Scratch on "new" i7-3770k? Am I being scammed?

[HighTechArtist]

I recently won an auction on Ebay for an i7-3770k processor that was listed as "new", ie, not used.
I received the package today, and I suspect the seller might have just kept the originally packaging in pristine shape and just put the processor back in it, but I wanted your input.

Evidence 1: The processor has a light scratch on it. Do they ever come out of the factory looking like this? I'm guessing not, but I wanted your input:

Evidence 2: The cooling unit looks... kind of grody? It is weird because the thermal paste looks perfect like it was applied at the factory, but...

It seems very suspicious to me, but I'm not a hardware guy. Do you guys think the seller is being dishonest?

 

[Chaosvortexx]

This is really a nitpick case. There isn't a whole lot of evidence or reasonable conclusion that can be made on this because not a whole lot of people report what their CPU and Heatsinks look like out of the box. I would say if it runs fine without any problems use it but before doing that hit up the dealer for some more details on it explaining your doubts.

 

[synphul]

Seems a bit odd although the pics may make the scratch look more severe than it is. The copper base on the cooler seems to be a bit discolored in places but that's the factory thermal paste on it and it's never been on a processor. If it had it would be all smeared rather than the 3 distinct shapes with sharp edges. Can't really explain the scratch on the cpu but it should be fine. If someone cleaned it up after using it then they did a fantastic job since everything else on the cpu looks very clean.

I don't think the seller is being dishonest, outside of being old (it's a 3rd gen i7 after all) it appears in new condition.

 

[HighTechArtist]

This is really a nitpick case. There isn't a whole lot of evidence or reasonable conclusion that can be made on this because not a whole lot of people report what their CPU and Heatsinks look like out of the box. I would say if it runs fine without any problems use it but before doing that hit up the dealer for some more details on it explaining your doubts.

Yeah, I already contacted them. Like I said I'm a hardware guy so I don't know how pristine or not is normal for these things.

 

[Hlsgsz]

Its used by the looks of it. I would return it if you can. If it were a non-K CPu i'd say it doesnt matter if it still works, but a K CPU may have been heavily overclocked and overvolted.

 

[Hlsgsz]

This is really a nitpick case. There isn't a whole lot of evidence or reasonable conclusion that can be made on this because not a whole lot of people report what their CPU and Heatsinks look like out of the box. I would say if it runs fine without any problems use it but before doing that hit up the dealer for some more details on it explaining your doubts.

Yeah, I already contacted them. Like I said I'm a hardware guy so I don't know how pristine or not is normal for these things.

It should have been in absolute pristine condition. No way you'll find a scratched one when unsealing a CPU. These things are made in some pf the most high-tech and clean factories in the world.

 

[Hlsgsz]

Anyway, if you decide to keep it regardless, i would definitely get some new thermal paste as that's a bit old if the cooler is original.

 

[HighTechArtist]

Its used by the looks of it. I would return it if you can. If it were a non-K CPu i'd say it doesnt matter if it still works, but a K CPU may have been heavily overclocked and overvolted.

Ok, that is what I was afraid of.

 

[Hlsgsz]

Its used by the looks of it. I would return it if you can. If it were a non-K CPu i'd say it doesnt matter if it still works, but a K CPU may have been heavily overclocked and overvolted.

Ok, that is what I was afraid of.

Yeap. Honestly, i would never buy a K CPU from ebay even if they claim it's new. And really, who's keeping new Ivy CPUs around these days?

 

[HighTechArtist]

After escalating on eBay, the seller responded:
"The product was never used in ANYWAY. That "gunk" is the OEM TIM/thermal product that comes on the cooler. Also your pictures are show that there is a streak going down the processor. The pictures I used for the posting have none of those marks. Any slight marks or "scuffing" on the heat sink is common with machined parts such as this. Intel does not waste resources on sanding/polishing the heat sink. This is NOT a used product."

How should I respond to convince eBay that this is a used unit. Are there any links to Intel documentation about product standards or anything?

 

[synphul]

I don't know if you can convince ebay that it's used, there's really no proof other than suspicion. Have you tried the cpu to see if it works or just assuming things about it? It seems you're looking for people to confirm your fears somehow rather than looking for an answer to a question. There aren't intel documents about product standards really.

If there were what would you expect from any company? "our products are made of the finest materials under the most strict of quality standards to bring you the best in the world" - pretty much could be used by any company, so how do you explain factory defects? Those happen from EVERY company and is a part of life, perfect doesn't exist. Less to do with the specific processor in question but a fact of products produced in general. It's true that electronics are made in clean rooms and pristine, yadda yadda but if that guaranteed perfection there would never be need for an rma, ever.

