• Competitor rules

    Please remember that any mention of competitors, hinting at competitors or offering to provide details of competitors will result in an account suspension. The full rules can be found under the 'Terms and Rules' link in the bottom right corner of your screen. Just don't mention competitors in any way, shape or form and you'll be OK.

Facebook reviews about retailer GPU Price Scalping (OC3D)?

When someone says they ordered something and there was an issue, it's probably a GPU order gone wrong, right now.

Anyone thinking they can just buy a GPU without cost or hassle is deluded. No shop is supplying cards without issues or cost increases.

Past 2 non GPU orders the past month for me got dispatched same day.

People leaving reviews for shops because they don't like their prices achieves nothing. It doesn't matter if prices are high or prices are low, everyone simply won't get a card with supply struggling in all sectors of consumerism.

When it comes to computers, there are so many variables in components. Thinking an order will go smoothly always is impossible. At some point you'll get a duff component, after spending ages cable managing, only for your computer to FU. Then you send item back, shop finds item fine, but your system doesn't. Frustrating. Many resort to the review sites from there. This is just one example of how buying on the internet can go wrong.

Wherever you shop, at some point you'll get an issue. Just see on this very forum how some have even got bent over by the biggest internet retailer that exists, that supposedly has great customer service.

Least with buying from OC you're supporting the running of this forum, where you can get help, etc.

One review on there moaning he ordered the wrong 3090, (more money than sense?), and struggled to change order, and GPU turned up next day. Another guy moans too expensive and order delayed due to item running out of stock before dispatch. Both scenarios not ideal, but essentially the cause being their own fault, while OC's mistakes just making the situation worse.

Not saying OC will always be perfect, but some context is needed sometimes.
 
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The_Arbiter:

I hear what you're saying about issues when people get stuff home and confusion or people too quick to blame and I agree that is a natural part of business. Especially in tech...

I mean that's all understandable.

But, what I was really asking about is how there are so many GPU scalper reviews (like the one in the link for example)? I mean you read something like that and you're like "wow unprecedented" then you click the link and watch the video too and suddenly you're on a different planet -- nothing makes sense. It's not 'Del Boy' on the corner these reviewers are talking about it's major UK tech retailers. ??
 
I'll have to take a look on desktop about said video as i can't see anything from mobile.

I don't agree with the not making sense bit. The past year everything has suffered. The push bike world has been more mental than the PC one, outside of current GPU shortage.

End of the day OCUK have been the only ones to offer GPUs at lower prices, via forum deals. Sadly this ended due to people, including long term members here, profiteering from the offers. Also while not directly relevant, the forum is the reason i got a rx580 for cheap, and that was only last month, which i'm truly thankful for.

Like i said, it's either out of stock, or too high of price. Which is worse?
Blaming retailers for this is just a mugs game. Just like blaming scalpers for scalping. Without the customer there ain't no sale.

On the bright side, 6700xt cards are in stock everywhere now, so that either means they arren't selling or supply is good. Hold out for longer and that price will come down.
 
Put your shoes in a newbie, (aka noob):

You're new to the P/C market. You've never built a PC before but you're planning your first ever build.

You see on Nvidia's own website they're charging £1049 for a GPU then you look at a retailer, but they're adding on a £1000+ markup.

Then... not being able to believe what you are seeing (because as a newb it doesn't make sense -- "how can a £1200 card cost £2600")?

...so, you take your n00b body and proceed to the forums, then to GPU's...

...and what's the first thing you see?
.
.
.

Well, you see your chosen retailer's moderators spamming:

"You'll be banned if you mention competitor prices" not once, not twice, not three times, but FOUR times [in the same thread].

After what you've already witnessed with extortionately weird prices, what do you think about also seeing the moderator's threats?
.
.
.

...Well -- you give up. [Space/Time shifts- you no longer become a fledgling PC gamer]

You log off and tomorrow you go back to your PlayStation or X box and you decide all the excellent things your "friend" told you about PC gaming must be some kind of con.. in fact, you're actually annoyed at your friend for nearly getting you scalped!



Guys... how old were you when you got your first GPU? Fifteen yo??
(Not counting inflation) How much was it? £200? If you hadn't been able to get that card would you still be a gamer now? (Chances are you'd of found another hobby).

Price gouging/scalping will eventually DESTROY the PC gaming community.

If it's going to be like this "all the time" because manufacturers like Nvidia think we're "used to it" then it will never get better. And the hobby we all love will be finished.


Other miscellaneous facts:
GPU's are selling out in seconds regardless of the current market. No one in the current market is able to choose the card they want. The only people who benefit from major retailer scalping is the retailer themselves, who get the cards for less than MSRP and add £1300 to the price. (Don't try and convince anyone that they're marking it up by £1300 to help gamers get ahold of a card -- I can assure you that's not the motivation). Do something positive for gamers and sell them at MSRP.

(Man... you guys really need to watch the OC3D video)!
 
