Why are they so cheap and are they safe to buy? Im looking at an open box asus board and its about $60 cheaper then retail. Should i get it?
Whats up with newegg open box?
- Thread starter chevmaro
- Start date
They are so cheap because (in most cases) they are returned product and do not come with anything. No manual, no included items, etc. So if you get a motherboard open box it won't have any cables nor will it have a back I/O plate.
I got an open box Asus A8N32-SLI that was like $75. The board is buggy as hell all on it's own but it worked.
I got an open box Asus A8N32-SLI that was like $75. The board is buggy as hell all on it's own but it worked.
Denithor
Diamond Member
- Apr 11, 2004
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Generally the stuff is functional but may be bare and/or ugly condition. I've seen a mixed bag in my OB purchases, sometimes all accessories are intact and other times nothing but the item itself. It seems to be if the person who returned the item remembered to include the parts you get them, otherwise you don't. Sometimes heatsinks/etc are bent/scratched or otherwise damaged but I've only had one item (motherboard) that didn't work, and it looked like it was damaged in transit (UPS issue instead of Newegg).
50/50 chance of getting a working produce. I would not waste my time with open box electronics. CPU coolers and other non-electronic items are okay.
I've had good luck and I purchased an open box Asus A8N-E from Newegg. It's been performing HTPC duties continuously for about the last 9 months. I typically reboot about once per month to make sure any updates were successfully applied, otherwise it just stays on as MythTV and is very stable.
MichaelD
Lifer
- Jan 16, 2001
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As you should've already surmised, buying an Open Box or Returned item is a total crapshoot.
IMO, maybe 1% of any open box item is fully functional and was returned b/c the user just honestly bought the wrong thing.
When it comes to motherboards, CPUs, graphics cards and most other computer parts, you can bet on this:
User installed his XXX-brand motherboard and his XXXX-CPU. Hooked it up to a $23 power supply and attempted to overclock it. He let the magic smoke out of all of it and returned it as "doesn't work". Most etailers just throw that crap back on the shelves and sell it at cost.
Used parts are great if you can buy them in person and verify they work. Buying them sight unseen is the worst idea ever to save a few bucks. MHO.
IMO, maybe 1% of any open box item is fully functional and was returned b/c the user just honestly bought the wrong thing.
When it comes to motherboards, CPUs, graphics cards and most other computer parts, you can bet on this:
User installed his XXX-brand motherboard and his XXXX-CPU. Hooked it up to a $23 power supply and attempted to overclock it. He let the magic smoke out of all of it and returned it as "doesn't work". Most etailers just throw that crap back on the shelves and sell it at cost.
Used parts are great if you can buy them in person and verify they work. Buying them sight unseen is the worst idea ever to save a few bucks. MHO.
BonzaiDuck
Lifer
- Jun 30, 2004
- 16,122
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You have my vote there. I once attempted to get a spare ASUS motherboard that used special 32-bit RAMBUS modules. I was at least lucky that the seller ran a small computer store in the Bay Area, and was inclined to protect her business reputation. But someone had attempted to socket 16-bit modules in the board and rendered it inoperable. Luckily, I got my money back.
Any kind of facts to back this up? Oh wait you say anything you can because in your mind you decided it wasn't the way you would do it. I forgot everything that you have is better than anything that can be purchased and if the item differs from what you would purchase the person is either an idiot or is buying something you don't like.
Now on topic.
Having purchased between 30-40 Open Box boards from Newegg I have never had a single not work.
90% of the time the backplate, board, and manual are all included.
NewEgg would not sell it if it doesn't work. Open box is not the same as "as is". Everything they sell open box will work.
This is in regards to NewEgg open box and not other resellers. Every single open box item that NewEgg sells will work. AFAIK they are tested good.
You just get usually nothing with them other than the product. My A8N32-SLI had no cables, I/O panel, manual or CD. I had to order the I/O panel from Asus' website for $5 and I had to download the drivers from the Asus website.
Do not spread FUD that NewEgg open box will not work please.
You can contact the customer service manager Eric Sandoval for clarification. NewEgg does not test open box items for functionality. There are many users here with defective open box items, and many without any issue except for missing back plates, etc.... Buyer beware.
Any Of These Items still carry full MFG warranty, and the accessories are avail thru the MFG....
The only risk is replacing what you may or may not need.
MichaelD
Lifer
- Jan 16, 2001
- 31,528
- 3
- 76
It's not FUD. Newegg does NOT test returned items for functionality, ergo your open box item may or may not work. If you want to gamble, that's your choice. Additionally, just b/c your open box item was OK doesn't mean everyone's is.
Let's look at facts. 99.99% of all NEW items will work just fine right out of the box IF installed correctly, AND IF run at stock speeds, AND IF not dropped, crushed etc. Right? Right.
PC enthusiasts like us will try to fit new heatsinks on the graphics card, overclock the card, overclock the CPU and memory, etc. Some of these parts that are used out of spec fail and get returned to the vendor where they are sold for a reduced price.
