Retail Boxed vs OEM...

[Pghpooh]

HI
First time builder here with lots of questions.
While on many sites looking for parts I see that parts can be either retail boxed or oem. The prices can be close or far apart.
Also, retail box gives all needed parts and manuals to get the item going where oem is just the part.
My concern is the maunfacturer warranty. Do the oem parts come with the manufacturer warranty?? Some sites say they do and some sites give no info at all.

Thanks
Pghpooh

More!
What about parts such as hard drives, cd roms, and all other items needed to make a working pc???

 

[glenn1]

generally, a warranty on OEM cpu's is going to be provided by the company that sells it to you, generally it can be anywhere from a week to a year, or none at all. The retail box chips offer a 3-year warranty from AMD, and come with an adequate, if not top-shelf heatsink/fan. Keep in mind that if you plan to overclock, that warranty goes away. Most folks who would buy OEM chips don't need an instructions sheet, so that's not really a consideration in comparing prices. Only you can make the call on whether or not the longer warranty, giveaway hs/fan, and shiny box are worth the extra $ to you. For some it is, for others, it's not. Best of luck with whatever you decide

 

[glenn1]

double post, sorry..

 

[Leo V]

I always buy retail boxed CPU's, for two reasons:

1) OEM chips aren't boxed, hence retailers could take away the best chips to sell separately (ie guaranteed overclocks, etc.) In general, retail quality is supposed to be higher.

2) Warranty. I no longer overclock my chips, and I've never damaged one (despite unthinkable episodes involving water!) However, I no longer consider it "immoral" to replace CPU's damaged due to purely accidental mishandling and/or responsible overclocking. This is why you pay extra for that warranty in the first place! It's your insurance against unintentional failure. If bad replacements happened more often, Intel & AMD would simply charge more for warrantied chips!

I had a very different view, back when Intel & (to some extent) AMD appeared to be cracking down on overclocking. It seems clear by now, how minor of a concern to both companies this is.

 

[Wingznut]

It's true that a consumer overclocking their own cpu, is not a concern to AMD/Intel. However, people who overclock and then remark the cpu's for sale are a concern. Sometimes it's done on a pretty large scale.

 

[Leo V]

Yes, that's pretty much what I meant--it's the big upmarkers (not individual customers) who cause the trouble.

 

[Mixxen]

Retail boxes come with preinstalled heatsink and fan. You also get a sticker. OEM doesnt come with jack. I still buy OEM...if the sucker is working after 30 days, then most likely it'll work for much longer than that. Some shops offer a 1 year warrenty on OEM CPU's, like mwave.

If you buy from a respectable company, then you can be pretty sure that you are getting a new chip, and not some failed overclocked chip or RMA chip.

 

[Tripleshot]

Retail(boxed) has satisfied enough of the manufacturers QC checks to get boxed and have them give the consumer a warrenty against defects.It comes with fan and heatsink and has been tested.

I just purchased an Intel 933EB boxed and after stressing about buying a cooler for it,I am pleasently surprized that the cooler and heatsink Intel provided,is not only suffecient (36c) it is quiet as well. I like it alot.

 

[Pghpooh]

HI
I did buy a retail AMD 1.2 gig cpu. I bought it because it came with the heat sink and fan and because of that, a 3 year warranty. Also,, after shopping for a "aftermarket" h/s and fan,,, the prices added together were close to the retail version. And, add the extra shipping for a second item, the price of all the items were higher.
One thing I have noticed is when buying oem,,, that shipping prices were better.
For example. If I were to buy retail at newegg, the shipping is charged at a per item basis. If I buy at TCWO,, the shipping is a flat $6.95 per order.

