Question Good idea to buy used Gtx 970?

kaiteck

Honorable
Nov 12, 2013
349
0
10,810
So in my country, there's this one guy selling used Gtx 970 for 75USD

He said no box, no warranty but I could test it out in his PC.

Do you guys think it's a good idea or should I ford out more to another seller who has a warranty but sells at 120bucks

my current build is
fx 6300
m5a99x board
gtx 650
seasonic m12ii 620w psu
 

Cioby

Distinguished
Hello there! Used cards could be previously overclocked and to my mind new card with warranty would be any way better...
What?

I don't think you will use that card for very long, unless the guy is very shady and the card doesn't run smooth or shows any artifacts, you could buy it. Or just use a reliable retailer from Amazon that sells used.
 
Feb 18, 2019
60
4
45
What?

I don't think you will use that card for very long, unless the guy is very shady and the card doesn't run smooth or shows any artifacts, you could buy it. Or just use a reliable retailer from Amazon that sells used.
We don't really know the athors' intention, purposes and possible card usage (gaming, mining or hard tasks in video processing, because author didn't mention it), without any other info about further usage of card, guessing about short time use of card and just spending 75 bux looks strange. The difference in cost between 75 and 120 is 45 for the shiny new card with guarantee and registration feedback. It's just imho, but it seems to make sense.
 
Feb 18, 2019
60
4
45
What if during your test at his place on his PC the card will work fine, but after the installation in your rig, it'll show some artifacts in gaming or even sys shutdown because of overheating during video processing tasks due to previous overclocking and overheating? New card can be easily exchanged to the other one or even another one, or even to other type if new one, but without any guarantee... So, take a risk or not to take the risk? Recently I experienced the same kind of problem and after it, I think 45$ is not worth of taking the risk.
 

kaiteck

Honorable
Nov 12, 2013
349
0
10,810
We don't really know the athors' intention, purposes and possible card usage (gaming, mining or hard tasks in video processing, because author didn't mention it), without any other info about further usage of card, guessing about short time use of card and just spending 75 bux looks strange. The difference in cost between 75 and 120 is 45 for the shiny new card with guarantee and registration feedback. It's just imho, but it seems to make sense.

120USD is referring to a used card with leftover warranty till Oct 2019

In my area, there is no brand new Gtx 970, only used leftovers in the market.

Regardless, the 75usd was already bought by someone else. Damn, I missed it. Another seller without warranty is selling used at 90USD.
Now... what should I do
 

kaiteck

Honorable
Nov 12, 2013
349
0
10,810
We don't really know the athors' intention, purposes and possible card usage (gaming, mining or hard tasks in video processing, because author didn't mention it), without any other info about further usage of card, guessing about short time use of card and just spending 75 bux looks strange. The difference in cost between 75 and 120 is 45 for the shiny new card with guarantee and registration feedback. It's just imho, but it seems to make sense.
I'm only using it for gaming.
 
Feb 18, 2019
60
4
45
Examined your link. The seller tells "new refurbished unit" and "tested once only". It was in good use for some period of time, not only tested, that's for sure. That could be seen even on photoes with faded plastic colors and scratches on the heat pipes under the plastic, pipes a bit carbonized, dust particles from backside of the card (on another photo) tells us that it was in use for much longer than one test and in a closed space (PC case). 120$ is too much for it even with warranty till oct 2019, but better than nothing (and without warranty at all) if u're in urgent need of this particular unit. Anyway, if you have limited choice in your area and seriously have no alternative, it would be better to have a card with any kind of warranty. Especially for gaming.
 
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Feb 18, 2019
60
4
45
Warranty as per sticker, mentioned there by seller, only till Apr 2019, not Oct.
Of course, 120 USD is a good sum of money, but you'll have around 2 months to test it in rough gaming conditions at full load with warranty at hand. Usually, overheated cards will show errors during first full load tests (or tough and long gaming terms) and you'll have some time to recover it according your rights if any occurs. In my country the price for a crap like new GT730 2GB GDDR5 VRAM in a local store nearby, is around 100 USD. Thou, with limited choice of yours, taking in account all the conditions you've told about, the price of 120usd for Gtx 970 with some warranty seems adequate.
 
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