News AMD RX 7000 GPU scams persist at Amazon, and it's not just Sapphire — be sure to double-check the seller

[Admin]

Sapphire warns consumers about Radeon RX 7000 scams on Amazon.

AMD RX 7000 GPU scams persist at Amazon, and it's not just Sapphire — be sure to double-check the seller : Read more

 

[Phaaze88]

Some common sense would help recognize obvious red flags, yeah?
More and more appears to be lost as time goes on...

 

[plateLunch]

So what does one get when they order one of these boards? Or do they get anything?

 

[bit_user]

I recently had an amazon seller ship me a different model SSD than the one I ordered. The capacity was the same, so I'll bet they were hoping people didn't notice.

It came in OEM packaging, which was little more than an anti-static bag. It had no external labels. They sealed the bag by putting a sticker the end of the drive, where the identifying information was located. That made it seem rather deliberate.

Fortunately, the bag had enough extra room that I could slide the drive over and get a picture of the label, which I then zoomed to see the model number. To get a picture through 3 layers of anti-static bag (because the end was folded over at that exact spot), I had to put it in direct sunlight, but angled so the reflection off the bag didn't blind the camera, and zoom it so that nothing else in frame blew out the auto-exposure.

In the end, the seller honored my return and refunded me the money. Some of their feedback indicated that they charged a "restocking" fee, for those who returned merchandise after opening it, even if the wrong model had been sent. If those were also in "OEM" packaging, I'll bet they turned around the same merch in a new bag, and sold it as "new" to another buyer.

 

[ilukey77]

Amazon is a bit of a hit and miss thing some times ..

I always buy my computer components from a computer shop be it online or in store ..

that said the first computer i built i bought all the parts off amazon but all of them were shipped from amazon not 3rd party sellers on amazon ..

Also pays to know ( as ive noticed on amazon au ) some actual Aussie computer sellers trade through amazon like scorptec and jw computers which most Aussie pc builders have used and are solid companies !!

 

[bit_user]

but all of them were shipped from amazon not 3rd party sellers on amazon ..

I nearly always do this. The case I mentioned above was one where I took a calculated risk and was wiling even to write off the purchase price, if it came to that.

BTW, the seller shipped it in a paperboard envelope, of the type you normally use to send documents. There was nothing to protect the M.2 SSD, other than a thin sheet of the kind of bubblewrap with the small bubbles. So, it seemed like that seller was possibly even hoping to collect insurance money from the shipper, if the drive got damaged during shipment?

 

[ilukey77]

I nearly always do this. The case I mentioned above was one where I took a calculated risk and was wiling even to write off the purchase price, if it came to that.

BTW, the seller shipped it in a paperboard envelope, of the type you normally use to send documents. There was nothing to protect the M.2 SSD, other than a thin sheet of the kind of bubblewrap with the small bubbles. So, it seemed like that seller was possibly even hoping to collect insurance money from the shipper, if the drive got damaged during shipment?

guess one saving grace is amazon offers kinda a no questions asked returns system ..

Bit annoying having to return the item blah blah but still handy if you get scammed !!

 

[Geef]

The real bummer is that people here reading Tomshardware are able to figure these things out pretty quick. There are probably a lot of people who've been scammed and never knew the difference.

 

[ilukey77]

^^ kinda why people should always do there research first read reviews and the bad ones first not the i loved it it was the best product ever ones !!

the actual bad reviews like the ones about the product not the ones where it was the wrong color ..

you can usually tell if its the product is bad to the picky people that just comment bad because they are bitter !!

 

[bit_user]

guess one saving grace is amazon offers kinda a no questions asked returns system ..

Not for marketplace sellers, or at least in this case. When I tried to return it, they directed me to do so through the seller. Maybe it's different if the merchandise is actually shipped by Amazon - in this case, it wasn't.

Bit annoying having to return the item blah blah but still handy if you get scammed !!