I guess what I should do if I go oem on other items such as cd roms and floppy and all other parts is to make sure the item is covered by the manufacturer. If it is,,, then I can assume I got a good deal.
Pghpooh

 

[Tripleshot]

Buy floppy drives,cdroms,ram,sound cards,nics OEM. Buy your video card (if you are a gamer) retail for the warrenty and software bundle. CAS2 ram over CAS 3 i think is over rated in terms of cost/performance value, hence I recommend generic ram(from a good supplier)

Also get good power supplies and use quality cases. Your motherboard choice should always be retail and warrenty backed.
IMHO

 

[Nitzylpick]

Here's my 2 cents

CPU
If you don't plan on doing serious overclock the stock hsf will be fine for you if not it's a waste of money to get the retail since you won't be using the fan and you'll void the warranty anyway by o/c'ing.

For other stuff if you want all the extras or need them get the retail version, if not get the OEM and save a couple bucks. For my harddrive I got the bare drive only but fortunately my mb came with a IDE cable so I used that.

 

[Leo V]

Just for reference, the Taisol HSF bundled with retail Tbirds is very powerful and accordingly LOUD. Even 3rd-party coolers intended for potential overclocking are sometimes quieter. Part of the Taisol's noise (IMHO) stems from the low-profile 60x60x10mm fan used. I cannot confirm this, however.

 

[Lord Gwynz]

If you're into overclocking, my concern with OEM's is that you're really not sure who's been handling the part. For all you know, it could already be a rejected pre-tested/returned part that failed to overclock.

 

[Mixxen]

I don't think it's legal to sell a returned product as a new product unless they state somewhere that the product could potentially be used, bashed, fed with incredible amounts of voltage, etc...

That's why you should buy from respectable companies.

 

[NaughtyusMaximus]

I was planning on buying a Taisol - I was under the impression they were quiet.

 

[ElFenix]

which taisol is it? i'm assuming not the CGK... the CEK or whatever it is? (the smaller one)

 

[Leo V]

The AMD retail Taisol is a forged grey finsink with a 60x60x10 fan. I attest that it's pretty loud (not extremely, but the loudest CPU fan I've used on my Tbird). It should be good for overclocking, however--it's a rather effective cooler in its own right.

 

[DaddyG]

Leo, let me introduce you to the noise of a 1903 Portuguese 8mm JS Mauser !!. The slightest amount of 'cotton' in your sensitive ears will do the trick. My preference is for 'Eine Kleine Nacht Musik', W.A.Mozart. You'll NEVER hear the low profile Taisol, or even the CGK742092 for that matter.

Keep the Faith,

Fellow
Platinum

'G'

 

[Cherub]

I agree that Boxed cpu's are the way to go. Depending on the vender, boxed cpu's tend to be later stepping versions, as they tend to move more quickly. Also, you can tell the steppings and dates on the box, if you go to a shop, whereas many shops won't let you handle a bare oem cpu.

I returned a CPU to Intel last year, and not only got a new boxed CPU within a week, but it was a later stepping!

Finally, a great reason for those of us that sell old parts in eB-y to help finance new parts: boxed processors get much better resale values. Just like a Honda (but a T-bird is more fun!).

 

[chuckieland]

i got box 700mhz althon classic
because cpu cost alot of money, and if it funk out after 30 day, it would sux
also oem cpu maybe cheaper, but add the cost of heatsinker and fan, it's about the same as retail box cpu
and you get 3yr warranty too

 

[Pghpooh]

HI
Thanks everyone for the input and thoughts here. I think what I am going to do is sit down and search for each item I need one at a time.
The things to look for in a item are,
1. Warranty. I have noticed some sites state how long a warranty is on all items they carry. Both oem and retail.
2. Naturally, the price of the item.
3. Shipping cost.

A point was made by member "Tripleshot." "Buy floppy drives,cdroms,ram,sound cards,nics OEM. Buy your video card (if you are a gamer) retail for the warrenty and software bundle." I like that suggestion for several reasons. One being I live in Pittsburgh. Other then the monthly computer show,, there is a dire lack of places to buy pc parts. Best Buy is tops for parts (and price) then Comp USA which is about an hours drive for me. (Yup, kinda dry in this area!!!)
One thing I will do is once I think I am going bo buy something,, I am going to log on here and ask for opinions!!!! The past year has been a learing experience and 90% of that knowlwdge came from the people here at Anand Tech.
Thanks Guys
Pghpooh