While I appreciate the above post ref the situation today and our moderation, how else are we supposed to go about it? Competitor talk has been banned since... well always, so 20 years. The reason there are so many warnings is to protect the users from finding themselves banned when becoming swept up in the discussion, mentioning competitors is easily done so if we can prevent there being occurrences that we have to take action on then it's a win all round. Maybe there's a better way we can do it, please do suggest a way as we're always trying to improve.

The problem with the general framing of the entire "scalping" argument is that there are actually no MSRPs for a lot of cards now. This means the purchase price for retailers is changing, so it's nowhere near as clear as "retailer X Y and Z have £1000 profit on these gpus, omg?!". I completely understand the frustration caused by this, but there's simply more to it than that.

I'd like to point out that Ocuk have made quite an effort to get MSRP/near to MSRP GPUs in to gamers' hands on multiple occasions. There have been several "heads up" posts by shop staff making the forum community aware of stock going up, and they also did a couple of special voucher codes which were released just in a private members only area. From memory this was 3060/3060tis/6700xts for £350-450, which were incredible deals at a time when they could have easily bagged another £300-400 on each unit and sold out in seconds. These seem to have stopped since they did one in public and it was leaked instantly to discord/twitter, but I'm hoping if the stock issues do continue that there'll be more of these voucher deals soon. Ask yourself, why would OcUK do this? The answer really is simple, because they're not the evil bogeyman out to rip off their customers at every opportunity.
 
Wayne_1994 said:
what do you mean allowed
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Well, this is OcUK's official forums after all... the very retailer you mentioned.

This whole shortage has hit a lot of retailers hard and to the people not on these very forums can miss out on deals that can actually make the price much more fairer, but this is to ensure it goes to the right people that really does need them. There's no best way of doing this, but it's better than letting scalpers/miners hoard everything.

Side note: you might want to fix your message font size, they're unnecessarily huge. (sorted - Z)
 
Orcvader said:
Well, this is OcUK's official forums after all... the very retailer you mentioned.

This whole shortage has hit a lot of retailers hard and to the people not on these very forums can miss out on deals that can actually make the price much more fairer, but this is to ensure it goes to the right people that really does need them. There's no best way of doing this, but it's better than letting scalpers/miners hoard everything.

Side note: you might want to fix your message font size, they're unnecessarily huge.
Click to expand...

I can barely see your text.. I have to move 2 feet closer and squint to see it's so small...
 
Majority of the pc component retailers really don't give a toss about the moaning and groaning especially ATM when they reaping in the profits. Don't forget the distributors have a role in this too as well as the AIB"s
 
Well my experience was a different, but also at a different time. I was a noob 5/6yrs ago. I emailed OC build help with lots of questions, got what felt like a generic response, so i went elsewhere. They should have really just directed me to this forum for help and then i could have potentially avoided the next situation. The guy on the phone was helpful at the competitor, but what i ended up with turned out to not be fully compatible and a HDD + refurbished PSU which were both not fully functional, and i have a missing cable. Moral of the story, PC self builds are never straight forward. But i mentioned that before, PC components aren't simple. New builders are often going to run into issues, but that's why it's fun, because there's lots to learn and tweak.

When people come on the forum asking for help, they are routinely told to wait because the GPU situation is messy right now, or just go console or pre built.

Noobs looking on nvidia site for prices aren't getting the full picture. The GPU has to go through multiple stages to get to the shelf. Plus you get a better card from an AIB, so you pay more. The £1k you mention isn't pure retailer markup, OCuk have been transparent about their cost to buy in, nobody can supply a GPU at MSRP. The problem isn't cost, it's availability. While issues with OC's system causing people issues with their orders deserves some flack, but they've also been transparent about this, and have stated on more than once that they are building a new system to cope with today's demand. Yes, too little too late, but it is what it is. You either take their transparency on here as being a fair retailer, and their member GPU offers too as i stated before, or you pay a still high price elsewhere for a GPU, the choice is the consumer's.

When you're talking about a friend telling you to buy a PC at a bad time, that friend is a noob also. An informed friend would tell you to wait, or spec you a system with an AMD APU to get you by until you can get a GPU at a lower price. Quitting the PC world straight away and going to console doesn't bode well anyway, you can't get a PS5 or Series X anyway, for the same issues we have in the PC world.

Inflation in the consumer world has run quite rampant. I'll use the push bike world as an example again. The bmx world has seen 100% to 150% increase in cost to consumer, (that's over twice the cost), with many good reliable parts not being manufactured anymore. Chrome rims are being discontinued regularly due to environmental restrictions. However, some stuff is better, and bikes are generally better with new technology being available. The PC world things are similar, but while cost is up, parts are also better mostly. While PC components still vary in compatibility, it's all very easy to plug and play now. Can you imagine trying to explain to yourself what a 4k game in 3d looks like 20yrs ago?

Unfortunately i think a lot of people think the gaming world has already suffered huge set backs, pre covid. Games costing more to produce with better graphics being demanding by the consumer. Look at the original Halo Infinite trailer, the meme that came out because of graphics. And yet gameplay and taken a huge downturn, with hand holdy games being very common, and DLCs being sold pre release, yet they are just cuts from the game.

