NZXT Scam

[Wasteland]

What a piece of garbage journalism is this again!

Crapping on one company doing a thing without comparing how other companies do the same thing???

Why did not he do a review of "PC lending services" in the US and rationally compare their parameters? Why does this always need to be a dramatic attack?!

All I can say is that frequently changing parameters of a product/service is not good for consumers at all. That is obvious. Consumers get something and a day after that the service improves, that pisses people off.

What is wrong about two versions of a product having two differents specs? When they are clearly openly listed?

What is wrong about offering an expensive service? Consumers decide if they want to use it or not, consumers compare it to the competing offerings and they decide what service to use.

There are two possibilities: either you don't understand the substance of the critique, or you are secretly NZXT's CEO. If the latter, I'm sure we all feel privileged to have you posting on the forum, but you should rethink your fraudulent/usurious business practices.

 

[freeagent]

There are a bunch of people that hate on Steve because their feelings got hurt when the truth was exposed

 

[dirtyferret]

There are a bunch of people that hate on Steve because their feelings got hurt when the truth was exposed

I don't care for him because I find a number of his youtube postings click bait but then again I don't really watch that many youtube videos, I prefer to read.

 

[ty_ger]

There are two possibilities: either you don't understand the substance of the critique, or you are secretly NZXT's CEO. If the latter, I'm sure we all feel privileged to have you posting on the forum, but you should rethink your fraudulent/usurious business practices.

Or they generally don't like Steve's hour-long rants singling out companies who are sometimes barely different than companies GN seems to support. For example: ASUS's barely questionable warranty practices versus EVGA's same warranty practices.

 

[Dr. Dro]

How about Nvidia?
Their prices & Vram amounts are totally scum scam.
In one the Hardware unboxed one the guys literally said Nvidia has monopoly, yet they seem to keen always point to Nvidia cards for RT & D.L.S.S, Frame generation as next generation features.
So many people are contradictive on their one points too. Their List of games for Ray tracing being worthwhile & game changers was not that big at all.

What is the relevance of this to the subject described in the OP? What about AMD charging $5,000 for consumer-grade non-Pro Threadripper chips and their completely uncontested monopoly of the high-end desktop space?

What a piece of garbage journalism is this again!

Crapping on one company doing a thing without comparing how other companies do the same thing???

Why did not he do a review of "PC lending services" in the US and rationally compare their parameters? Why does this always need to be a dramatic attack?!

All I can say is that frequently changing parameters of a product/service is not good for consumers at all. That is obvious. Consumers get something and a day after that the service improves, that pisses people off.

What is wrong about two versions of a product having two differents specs? When they are clearly openly listed?

What is wrong about offering an expensive service? Consumers decide if they want to use it or not, consumers compare it to the competing offerings and they decide what service to use.

I agree with some of the concepts - market demand, consumer choice etc. but I also don't think it's a dramatic, unjustified attack by Steve or the GN publication as a whole at all, chiefly because it exposes the truths described in this post:

- Predatory loans prices similar to a 103% APR loan with no ownership of the product. It is illegal for known predatory loaners to even offer this level of APR in the US under usury laws. The analogy here is you could take a predatory loan to buy the PC and it would cost significantly less than their subscription service, and you would own the PC in the end.
- False advertising. For example, "no cancellation fees" when there are cancellation fees. "Bleeding edge" when it's 4 generations old. Partnerships with influencers state you can get $3000 PCs for 'only' $120/month but the $120/month is actually for computers worth ~$1500. Their partnered videos and website claim otherwise.
- Inaccurate performance metrics; they have FPS numbers that are guaranteed to be within 10% of their own numbers but some of the numbers are inaccurate. For example, a 4070 Ti Super has the same numbers as a 4070 Ti, all else being equal other than slightly slower ram.
- Bait and switch-like tactics. The parts change between switching from "Buying" and "Subscribe." The assumption here is switching between these two options shouldn't change the parts when they are on the same page and a quick toggle, but it does. An example of this is a 7600X becoming a 5600X while switching between "Buy" and "Subscribe."
- Extremely burdensome (on the consumer) subscriber agreement. Legalese like "Materially similar condition," "Original packaging," and "All reasonable efforts" not being defined.
- Excessive limits on their own liability. According to their subscriber agreement, you waive your right to sue for any damages or liability caused by their device. For example, if their computer catches fire like the H1 riser fiasco, you would not be able to sue for damages.
- Privacy concerns regarding how NZXT handles data on the storage if you return the computer without wiping it. In the subscriber agreement, you granted them a "non-revocable, perpetual, non-exclusive, worldwide licence" to everything on the storage device.
- Billing disputes must be disputed within 60 days according to the subscriber agreement. You forfeit the right to dispute after 60 days. There are also no defined limits to their own hypothetical billing 'mistakes.'