What the seller said about the heatsink is absolutely true, the coolers are rough milled not mirror polished. If it's the oem cooler from a cpu that's 4yrs old it will likely have some sort of discoloration. I'm not defending the seller but there also isn't any smoking gun proof that back up the worries that it's used and not new either. Ebay sellers are pretty defensive when it comes to their reputation and actions against them since it can affect their status. Can't blame them for that.

I'm not entirely sure what caused the mark on the cpu, to be honest I've installed heatsinks on various cpus and have never made a mark like that on the cpu in the process. A mark doesn't necessarily mean a cooler has been installed on it. A better way to ensure that someone is getting a new product is to buy a new product from a retail store rather than buying an out of production old product from a random seller on an online flea market so to speak.

 

[Ecky]

The heatsink is clearly unused. Copper naturally tarnishes when exposed to air, and this particular heatsink is a minimum of 4 years old.

The CPU may or may not have been used. I could see the base of a cooler leaving a mark on the IHS, but manufacturing defects do exist. Regardless, I'm surprised any "new" Ivy Bridge CPUs even exist after all this time. I'm fairly certain there's no way to know for certain if a CPU has been installed in a motherboard and powered on before. It certainly won't perform any differently, nor would be any less reliable. You might look at the underside and see if the pin contacts have any scratches on them, but I'm not sure why it would make any difference.

 

[HighTechArtist]

A better way to ensure that someone is getting a new product is to buy a new product from a retail store rather than buying an out of production old product from a random seller on an online flea market so to speak.

Well, basically the 3770k is the best option for a certain generation of motherboard, and if I replaced the motherboard I'd have to replace a lot of other stuff, and it just seemed like the best option for a bit of processor improvement for now. So buying from an "online flea market" is my only option.

Regardless, I'm surprised any "new" Ivy Bridge CPUs even exist after all this time. I'm fairly certain there's no way to know for certain if a CPU has been installed in a motherboard and powered on before. It certainly won't perform any differently, nor would be any less reliable. You might look at the underside and see if the pin contacts have any scratches on them, but I'm not sure why it would make any difference.

Regarding new 3770k: I see postings for new 3770k's from time to time, and have bid on some before. I just am not willing to bid above a certain amount for a 3rd gen processor and oddly there seems no shortage of bidders willing to spend over $300 on this one, which is far more than I think it is worth. I figure they are just ones that were purchased and then forgotten about before being used for one reason or another, I know I've been guilty of doing that myself.

Regarding why it would make a difference: mainly I'm leery of buying a used k-line because they could have been badly OCe'd in the past and I'd have no way of knowing.

 

[johndough]

The scratch is highly unusual. I've never seen one on a new CPU. Did you inspect the seals to the box? There are typically two seals (top and bottom of the box) and they should have been unbroken.

Last year I sold a brand new 3570k that I had bought from Microcenter in 2012. I hung onto it thinking I was going to use it but never did. The seals were unbroken and I managed to sell it on ebay for about what I paid for it. It was definitely worth more than average due to the unbroken seals.

 

[LeKeiser]

Hello,
I have quite a few CPUs lying in my house, some really "old" and none of them have the kind of scratch we can see on your picture. Yet they all were used, with a radiator on top.
The thing that I find weird is that the line doesn't seem to come from a cooler, because it's almost right in the middle, when a cooler is supposed to cover the whole plate...
The little scratch on the top right is something that attracted my eyes. This is more like a scratch made by a cooler. Like when you force it on or take it off.
Quite weird. I wouldn't keep it myself.

 

[madmatt30]

How much did you pay for it??
Link the eBay listing.

I have seen ivy chips with marks like that in the past, I'm assuming what you call a scratch is actually a slight graze on the die sheen & can't even be felt by hand??

 

[HighTechArtist]

Hello,
I have quite a few CPUs lying in my house, some really "old" and none of them have the kind of scratch we can see on your picture. Yet they all were used, with a radiator on top.
The thing that I find weird is that the line doesn't seem to come from a cooler, because it's almost right in the middle, when a cooler is supposed to cover the whole plate...
The little scratch on the top right is something that attracted my eyes. This is more like a scratch made by a cooler. Like when you force it on or take it off.
Quite weird. I wouldn't keep it myself.

Well if the seller insists that it is new and I can't prove otherwise I probably won't have a choice in the matter.

How much did you pay for it??
Link the eBay listing.

I have seen ivy chips with marks like that in the past, I'm assuming what you call a scratch is actually a slight graze on the die sheen & can't even be felt by hand??

