From personal experience , regarding gray /grey market :
Usually all the stuff ,that end up in Asian grey market are
GENUINE /original products .
They are manufactured in China ( usually ) ,under the specs and standards of western firms/companies .
Still ...The lower prices of the goods bought in grey market ,are not coming without ...a price ...
Oftenly ,the grey market goods ,are FAULTY and are to be either destroyed or recycled .
Nobody (in the western world ) would pay a high price for electronics or other goods ,which have a minor fault ..
But ...
Asians have " trading " inside their genes ..
They leave nothing to be thrown away and be destroyed ...
Especially ,if they can make a profit out of it ...
So ,instead of destroying /recycling (according to the strict quality check rules of the western firms/companies ),
usually they get ...lost ..somewhere in the way to being recycled / destroyed ...
And they end up in the hands of small vendors or individuals ,that sell them (even at eBay ) at really low prices ...
If you get lucky ,the fault is minor ...(especially in clothing / shoes ) ..
In electronics if the fault is something aesthetic ( printed marks or signs ,color variations ,etc ) it's rather safe
to buy ...
But if the fault is operative ,then you'd better stay away from purchasing the goods ...
Thing is ,that one can not know for sure where the fault is ...
It's a risk .Especially if the price difference is not so large ,from goods offered by an authorised dealer ...
Now ,there's no excuse of blaming a grey dealer ..
They just do ,what they 've to do to make a living or more than that ...
You all 've been warned and alarmed ...
P.S.
Think about it rationally for a moment ...
Use the so called "common sense " ...
How the fuck ,a small ,non-authorised dealer can sell to you a genuine product ,
at better price from the authorised dealer
(<=who BTW orders in large quantities ,thus achieving lower prices / discounts ) ?
Either the " grey dealer " is working somewhere in the manufacture facility ...
Still ,is almost impossible to obtain /steal the goods from the line of production ,as the western companies have their own trusted personel ,inside the facility ,to check and document the quantities / lots manufactured ,every day ,every single piece ...
Or ...
Either there's some kind of an issue with the goods ...
And that's actually what's happening ..
The goods did not pass the QC .
Some say that oftenly ,this is done on purpose ..
( The facility manufactures a faulty lot now and then ,for some ...extra profit ...
.under the table ,of course ...)
Can't beat the asians ,in trading ....
They 've mastered the skills of trading for more than 5000 years ...
They win ,you lose ...
Very rare ,to have a win-win situation ,with 'em ...