,"358429063123457" 

Then put a space in between AT and + so it appears like this AT +EGMR=1,7,"358429063123457"


then press sendAT command. 

A message should pop up saying "At command is msent". 

After that toggle your phones's airplane mode on then off. 

Your imei should have changed *#06# to check.

I hope this tutorial is helpful, kindly comment, thanks.

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How To Get More Than 100Terabytes On Airtel Network

Airtel has come again with its amazing free browsing, I call it "free browsing"? Yea! It's of course a free browsing cheat for Airtel to produce more than terabytes of data on just one sim. Come to think of the unlimited browsing and downloading from the data? Hmm, it's amazing!

Just today, Airtel social plan seems to leak and almost all Nigerians are tapping from the source but nobody is able to use it except media like Facebook and others are powered.

In this tutorial, you will be able to activate the data and power your whole device for downloading. Now, let's go!

How To Activate More Than 100 Terabytes On Airtel Network

• It is easy and simple. Just dial *317# and you will be automatically opted to SmartTRYBE Tariff.
• After successful migration, you should dial *688*1# to activate free 1GB.

• Now keep dialing *688*1# to accumulate your data to any amount of data you wish to have.
• You can now dial *140# to check your data balance.

How To Download With The Data On Airtel Network

• Just download this version of Opera by clicking here.
• Then go to the file you want to download and copy the source download link, go to roogen.com and scroll down to paste the source download link in the box and tap on GO.
• Immediately, you can start downloading any type of file with the data.

It's so amazing and wonderful to have this type of cheat back on prexblog. Thanks Airtel for doing it again.


Is it helpful? Do you encounter any problems or issues while trying to set this up, kindly ask more questions and if it works for you, kindly share your experience!

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