The serial number is on a sticker on the back of the neck, close to the attachment point with the body. Some more recent Squiers, including the Vintage Modified series (the serial numbers start here with SH), were in Introduced in 2007. The VM series has Crafted in India on the back of headstock.
What is the difference between Squier guitars?
The major difference between a Squier Strat and a Fender Strat is one is made in the US or Mexico (Fender), while the other is made in Asia (Squier). This means different people and factories make the two brands guitars. There are different levels of quality control between countries and different standards.
Why did fender stop using rosewood?
Fender Musical Instruments is officially moving away from using rosewood fingerboards in the manufacturing of its Mexican made instruments due to the recent CITES regulations (see our previous post on CITES here). Some say that this tone wood has more snap than rosewood (a characteristic more consistent with maple).