Er..pardon?

[Davey]

Looking online for strimmer cord, I came across this puzzling statement:

"This is a quality non-genuine replacement spare item."

... which sounds as though it is a quality fake. Hmmm.

[Bill Wright]

Nothing wrong with that, on the face of it. Non-genuine TV remote control handsets are often better than the originals.

Bill

[Brian Gaff]

I suspect they are covering themselves. When i used to use Strimmers I found the cord was in all sorts of colours from the local shop, and only the b/d was the original colour, but more expensive. Cannot say I noticed much difference, it all went bad if you left it in the strimmer over a winter with bad frosts. Brian

[Scott M]

The latest linguistic shift, loss of brevity and belief in mandatory redundant verbiage. Everything has to be "quality" - maybe it was one of the endless dictats from NuLab?

[Davey]

And it still doesn't say of what it is non-genuine. It might mean that it is non-genuine manufacturer's product, but it doesn't say that, despite having lots of words.

[Davey]

So I could carve a piece of plastic to resemble a TV remote control, and it would possibly work better than a genuine remote control?

[Graham.]

These days the expression "knock-off" is often used to mean a copy of the original, but to my ears knock-off means stolen.

[Davey]

Mine too. And besides, here the expression used is 'non-genuine', which means 'fake'. 'Knock-on/off' can refer to spoked wheels, of course.

[Roger Mills]

Think of it as being like buying 'compatible' printer ink rather than 'genuine original'. Compatible ink is far cheaper and often just as good.

[Davey]

Agreed. But it was the use of the term 'non-genuine' that I was really querying. To me, 'non-genuine' means 'fake'.

[polygonum]

Isn't it only fake if there is some deception involved?

A fake tan is where someone applies a substance in order to pretend they have been on holiday in the sun and really expects to get away with it.

Whereas someone putting on an odd orange/brown gunge and knowing that everyone around knows it is entirely an artifice somehow doesn't qualify as fake. Even if everyone calls it a fake tan!

[Bill Wright]

Don't be such an imbecile.

Bill

[Bill Wright]

Manufacturers often tell us that their products and consumables are far superior to any 'copies'. Sometimes they are; sometimes they aren't.

Bill

[Lobster]

On 18 Apr 2014, Bill Wright grunted:

Nah, cord's much better: I find the battery compartment of the remote tends to get clogged with weeds.

[Bill Wright]

What does genuine mean? Bearing a particular manufacturer's logo? Traceable to his factory?

Bill

[Davey]

IF that is what is claimed, yes; otherwise, who knows? Here, there is no claim as to what genuine means.

[Davey]

So that's the problem! Thanks.

[Graham.]

TWST,WT?

I refilled my officially non refillable cartridge with a bottle of toner costing £6

Price of a genuine HP cartridge about £50.

[John Rumm]

I would have thought it was bleedin obvious... its a compatible replacement made by a manufacturer other than that used by the OEM. A pattern part if you like.

[Rick Hughes]

I got off ferry in Kowloon when working in HK, to be approached by a guy with Arthur Daley like tact, opened his jacket and loads of watches all on show ... and his pitch was ... " not rubbish, not fakes, genuine copies"