Video Card Warranties and Ebay

[brownstone]

Just curious. If I were to buy a video card, say the XFX 5850 off of ebay, would I be able to get the lifetime warranty from XFX? I'm assuming that you have to buy the card through an actual e-tailer or B&M store in order to register the card, not from another individual...

Am I way off here? Should I just wait for awhile until prices drop and get it from a store?

 

[Apocalypse23]

Just curious. If I were to buy a video card, say the XFX 5850 off of ebay, would I be able to get the lifetime warranty from XFX? I'm assuming that you have to buy the card through an actual e-tailer or B&M store in order to register the card, not from another individual...

Am I way off here? Should I just wait for awhile until prices drop and get it from a store?

You'd have to try to get the receipt of the purchase off the seller. Otherwise it will be hard to 'fake' your way to get the warranty from the manufacturer as they will ask you for the receipt. You could either get the seller's warranty account info and ask them to transfer that to your name or simply give it to you and work your way into it that way, or perhaps push your luck with the manufacturer claiming you lost your receipt, etc.

 

[brownstone]

Anyone had any luck with the "I lost my receipt" gig? I'm chomping at the bit for a 5850, but I just can't justify paying $300+ for one.

 

[Apocalypse23]

Anyone had any luck with the "I lost my receipt" gig? I'm chomping at the bit for a 5850, but I just can't justify paying $300+ for one.

It's a hard sell buying a newer end video card from ebay rather than buying something more last gen. The last gen cards turn out to be a better purchase from ebay for me since the price is cheap. If you were to buy a new gen card off ebay, I would ask to look at the seller's feedback, their rating, and also try to get an original receipt. If I were you I would probably buy a brand new card from the store.

What's your price point? What are your specs? I would shy away from the 5850 since Fermi is coming, I can only recommend a 5870, you could get a new one for about $365 (visiontek+lifetime warranty).

 

[brownstone]

The only reason I would look at ebay is the BCB at 8-10% lately which would bring the 5850 down to $270-$276 (which is also about the max I could do). I'm currently running at 1920x1200 resolution and my 4830 while doing better than expected, doesn't always quite cut it.

 

[Apocalypse23]

The only reason I would look at ebay is the BCB at 8-10% lately which would bring the 5850 down to $270-$276 (which is also about the max I could do). I'm currently running at 1920x1200 resolution and my 4830 while doing better than expected, doesn't always quite cut it.

Alright fair enough, sounds like you are going with a top mid-range budget card, here is your best bet:

$276.61 PowerColor 5850 with Dirt2+2Year warranty
$286.54 Asus 5850+3Year Warranty+Overclock BIOS

 

[brownstone]

Had any experience with Powercolor? Typically in the past I have gone with Sapphire, but I noticed in their warranty that they only cover cards sold by their preferred distributors...and NCIXUS isn't on the list. So I may be moving away from them.

 

[Apocalypse23]

Had any experience with Powercolor? Typically in the past I have gone with Sapphire, but I noticed in their warranty that they only cover cards sold by their preferred distributors...and NCIXUS isn't on the list. So I may be moving away from them.

No personal PowerColor experience, but the cards should all be the same roughly. Keep in mind, the Asus is a better value in terms of warranty, service, and overclock. You will probably have to Flash (voids warranty) your Powercolor bios for a higher OC as they all have some limit, the Asus can be pushed a lot without any flashing.

Really your call, is Dirt2 worth it? or is a higher brand with more warranty worth it?

 

[brownstone]

Good food for thought, thanks for the help!

 

[Apocalypse23]

Good food for thought, thanks for the help!

roger, np.

 

[CP5670]

I'm pretty sure I didn't need a receipt to register my XFX 280 (gotten off mwave's ebay store), but that was some time ago.

 

[nitromullet]

Here's how the XFX double lifetime warranty works:

- Original buyer registers the card with XFX within 30 days of purchase
- You buy the card from the original buyer
- Original buyer sends you a warranty/registration transfer code, which they obtain by logging into their XFX account
- You register the card with the supplied transfer code, and the card is now registered and warranted to you.

...if the original purchaser didn't register the card with XFX within 30 days of purchase or you are purchasing from an unauthorized sealer, I don't think you can do this.

I'm pretty sure I didn't need a receipt to register my XFX 280 (gotten off mwave's ebay store), but that was some time ago.

Mwave is most likely an XFX authorized reseller. IIRC, the manufacturer can track where you bought your card by the serial#. If your card has a serial# that is part of the batch sent to Mwave, there is no way for XFX to know if you bought it through Mwave's site or their ebay store.