I don't know if it can be felt by hand or not, I was told to never ever touch a processor with bare finger because of the oils.
As for the listing: http://www.ebay.com/itm/Intel-Core-i7-3770K-3-5GHz-Quad-Core-BX80667I73770K-Processor-/122021472630?ssPageName=ADME%3AX%3ARRNTB%3AUS%3A3160&nma=true&si=yOuQQrdnJp923iR71WcQRNS8uxQ%253D&orig_cvip=true&rt=nc&_trksid=p2047675.l2557
I already paid more for it in the last second bidding war than I thought it was worth, so was more annoyed to discover it was used on top of it. The main scratch is not visible in the ebay listing. I don't know if he photoshopped it out or - more likely- if just the lighting and angle made it not visible to the camera (to get a good image of the scratch with my camera, I had to adjust the angle and lighting a few times for it to show up.
However the scratch is easily visible to the naked eye in or out of the plastic shell so that fact that it is not mentioned on the listing irks me.

 

[madmatt30]

Hello,
I have quite a few CPUs lying in my house, some really "old" and none of them have the kind of scratch we can see on your picture. Yet they all were used, with a radiator on top.
The thing that I find weird is that the line doesn't seem to come from a cooler, because it's almost right in the middle, when a cooler is supposed to cover the whole plate...
The little scratch on the top right is something that attracted my eyes. This is more like a scratch made by a cooler. Like when you force it on or take it off.
Quite weird. I wouldn't keep it myself.

Well if the seller insists that it is new and I can't prove otherwise I probably won't have a choice in the matter.

How much did you pay for it??
Link the eBay listing.

I have seen ivy chips with marks like that in the past, I'm assuming what you call a scratch is actually a slight graze on the die sheen & can't even be felt by hand??

I don't know if it can be felt by hand or not, I was told to never ever touch a processor with bare finger because of the oils.
As for the listing: http://www.ebay.com/itm/Intel-Core-i7-3770K-3-5GHz-Quad-Core-BX80667I73770K-Processor-/122021472630?ssPageName=ADME%3AX%3ARRNTB%3AUS%3A3160&nma=true&si=yOuQQrdnJp923iR71WcQRNS8uxQ%253D&orig_cvip=true&rt=nc&_trksid=p2047675.l2557
I already paid more for it in the last second bidding war than I thought it was worth, so was more annoyed to discover it was used on top of it. The main scratch is not visible in the ebay listing. I don't know if he photoshopped it out or - more likely- if just the lighting and angle made it not visible to the camera (to get a good image of the scratch with my camera, I had to adjust the angle and lighting a few times for it to show up.
However the scratch is easily visible to the naked eye in or out of the plastic shell so that fact that it is not mentioned on the listing irks me.

bear in mind that cpu is 5 years old,it may have been removed from packaging in the past but not actually used.
If youve not felt that 'scratch' then it may not be a scratch at all but just a discoloration of the nickel plating due to age and/or past contact with something.
youc an absolutely touch the top of the cpu heat spreader if you're earthed & just wipe it with alcohol afterwards ( that mark may actually disappear with a dab of alcohol & a wipe)

 

[HighTechArtist]

Ok so I bought some 91% iso alcohol, and went ahead and felt it with my finger. No, I can't feel it. Just see it. Wiping it with the alcohol and a cloth does not remove it, though.
I should also note that the scratch is only visible if the light hits it right. If I look at it from certain angles I can't see it at all, while at others it is super obvious. (I don't know if that is important at all but thought I'd note it.)

 

[Chaosvortexx]

Ok so I bought some 91% iso alcohol, and went ahead and felt it with my finger. No, I can't feel it. Just see it. Wiping it with the alcohol and a cloth does not remove it, though.
I should also note that the scratch is only visible if the light hits it right. If I look at it from certain angles I can't see it at all, while at others it is super obvious. (I don't know if that is important at all but thought I'd note it.)

Like we've all pretty much said man it's probably a rare factory thing if the cpu works it works. Right now you have little to no hard proof he could've messed with the cpu so ebay isn't going to help you out much so you're more than likely stuck with it. Just go ahead and use it and if it dies too soon then it died and you gotta get a new one. Sucks I know but hey it's all you can do at this point.

 

[HighTechArtist]

Ok so I bought some 91% iso alcohol, and went ahead and felt it with my finger. No, I can't feel it. Just see it. Wiping it with the alcohol and a cloth does not remove it, though.
I should also note that the scratch is only visible if the light hits it right. If I look at it from certain angles I can't see it at all, while at others it is super obvious. (I don't know if that is important at all but thought I'd note it.)

Like we've all pretty much said man it's probably a rare factory thing if the cpu works it works. Right now you have little to no hard proof he could've messed with the cpu so ebay isn't going to help you out much so you're more than likely stuck with it. Just go ahead and use it and if it dies too soon then it died and you gotta get a new one. Sucks I know but hey it's all you can do at this point.

Well, that's not what you've ALL pretty much said, posters have been pretty split, hence my continued apprehension. But, at this point I guess I'll just roll with it and take the seller at his word. Thanks for all your input.