LMG Sponsor Complaints

[Raiyu]

On 7/29/2023 at 1:02 PM, volatus146 said:

So ive got this email, but i still get shipping notifications and australia post tracking numbers both from volta and auspost mypost

I've received no tracking information via email from volta just the screenshots I posted

[iFixItHater]

On 7/29/2023 at 12:24 PM, iFixItHater said:

The '2 day express shipping' order from iFixit EU store turned into a several week headache. I have ordered a battery for my phone expecting a flawless experience from a reputable company, yet I've got the complete opposite. After 3 days after placing the order I still had not received a single email about my order status, so I was forced to contact the customer service. Multiple days later I got a reply with a tracking number for the first time (a week in) and the email said that FedEx was unable to deliver due to incorrect address. Now this just set me fuming, because if I login to iFixit and go to my order page, I can see A MAP with MY HOUSE marked in it. They also claimed they had no way of reaching me, even though my phone number was stamped all over the shipping and billing information. So clearly they are lying to either get more time or iFixit just failed to put a correct sticker on my package. Now a weekend has begun and both iFixit and FedEx are unreachable until Monday. The whole situation is completely ridiculous as I could have driven to iFixits warehouse and picked up my order in less than a day, but somehow they fail deliver my package in weeks. This is the first and the last time ordering from them. The situation is so infuriating I had to create an account to share it. Anyone else had similar experiences?

Finally got in touch with FedEx and apparently instead of my address iFixit just printed a bunch of zeros on the package. Obviously the courier had no way of delivering it yet iFixit refuses to take on any responsibility. Highly disappointing experience.

[Starwaves1]

About Asus:
chatgpt4 summary, ik most won't read the whole thing:

- Watching wan show, on Asus sponsorship. Their products are cool and they do solve my issues, but it takes forever and demands a lot of effort on my part.

My Asus Strix 3080 Ti, bought during the shortage for 2,000 USD, died and I had to pay $60 shipping for a replacement, which unfortunately had very loud coil whine. After another replacement and same issue, they swapped it with a 3090 that doesn't have this problem. It took six weeks and a $2,000 deposit, and $60 shipping but the issue got solved.

 

Next, I got a b450M-K II motherboard. It caught fire after building, destroying 2 old Quadro cards. After the first representative forgot about me, the second one managed to get me a replacement, the b450M A II, in about a week and a half.

Then there was my Strix x570-E. It was great until it started overvolting my CPU, causing silicon degradation and finally died after a BIOS update. The representative confirmed the death after several calls, then promised to replace it with a ROG STRIX Z790-E. So, I bought a 13700k CPU. But, the next email stated they can only provide the same model replacement. Despite my 60+ interactions with different representatives over 48 days, I am still waiting for the issue to be resolved.

Yes, Asus did eventually agree to replace my old motherboard with a more expensive model, which is commendable. But the amount of time, effort, and the sheer number of interactions needed to get to this point has been frustrating. The process is ongoing and I'll update when it's relevant.

 

- Human take with details:
I'm watching the live wan show, where they discuss asus in the sponsor secret shopper video. I would like to share my experiences with asus.

Tldr: cool products, They do ultimately solve my problem, usually going leaps and bounds more than they have to, but they take forever to do so and require a huge amount of effort from the consumer.

3080 ti

My asus strix 3080 ti I bought during the shortage for 2,000 usd died. Things happen, okay. $60 and 2 weeks later I get a replacement 3080 ti with insane coil whine. With fans at 100%, and noise canceling xm4 headphones it was very loud. Asus replaced that gpu, this time paying $60 shipping after request. The second replacement had the same issue as the first. Sent it back, they swapped me for a 3090 that does not have the coil whine issue. All in all it took ~6 weeks and a 2,000 deposit. Problem was solved, It just costed me my only desktop pc for many weeks. 3090 swap is awesome to say the least but still... 6 weeks.
The reps were easy to get in touch with, and helpful the first time. 

 

b450M-K II
This was purchased after sorting price low to high, for am4 motherboards on pcpp. After putting the system together it literally caught on fire, killing 2 old quadro cards. Flames shot from near the 16x pcie. What are the chances? lol. Call em up, 1st rep forgot about me. Second had their escalated support team call me. After ~1.5 weeks the replacement motherboard shows up at my door, the b450M A II. I would have expected something better than the bare minimum for killing 2 gpus and catching on fire but it is what it is. 

