OEMs are manufacturers who resell another company's product under their own name and branding.  It refers specifically to the act of a company rebranding a product to its own name and offering its own warranty and licensing of the product. The term is really a misnomer because OEMs are not the original manufacturers; they are the customizers.

Originally OEM was an adjective used to describe a company that produced hardware to be marketed under another company's brand. Mitsumi, for example, produced CD-ROM drives that dozens of companies would label as their own. It's often now used as a verb, as in this sentence: "This CD-ROM drive is OEM'd by Mitsumi."

NOKIA covers are not components and it is therefore incorrect to describe them in this way. OEM relates to sub components of an end product.

NOKIA products are manufactured in the Far East. As with a multitude of other products, someone sells the mould or pattern, and another manufacturer copies it. They then manufacture the product more cheaply and in larger quantities, using far inferior materials. They then sell the copy at a greatly reduced price.

The item may have NOKIA stamped on it, but that doesn't make it GENUINE. NOKIA products are high quality items, that cannot possibly be sold for the ridiculous prices coming out of the Far East and appearing on eBay.

All genuine Nokia parts have model numbers, so if in doubt, ask the seller. LCD screens are relatively easy to identify, as they have the codes on the reverse, and should be visible in the listing photo.Many of the accessories, such as keypads, have Nokia logo on the edge or reverse. Remember, covers etc are copied very well, and so is the packaging!! Look carefully and compare with those found on the Nokia web site, or in your local mobile shops. True quality is never cheap!

There are a lot of sellers who are listing their products as produced in "GENUINE OEM factories". What does this mean? Ask them! It certainly doesn't mean that the item is endorsed by, or has any connection with Nokia.

See our other guide on finding GENUINE NOKIA products.