Especially nowadays with people being impulsive and immature, and with the company having spent a significant amount of money in marketing through trendy social media influencers, at least some safeguards against deceptive marketing and spurious terms of contract we need to have. Snake oil salesmen and their scams used to be dealt with through the ever reliable and legendary fixers Mr. Smith and Mr. Wesson, but we no longer live in that society. (Thank God)

 

[ir_cow]

@BoggledBeagle Works for NZXT

 

[DeathtoGnomes]

I don't care for him because I find a number of his youtube postings click bait but then again I don't really watch that many youtube videos, I prefer to read.

I say the same about J2C and the rest usually have clickbait titles.

 

[freeagent]

That goes for all of them lol.

Without our views they would be doing this for free, like they used to.

 

[dirtyferret]

I say the same about J2C and the rest usually have clickbait titles.

agreed, not of fan of him either

That goes for all of them lol.

Without our views they would be doing this for free, like they used to.

I mean I get it as it's a different business model but he just hard to watch for 20 minutes playing with his hair and saying "um" every other word. I'm just looking for information. If I wanted to be entertained, I'd watch Linus (and I don't). Frankly, other than pushing themselves as the "brand" like Linus, why are they in front of the camera in the first place? Just do a VO for the video and focus on the hardware, if you are talking about a case than show me the case the test results charts.

 

[freeagent]

The whole tech scene on the toob has gotten a bit tiring. It was cool a few years ago, but there has been a lot of changes.

I started watching other things

 

[lexluthermiester]

Why can't companies behave with ethical integrity? Is it really that difficult to NOT rip people off?

 

[Hecate91]

The whole tech scene on the toob has gotten a bit tiring. It was cool a few years ago, but there has been a lot of changes.

I started watching other things

I've gotten tired of tech in general, things like motherboards getting stupidly expensive, everyone making the same boring fish tank cases, no competition with GPU's, I miss when companies had some creativity and weren't trying to screw over the customer.

Or they generally don't like Steve's hour-long rants singling out companies who are sometimes barely different than companies GN seems to support. For example: ASUS's barely questionable warranty practices versus EVGA's same warranty practices.

Barely questionable? Their warranty policies have been some of the worst for years, and even Jayz2cents dropped Asus as a sponsor when he used to use them in builds a lot.
I take it you must've had a bad experience with EVGA after they've for the most part folded up as a company, but EVGA was known for having some of the most pro-consumer RMA practices out of any pc hardware company.

 

[ViperXTR]

x.com

x.com

To the NZXT community, We’ve heard your concerns. We are aware of the recent claims made against us and are actively reviewing the situation. Rest assured, we are committed to addressing this thoroughly and will share an official statement soon. Thank you for your patience as we work to provide clarity.

 

[ty_ger]

but EVGA was known for having some of the most pro-consumer RMA practices out of any pc hardware company.

At EVGA's best, they would never accept an RMA with unrelated damage. They went down from there, but even at their best, that was against the terms of their warranty. The main thing with Steve's rant against ASUS was how hard he had to argue with them to get warranty support for something that would never be an option with EVGA. Bizzaroworld.

You can leave assumptions about me unspoken. I don't RMA anything. I void warranties, and when I buy trash, it goes in the garbage and I buy the competitor's.