I did once have a seller ship me fewer items than I ordered, though also shipped by the seller (not Amazon). In that case, I reached out to Amazon and they were able to issue me a partial refund. That was before the incident I mentioned above, so I don't know if there was a change in policy or if the reason I wanted a refund is what determined that I could do it through Amazon.

 

[bit_user]

^^ kinda why people should always do there research first read reviews and the bad ones first not the i loved it it was the best product ever ones !!

Also, avoid new sellers!! The case where I got shipped fewer items than ordered was by a fairly new seller. When I checked their reviews, they had only a few and were basically all positive at the time of my order. By the time I got the package, a bunch of negative reviews had come in.

If you buy from a seller with overwhelmingly positive feedback and a long track record, you're much less likely to get ripped off.

 

[CelicaGT]

"Fulfilled by Amazon" and Prime or it doesn't exist. The only way I'll deal with Amazon is if I only deal with Amazon, not the third party seller.

 

[Sleepy_Hollowed]

I completely stopped buying in Amazon for years, this is not a new problem.

There's so many posts of sellers that I might as well go to the manufacturer's website and get it even if it's more expensive, just for the chance to return it or get some sort of warranty since it came from them.

 

[tstng]

Amazon is slowly turning into the western version of AliExpress/Wish. Or has it already? I wouldn't know since I never use Amazon. And Jeff Bezos doesn't seem to care.

 

[ThousandSuns]

Ended up reporting the Sapphire scam seller to Amazon on consecutive days (Thursday/Friday). The listings were promptly removed (within 30 minutes of the reporting).

Reporting scam sellers requires jumping through some hoops on Amazon since the Customer Service Page navigation has become somewhat of a maze compared to years past. Fastest way to report is by reaching a Live Chat Agent after going through the ChatBot.

 

[bit_user]

"Fulfilled by Amazon" and Prime or it doesn't exist. The only way I'll deal with Amazon is if I only deal with Amazon, not the third party seller.

There are some products you can't get directly from Amazon. I recently bought an imported food ingredient that wasn't available "fulfilled by Amazon". However, the seller was a reputable imported food store, with physical retail locations - just not in my area.

The advantage of buying it from a seller on Amazon is that I don't have to deal with or worry about a 3rd party payment processor, if I want to use my credit card. There's also a chance that Amazon's customer service can save you from certain bad seller situations, like the time a seller sent me that partial order.

Basically, I tend to buy from 3rd party sellers as a last resort. But there has to be a good reason for it, other than saving just a little bit of money.

 

[Colif]

What do you mean I shouldn't believe every price on Internet?

I was so tempted, 2 x $1600 USD GPU for just $AUD 100 - surely it can't just be the box. Ali Express so trustworthy...

 

[TheBeastInside]

Had it happen to me twice, wrong model or wrong capacity. Amazon made no issue of it, picked it up at their expense and fully reimbursed me (in Amazon credits). I would then order again and it was usually fine.
I really don't see how this is a major issue, if you open a dispute with Amazon they always side with the customer AFAICT.

 

[CelicaGT]

There are some products you can't get directly from Amazon. I recently bought an imported food ingredient that wasn't available "fulfilled by Amazon". However, the seller was a reputable imported food store, with physical retail locations - just not in my area.

The advantage of buying it from a seller on Amazon is that I don't have to deal with or worry about a 3rd party payment processor, if I want to use my credit card. There's also a chance that Amazon's customer service can save you from certain bad seller situations, like the time a seller sent me that partial order.

Basically, I tend to buy from 3rd party sellers as a last resort. But there has to be a good reason for it, other than saving just a little bit of money.

That's pretty much how I roll. I've been scammed exactly once and it was because I went "off grid" so to speak. It was only a $10 item so w/e. I live in a small town with no big box tech stores or hobby shops (I do RC cars/trucks/planes/drones) so Crapazon is a major lifeline. It's great even for bicycle parts! I have put a very unfortunate amount of money in Bezos' pockets over the years....like this entire PC build I'm typing on....