THAT'S the gamble you take w/used parts. FWIW, I buy probably $3-$4K worth of parts from NE every year. Seriously. I think they are great, but I'd never buy an OB item.
I got both my dual sata II's for about $30 shipped from newegg; used both for about 6 months each so each is tested. I recommend you ignore all the hype and get 2 boards at once and have a cheap fix when the first one dies. Too many folks get sucked into the hype about new cpus and upgrade needlessly.
I'm not comfortable buying new parts and replacing them with refurbished components. So you may save $20 only to waste $12 for return shipping, plus gas, plus your time.
Awhile ago, I bought a skt478 CPU motherboard and a really off-brand 6800GT for cheap cheap. Both were fine. They were clearly new.
The only real issue is that it's a crapshoot whether or not you will get all the accessory parts, as others have noted.
The only real issue is that it's a crapshoot whether or not you will get all the accessory parts, as others have noted.
Who said that NewEgg tested them?
Here, directly from NewEgg...
So they are indeed tested and by the manufacturer. NewEgg also slaps 15 days for you to test the open box product. That's plenty of time to get your money back if it doesn't work.
Think about how many times we've read on these forums about someone having problems with their pc - "I've replaced the mb and the pc still doesn't work"... They're just resold untested as open-box with the 15 day warranty. Unfortunately, none of the several asus' and abit's I've acquired from newegg have the i/o shields - assume there's a black market for them... Sometimes they'll have the ide and/or floppy cables though :roll:. The manufacturers are never able to find any i/o shields for the mb's I request plus they charge so much that the 'deal' you get with the open-box evaporates.
They've all worked though. The last abit was amusing - it looks like the previous frustrated owner used a hammer on some of the i/o pins.
I wouldn't use an open box for my main pc.
They've all worked though. The last abit was amusing - it looks like the previous frustrated owner used a hammer on some of the i/o pins.
I wouldn't use an open box for my main pc.
The Asus A8N32-SLI open box that I got was my main PC until my recent upgrade. It was an emergency purchase because I sort of killed my A8R-MVP with a BIOS flash and couldn't wait for the warranty turnaround time.
But it functions fine even to this day. I'm using it as my file server with my old dual core Opteron 165.
Zap
Elite Member
- Oct 13, 1999
- 22,377
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I've purchased around that many open box motherboards from Newegg over the years, and I definately have had some that had issues or were just plain DOA. Not quite enough that I stop buying them altogether, but enough so that I only take the risk if the potential savings are great. If it's only a couple bucks, I go for new.
If you have gotten 30-40 and they all were good, then you have exceptional luck.
As for whether you get the accessories or just bare board, it may depend on the brand. Seems like Asus boards are usually bare. Biostar boards are around 50/50. Others vary.
:frown: There is a lot of anecdotal evidence showing that not all open box items work. Indeed I remember they once had a batch of a particular video card. It was posted on Hot Deals and a lot of people (including myself) purchased them. Turned out probably 50% of those cards were flakey.
Don't believe me? Thread discovered in the archives.
Not always true. Some manufacturers only extend their warranty through the reseller. ECS and Biostar come to mind, but I'm sure there are others. This means they don't accept RMA warranty direct from end-users. If an end user requests an RMA, then they consider it "out of warranty" and will charge for RMA service. Also, I've noticed that refurbished Western Digital drives often comes with the word REFURBISHED printed diagonally across the label in a light blue ink, and they only warranty them for 90 days.
As with most things, YMMV.
I never buy their Open Box stuff either... but I have friends that have, and that the issues are usually minor stuff missing.
Even with new product unless you RMA it back to NewEgg that is the way that they cover the product is with re-furb pool stock...... only if something is very new .. do you get new as replacement.
One of them recently got a $250.00 MOBO for $100.00 all it was missing was the manual
a five minute download, and even if he has issues he is ahead.
That was the AGP version, yes? I question some of the people with their "DOA". I remember when I first got my ATi Radeon 9700 Pro. It wouldn't work on my Asus A7V133 motherboard. I thought it was DOA. Lucky that my wife had a ECS K7S5A motherboard and after installing it in there it worked.
I would have probably been one of those angry buyers that reported it DOA but it took further testing to verify that it just didn't work with my motherboard at the time.
Did any of the people in that thread test it beyond their first try? I go out of my way to troubleshoot a problem and try to fix something before I give up on it. I haven't gotten anything refurbished/open box that didn't work.
Would you use an mb in your main pc without an i/o shield? This was my main point since there are some who will go to great extents to get a good deal. Replacing your mb, which I assume had the i/o shield, seems acceptable.
I got my MSI P6N Diamond through open box. Came with all the cables/manuals and I have had no problems at all. The only defect was 2 scratches in the copper on the heat sink on the northbridge (who cares)... Worst case scenario, you buy the OB test it, it doesn't work right and you return it for a retail... you can get the restocking fee back from Newegg if the product just doesn't work (you have to ask for it though)...
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