I also mentioned before, the 6700xt is readily available for people who want it. People who must have an Nvidia card, that's their choice, but they will just have to wait. Nvidia buyers have shown to Nvidia that they are willing to pay whatever for that brand, see 3080ti. We know the 3080ti could have just been a 3080 for those waiting patiently in queue, no retailer can do anything about this. So negative reviews about lack of availability is not justified. And like i said before, other issues due to shipping for example are justified, but people need to be realistic about GPU availability.

I've found the video and will give it a watch. But i doubt he'll change my mind on the simple fact that retailers aren't responsible for this mess. If he does, i'll edit my post.
 
And in response to your post: So do you disagree with the video done by TTL (OC3D)?

Do you realise what you've just said (or just tried to argue)?

You have basically just argued that after a major retailer has added a markup of nearly twice the MSRP that you should basically be in debt to them for THEN offering you the card at the correct MSRP price. (Or a select lucky few the correct price). Like that justifies scalping everyone else?

Also - you can't blindly add unnecessary ambiguity to turn MSRP into something that just simply doesn't exist. The current market doesn't erase MSRP.. it just raises it a bit. Without the current market, MSRP would have been £699 or slightly more. Due to the market, MSRP was raised to £1049. (A huge jump). That does NOT mean MSRP is suddenly "too complicated" or "too much of an unknown" to justify retailers adding on £1300+ That is a ridiculous statement.

It is actually difficult for me to stomach, how can you be sitting there ACTUALLY justifying major retailers adding on £1300 or more to a £1200 card. Like it's OKAY because they were good enough to offer the correct price (the price it should be in the first place) to a select few lucky people behind a locked firewall?

That is like trying to justify poverty or starvation in Africa because it's OKAY because we sent a select few lucky villages an aid package.
 
I watched a video calling out etailer scalpers from him. And yet he says that one competitor doesn't scalp, but yet i see the Phantom 6700xt costing significantly more at that competitor than OCuk. He also argues about buying a Playstation, we know that's not possible still.

Retailers are buying in cards at higher than MSRP, how can they possibly sell them at a loss and stay in business!

I don't need to justify retailers selling cards at £1k or even £3k, i simply don't care. If i had 3k disposable it would be put into my house. If others want to pay that, that's fine, it's their money, moan at the consumer!

OCuk did a public deal by the way, it was available to everyone. And yet i still didn't care for it, as it was more than i wanted to spend. I cared because it's a good gesture from them, being prepared to not make any money to get cards to gamers.

Don't compare this situation or discussion to Africa's issues. That's a rabbit hole of global issues.

People just need to chill and let the situation blow over. I follow it because i want a card too, but i accept the simple fact that if others are want to be loose with their cash i won't get a card for a nice price. That's all there is to it.
 
I see a lot of anger towards OCUK around the internet regarding the scalping. I don't know if it's warranted or not since I haven't been following prices and what other e-tailers are doing. I don't think it will affect them long-term as people forget easily.
 
NZXT30 said:
I see a lot of anger towards OCUK around the internet regarding the scalping. I don't know if it's warranted or not since I haven't been following prices and what other e-tailers are doing. I don't think it will affect them long-term as people forget easily.
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I'm sure this is what OCUK is hoping for.

Personally, i think this was an own goal of epic proportions, I know more than one person, including myself, that will never place an order with OCUK again. Anybody that supports this sort of behavior, and buys off scalpers, such as OCUK, are part of the problem.

Buy from legit outlets. Have patience, and you'll get your card. To keep me going, I got a PS5. Just signed up for stock alerts, and got one off Amazon at MSRP. If you cant find a legit e-tailer, buy directly from manufacturers in the future (check evgas online store for example).
 
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Wayne_1994 said:

That is like trying to justify poverty or starvation in Africa because it's OKAY because we sent a select few lucky villages an aid package.
Click to expand...

Are you really comparing third world poverty and starvation to a worldwide GPU shortage?

Right or wrong, no one is making you buy...

A/ a graphics card or B/ a graphics card from OCUK.
 
Wayne_1994 said:
Guys... how old were you when you got your first GPU? Fifteen yo??
(Not counting inflation) How much was it? £200? If you hadn't been able to get that card would you still be a gamer now? (Chances are you'd of found another hobby)
Click to expand...
When I was 15, GPUs weren't 3d accelerator cards like they are today, even 3dfx hadn't released anything yet. So I couldn't get a 3d GPU and I'm still a gamer now :) I think I was 18 when I got my first proper 3d GPU, cost £90.

I get the point you are making but really we don't want to convert any people to be PC gamers at the moment anyway, because that just increases demand for GPUs. So I'm certaintly not going to suggest to anyone to be building a gaming PC right now, I would advise them to get an XBSX with game pass and then in the future if the situation changes they can probably play a lot of those games on the PC as well.
 
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