I was just providing an example. I'm sure there are plenty of others. Point is, Steve sometimes picks out something that most people care nothing about, or one example applicable to him, or something that is common to many companies but picks on only one for some reason, and then makes a grand stink about it for no apparent reason other than clicks; especially more recently. It's easy to see him targeting some versus others, and it just seems weird and hollow. I used to enjoy watching GN videos.

 

[Caring1]

Sad to see the predatory terms, misrepresentation of products, and outsourcing of the US workforce.

My next case will most certainly be anything but NZXT.

Name one company that doesn't do that!
I can wait.

There are a bunch of people that hate on Steve because their feelings got hurt when the truth was exposed

Nope, that's not why I dislike him.
He's just an arrogant sod that loves himself.

 

[eidairaman1]

Why can't companies behave with ethical integrity? Is it really that difficult to NOT rip people off?

The Love of money is the root to all evil.

 

[de.das.dude]

In the early days when they were mainly making PC cases and PC cooling accessories they were pretty good. They seem to have either grown too big for their boots or been swallowed up by investment groups who then moved in and fired (or forced) key people who looked after the brand and keeping the company in check to leave.


My first proper PC build used a NZXT Guardian case and thats something I will never forget.

i too have a Guardian 921RB sitting at home collecting dust. Its so amazeballs.

 

[Hecate91]

At EVGA's best, they would never accept an RMA with unrelated damage. They went down from there, but even at their best, that was against the terms of their warranty. The main thing with Steve's rant against ASUS was how hard he had to argue with them to get warranty support for something that would never be an option with EVGA. Bizzaroworld.

You can leave assumptions about me unspoken. I don't RMA anything. I void warranties, and when I buy trash, it goes in the garbage and I buy the competitor's.



I was just providing an example. I'm sure there are plenty of others. Point is, Steve sometimes picks out something that most people care nothing about, or one example applicable to him, or something that is common to many companies but picks on only one for some reason, and then makes a grand stink about it for no apparent reason other than clicks; especially more recently. It's easy to see him targeting some versus others, and it just seems weird and hollow. I used to enjoy watching GN videos.

If you mean the issues GN had with the ROG Ally, then I find it weird anyone would still defend Asus over some tiny scratch on the case, which shouldn't be able to void a warranty claim as some light scratches obviously won't affect the functionality of the device.
I've heard stories of people killing their EVGA GPU, admitting to EVGA they broke it and still getting a warranty claim. EVGA let you disassemble the GPU as long as you sent it in re-assembled with the stock cooler for an RMA claim, meanwhile Asus voids your warranty for breaking the warranty void sticker, it isn't even legal to have those stickers on products sold in North America but I guess Asus knows no one is going to bother suing them.
I only assumed it was EVGA now and not when they still made GPU's as they've really fallen on their warranty since then, such as power supplies only coming with a 3 year warranty.
Steve points out companies doing scummy things that most people might not be aware of which is a good thing for the industry, those who are missing the point or fail to understand the valid criticisms he makes seem to be the ones hating on Steve instead of focusing on NZXT.
I've never bought anything from NZXT, after seeing how NZXT dealt with the H1 case problems I didn't want to buy anything from them, with the rental scamming they're a company I would avoid even if some of their products are decent.

 

[FreedomEclipse]

i too have a Guardian 921RB sitting at home collecting dust. Its so amazeballs.

I have the OG Guardian.

 

[TheinsanegamerN]

I bought one product from NZXT, that was the GRID+ fan hub, it didnt last long and for i think $35 it wasnt worth the RMT. I always thought they were more blubber than quality.

All my 200 ish MM NZXT fans back in the day were pure garbage. None of them lasted. My NZXT case I bought for the fan controllers blew both of them.

Absolute Garbage.

What a piece of garbage journalism is this again!

Crapping on one company doing a thing without comparing how other companies do the same thing???

Why did not he do a review of "PC lending services" in the US and rationally compare their parameters? Why does this always need to be a dramatic attack?!

All I can say is that frequently changing parameters of a product/service is not good for consumers at all. That is obvious. Consumers get something and a day after that the service improves, that pisses people off.

