This RTX 5080 “rocks”
A Reddit user says a Best Buy order for an ASUS TUF GeForce RTX 5080 ended with a box of rocks instead of a $1,200 graphics card. The buyer placed the order on 25 November and received it on 28 November. According to his post, the card shipped with shipping labels stuck directly to the retail GPU box, no outer brown carton, and a seal that already looked tampered with.
Inside, he found four rocks where the card and accessories should have been. After filing a claim the same day, the customer was told a replacement would be sent, only to receive an email days later stating that, after an “investigation”, Best Buy would neither refund nor replace the purchase.
I ordered a GPU through BestBuy on 11/25 and when I received it on 11/28 I was blown away by how irresponsibly this thing was shipped. The shipping labels just slapped on the retail packaging, no generic brown box to conceal the item, the seal clearly tampered with…and there they were, four rocks where my GPU should be. I filed a claim through customer service within the hour of receiving the package and was assured a replacement was on the way. Here we are now on Tuesday 12/2 and I receive an email now stating that BestBuy will not be replacing or refunding my $1,200 purchase after their “investigation”.
— GnarDead r/pcmasterrace
Source: Reddit
Other redditors point out that this kind of scam tends to exploit poor packaging. A GPU box with labels on it advertises that there is something expensive inside and makes theft during shipping easier. Retailers should always “brown box” hot products such as RTX 50 series cards to reduce this risk. Here we should also remind you that NVIDIA Founder Edition cards boxes need to be torn to be opened, potentially reducing such risks tremendously.
We always tell you to record a video when opening (or also sending) expensive items. If something goes wrong, you always have evidence, although some banks may not even accept such evidence when investigating a chargeback. However, this works in small-case courts if it goes to that.
Of course the situation here almost feels absurd, and Reddit did not present any proof that he wasn’t actually involved in replacing the card. Nonetheless, we have seen so many similar stories (and received tons of emails about them) that we can be easily convinced that during Black Friday sales such things may happen.
Source: Reddit
