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  • My improved take on the font that is extracted from the shanzai knockoff of the Nokia 107.

    Copyright disclaimer:
    Any fonts that are created / published on FontStruct are the copyrighted work of the respective creator.

    Buyer Beware:
    The term shanzhai refers to imitation or counterfeit products that mimic the appearance of established brands, often smartphones manufactured under generic name companies (e.g. Alps) with generic name brands (Fuffi, Maimeite, Sansung, Susan, Welcome, etc.) that look nearly identical to legitimate models from companies like Apple, Samsung, Huawei, Oppo, Xiaomi, etc). These devices are typically sold at attractively low prices, but behind their polished facades, there lies serious risks in them.

    A key form of deception in shanzhai smartphones involves spoofed hardware specifications. These devices may falsely claim impressive specifications, when in reality, they only contain a lot less RAM and lot less storage than what was “advertised” (Like a phone that was advertised with 16 GB of RAM and 1 TB  of storage, when in reality, they contain about 1 GB of RAM and 8 GB of storage).

    Such falsifications are achieved through firmware tampering, where certain system files are modified so the phone's "About Device" screen and certain foolable diagnostic apps display fake numbers (but not all diagnostic apps can be fooled, like Hugh Jeffreys's iTest app, available for iOS and Android for 99 cents).

    This deliberate manipulation leads users to believe they are purchasing a high-performance phone capable of what you would deem it as "real modern multitasking and gaming", when in reality, they really cannot even do basic operations, they do overheat, and run out of storage (and battery, since they use KEBE-branded (typicall capacity is at 2.1 Ah) batteries) almost immediately.

    Oh, and combined with outdated Android versions—often disguised as newer releases via modified files (through the build.prop file located at /system)—through hidden pre-installed apps (like SwitchApp), these shady shanzhai devices pose serious risks to both user experience and data security.

    Also, certain shanzhai smartphones falsely claim to support modern mobile technologies such as 4G LTE, Voice Over LTE (VoLTE), or even 5G, when in reality, they only function on 2G or 3G networks.

    From ads that show that these shanzhai smartphones can really connect to 5G networks, to firmware modifications, these tactics are often used to display misleading information, giving users the illusion of full compatibility with what you think are the "current standards" (some even show "4G” or "5G" icons in the status bar, despite the hardware being incapable of connecting to those networks). The implications are very severe.

    As mobile carriers around the world phase out 3G networks, these shanzhai smartphones will lose the ability to make calls (including emergency calls), send text messages, or use mobile data—leaving users with only Wi-Fi connectivity. This not only renders the phone nearly useless but also poses a safety risk in situations where cellular access is critical. However, things are about to change after the sunset of 2G and 3G services, these shanzai smartphones now support at least 4G networking just because they upgraded the CPU to a Unisoc (formerly Spreadtrum) SC9863A / T606 (the new kings of the fake phone world. Yes, they are legitimate 4G chips, but they perform like entry-level tech from several years ago) or a better version of MediaTek (MT6737 / MT6739, but still old-ass CPUs with 4G networking that are now pennies on the dollar for mass production), but they're still impacted as these do fallback to 3G for calls and text, meaning that they essentially did nothing to improve it.

    Australia, may have (to the officials) made the right move to sunset 3G networking, but this comes at the cost of axing 4G & 5G phones that used 3G for calls (esp. emergency calls) off the network.

    Beyond that, shanzhai smartphones often contain low-quality components, unstable firmware, and even pre-installed malware or data-harvesting software. Buyers may experience app incompatibility, unreliable updates, and privacy breaches without realising the root cause.

    Consumers should be wary of deals from unverified online sellers on e-commerce websites (like Lazada, Shopee, etc.) advertising those shanzai smartphones that appear "too good to be true". Always verify the device's certification, check the Android API level and security patch level, and confirm the authenticity of the brand and model through official sources (e.g. iTest).

    Remember that a small saving upfront could cost far more in lost data, compromised privacy, and security risks in the long run. If it appears too good to be true, it probably is.

  • Info:
    Created on 10th December 2025. Last edited on Sun, 29th March.
  • License:
    All Rights Reserved. No download available.
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7 Comments

“when in reality, they only contain a lot less RAM and lot less storage than what was “advertised”.”

Don't computer drives already do that with storage space in general (e.g. A 1 TB drive showing up as 931 GB in Windows)?

Pretty nice font though. Also, I noticed several characters in the Latin Extended-A block missing diacritics

Comment by Bryndan W. Meyerholt (BWM) Mon, 9th march

It would have been better if you set your long text with your font: 山寨专业版. I feel sorry for the unfortunate letters that were squeezed mercilessly to fit the same width. 

Comment by Frodo7 Tue, 10th march
Comment by Frodo7 Tue, 10th march

Bryndan W. Meyerholt (BWM):

1. "Don't computer drives already do that with storage space in general (e.g. A 1 TB drive showing up as 931 GB in Windows)?"

No, I am not talking about the usual math difference of "kB (1000 bytes) or KiB (1024 bytes). That’s just a standard unit conversion quirk that we've all seen.

The more serious problem I’m talking about is the kind you see in those review-and-teardown of imitaiton knockoff smartphones (like the iPhone 13 Pro Max) by people like Hugh Jeffreys, EverythingApplePro, or even SMOOREZ: Software trickery via deception. You should look those videos up on YouTube if you have the time.

Hence "山寨专业版" was the perfect name for a font that mimics that kind of "fake it till you (not) make it" energy!

2. "Also, I noticed several characters in the Latin Extended-A block missing diacritics"

Thanks for pointing it out! It has been fixed! While I cannot provide any downloads, you can still test it out here, for now.

But that is the limitation of the font that was painstakingly recreated from a knockoff Nokia phone. 

Comment by Vienna Binders (AskGamerViennaBinders) Thu, 12th march

Frodo7

"It would have been better if you set your long text with your font: 山寨专业版. I feel sorry for the unfortunate letters that were squeezed mercilessly to fit the same width."

ESPECIALLY the height too. Haiyaa.

Comment by Vienna Binders (AskGamerViennaBinders) Thu, 12th march

The Shanzhai phone font?

Comment by Jack Samuel Thu, 12th march

Exactly, but this is one of many Shanzai designs.

Comment by Vienna Binders (AskGamerViennaBinders) Sat, 28th march

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