 

[Hauk]

Here's how the XFX double lifetime warranty works:

- Original buyer registers the card with XFX within 30 days of purchase
- You buy the card from the original buyer
- Original buyer sends you a warranty/registration transfer code, which they obtain by logging into their XFX account
- You register the card with the supplied transfer code, and the card is now registered and warranted to you.

...if the original purchaser didn't register the card with XFX within 30 days of purchase or you are purchasing from an unauthorized sealer, I don't think you can do this.



Mwave is most likely an XFX authorized reseller. IIRC, the manufacturer can track where you bought your card by the serial#. If your card has a serial# that is part of the batch sent to Mwave, there is no way for XFX to know if you bought it through Mwave's site or their ebay store.

You're correct on all Nitro. I've sold numerous XFX cards on ebay. As the original owner, I register, pass the registration code to the new owner, and they register for the lifetime warranty.

Mwave sells on ebay, you get an Mwave receipt as you would if buying off their site, simply select Mwave as the place of purchase when registering. I think it's a selectable option on XFX and EVGA's registration page.

OP, if looking for a used XFX, just be sure you're buying from the original owner, and be sure they guarantee you'll be able to register for the transferrable warranty. If they don't state it, make them state it in an email.

 

[brownstone]

Good advice, thanks all!

 

[TXAngel08]

Ok, forgive the stupid question...

But WHY, if the card has a lifetime warranty, do they care about a receipt or product registration? In my mind, a good hardware company backs up their product no matter where or when you bought it. The nominal cost to replace it is minor compared to the good will they earn.

I recently had to RMA some RAM. I had a pair of 1GB Wintec DDR2 memory sticks and I sent them back to them after filling out the online RMA form. A few weeks later, a brand new pair showed up in the mail, no hassle. Makes me want to always buy from them.

Treat the customer right and you'll have a customer for life. Give them the runaround, and you'll lose 10 customers.

BTW, this is why I buy EVERTHING from NewEgg. I have had a few returns to them due to DOAs in the past (actually got 2 ASUS motherboards in a row DOA, not NewEgg's fault, it happens), and they overnighted me replacements in advance for no extra charge, then upgraded my next order to overnight for free.

That is service, and I didn't get 1 bit of runaround, the guy on the phone was like, "don't worry, we'll take care of you".

Even if something is $5-10 cheaper elsewhere, I always buy from them because of this service.

The hassle isn't worth the savings, IMHO.

*soapbox mode off*

 

[brownstone]

You bring up an excellent point. I had a similar experience with Corsair memory and now that is my first preference for memory every time I buy. In fact, I was so impressed that I have also begun to buy their power supplies. So essentially by just honoring a warranty and doing what they said they would without all of the "extra hoops", they have a customer for life. Perhaps video card makers could increase customer loyalty by following this model.

 

[ManWithNoName]

Here's how the XFX double lifetime warranty works:

- Original buyer registers the card with XFX within 30 days of purchase
- You buy the card from the original buyer
- Original buyer sends you a warranty/registration transfer code, which they obtain by logging into their XFX account
- You register the card with the supplied transfer code, and the card is now registered and warranted to you.

...if the original purchaser didn't register the card with XFX within 30 days of purchase or you are purchasing from an unauthorized sealer, I don't think you can do this.



Mwave is most likely an XFX authorized reseller. IIRC, the manufacturer can track where you bought your card by the serial#. If your card has a serial# that is part of the batch sent to Mwave, there is no way for XFX to know if you bought it through Mwave's site or their ebay store.

Yup, right on the money. Just Ebayed a XFX GTX 285 and got more for the card becuase I was able to offer the Transferable Lifetime Warranty from XFX. That was one of the reasons I bought an XFX card last round, that and it was on sale at Newegg.

You are correct about Registering within 30 days as well, otherwise standard warranty is only available to the original buyer.

Double Lifetime Protection is also only valid in North America unless they've changed since the last time I looked.

 

[TXAngel08]

You bring up an excellent point. I had a similar experience with Corsair memory and now that is my first preference for memory every time I buy. In fact, I was so impressed that I have also begun to buy their power supplies. So essentially by just honoring a warranty and doing what they said they would without all of the "extra hoops", they have a customer for life. Perhaps video card makers could increase customer loyalty by following this model.

That is why my last 3 nVidia video cards were from eVGA... My understanding is that I'll never have a warranty headache from them if I need it (never have, but you never know).

$5-15 more for a video card that already costs $250 to get it from a company that will take care of me is not that big a deal.