What is wrong about two versions of a product having two differents specs? When they are clearly openly listed?

What is wrong about offering an expensive service? Consumers decide if they want to use it or not, consumers compare it to the competing offerings and they decide what service to use.

Found the NZXT investor

There are a bunch of people that hate on Steve because their feelings got hurt when the truth was exposed

There are always people, in every hobby and profession, that get PISSED when someone speaks the truth.

Seriously, go look at what happens when people point out major safety issues on the job. The vitriol I have seen directed at them is ludicrous. I watched a co worker report fire hazards at a workplace for hallways full of junk and get absolutely RAILROADED by most of his co workers.

Why can't companies behave with ethical integrity? Is it really that difficult to NOT rip people off?

Sadly it is. There's way too many people out there with no moral compass at all.

 

[FreedomEclipse]

I watched a co worker report fire hazards at a workplace for hallways full of junk and get absolutely RAILROADED by most of his co workers.

Depends if the junk is blocking the fire exits or not If it does then it is actually a huge health and safety issue and he should have reported it to HQ or if HQ failed to do anything then taken it to organisation similar to OSHA in the USA.

That being said. I would have reported the issue to HQ anyway.

 

[BoggledBeagle]

There's way too many people out there with no moral compass at all.

That is the basic principle of economics. Producers are selfish greedy assholes trying to rip consumers off as hard as they can. When these assholes compete with each other, consumers are ripped off less.

There is some legislation in place trying to control prices of some goods on markets with lack of competition.

Competition is a crucial thing and when GN did not bother to do any objective comparison of competing services, their video is a waste of time and all the silicon and sand used to store it and deliver it to the viewers.

 

[lexluthermiester]

The Love of money is the root to all evil.

I would not disagree with this. It's one thing to want to succeed, it's another to be competitive. It goes too far and becomes evil when one takes unfair advantage or flat out rips people off.

For those wondering why JayzTwoCents hasn't chimed in, he likely isn't able to as he is currently in a sponsorship contract with them. So who knows when he'll be able to chime in.

 

[ty_ger]

If you mean the issues GN had with the ROG Ally, then I find it weird anyone would still defend Asus over some tiny scratch on the case, which shouldn't be able to void a warranty claim as some light scratches obviously won't affect the functionality of the device.
I've heard stories of people ...

You can provide examples, and I can provide counter-examples. Stickers and scratches, both have done poorly. That's not really the point, is it? Referring to the warranty terms, ASUS had a better warranty, and EVGA sometimes enforced its sick terms.

The reason I was annoyed by Steve's ASUS expo was that it was way over-hyped about one or a few examples, while ignoring others. I am especially annoyed because EVGA was suddenly treating EVGA customers very badly -- especially in Europe -- I tried contacting Steve and Jay about it multiple times, and then Steve singled out ASUS for the exact same crap. It really made me see a show of favoritism. I don't dislike EVGA or ASUS, I just dislike the public perception and fantasy.

I'm not saying ASUS is good or EVGA is bad, all I am doing is saying that GN appears to have singled out a company they don't care about for the views while knowing better and pretending it wasn't for the views. Feels gross.

If GN simply had a segment of 'to be fair, these other competitors do the same thing', I would have no problem with it. But instead, you have proof that they seem to purposely not do that because max rage creates max clicks, and that just feels gross. I used to support and enjoy GN.

 

[dirtyferret]

n GN did not bother to do any objective comparison of competing services, their video is a waste of time and all the silicon and sand used to store it and deliver it to the viewers.

maybe, I didn't watch the video and frankly I wont. That said, Techspot, PCworld, Ars Technica, and The Verge have all brought up issue with NZXT rental program so let's not pretend this is a one off just because you have a bunch of pissed people who are"today's year old" because they just found out about this.

Why can't companies behave with ethical integrity? Is it really that difficult to NOT rip people off?

because companies have no soul so they can't be good, evil, ethical or non-ethical. Thats said, NZXT is a private company run by Johnny Hou so the real question is "Why doesn't Johnny Hou have ethical integrity?"