 

 

Strix x570-E
Oh boy. About 2 years ago, mid 2020 I purchased this motherboard (same time as 3080ti). It served me well with my 5800x until I noticed it was shoving 1.472 volts into the cpu during single core loads with pbo on. This lead to extreme cpu performance degradation (scoring 12828 pts r23 min test duration off) and running the poor 5800x at over 5 ghz on the fastest core sometimes. As high as 5.05-5.1ghz without me telling it to do so. I have screenshots and further details that I wont include now for brevity. After clearing cmos, and updating the bios the motherboard died. No power outage, no nothing. format the usb, rename file, push button, light doesn't blink like it should, instead is solid green. 

4th asus representative (call kept disconnecting) confirms the motherboard is dead after further troubleshooting with me. That was on Jun 13. It is now July 31st 48 days later. Due to the 5800x being damaged, and me already preparing to upgrade to 13th gen I requested a z790 board, specifically the z790-i since I'm going itx. On june 24th I received the 5th email, stating
"Once the facility received the faulty motherboard, they will replace it with ROG STRIX Z790-E GAMING WIFI or ROG STRIX Z790-E GAMING motherboard. Please make sure to purchase or use INTEL 13th Gen processor."
So I purchased a 13700k shortly after. 
 

The very next email (jun 25) from asus reads: 
"My name is (name). First and foremost, thank you for your patience while we completed our review and research of this issue. We apologize for the delay, and are grateful for the opportunity to continue to assist you.

Unfortunately, we can only provide same model replacement. Please be advised that with the advance replacement, there will be a hold amount for that, and after we receive the hold amount, we are going to ship the replacement unit to you. When you receive the replacement, you can test it and after confirming that it is working, you may send the defective unit to us. Once defective unit is received, we will release the hold amount to you within 14 calendar days. To begin this process, we will have to make an escalation first for stock checking and reservation for your product's model."

bruh.

(jun 26) asus: "Is it okay if we provide you, same model, replacement?"

Email #16 jul 12:
"My name is (name). and it's my pleasure to help you with your problem.

 

Please be advise that the warranty is for repair/replacement and the replacement is for the same model if there is a defect with the MB. We do not take model change requests. "
 

After 26 emails, many more calls, and many many more live chats (I estimate 30+calls and live chats) and being escalated 4 times to different departments and 48 days after I first contacted them, I got the email:
"The following RMA# (number) has been issued for our Advance Replacement Program. Reservation team is currently allocating a possible replacement. You should receive the authorization hold amount form once a replacement unit was allocated.

 

Upon receipt of the authorization hold amount, you will have 5 days to submit credit card information to proceed. After 5 days, the inventory will be returned and the RMA will be closed. "

 

This is still an ongoing case. I'll edit this post when It's relevant. As of now, I await for another email so I can pay them, to get a motherboard replacement. It's amazing they are willing to send me a different model, most companies wouldn't have. I applaud that, I am very greatful and thankful it is being solved. There's significant cost to asus to doing this as well. The motherboard that died costed $332 initially, and they were willing to replace it with a $500 new motherboard. That's amazing. On the other hand, It required over ~60 interactions with various representatives and I have been out of a desktop pc for 48 days now. The entire process has been frustrating, tedious and there were times I didn't receive and email for over a week. Most of the emails were a rep that had no clue what the case was, and doing nothing to move it forward, even contradicting the previous email that was just sent. 

Edit#1 8/4/23 I just received an email asking if the same model replacement is okay since they can't locate a replacement. What the hell. 

[dalekphalm]

On 7/28/2023 at 5:05 PM, QwertyChouskie said:

The panel is like 90% of the cost of most monitors, so once you add technician labor, shipping, logistics, etc., a price that comes in above MSRP is expected IMHO.  Obviously the experience could/should have been better, but IMHO the price is to be expected.

Very true - with consumer electronics, sadly, it's rarely affordable to get it repaired vs just buying a new one, due to exactly those things you've mentioned. $1800 GBP is still $500 GBP cheaper than a new one. And as you correctly point out, you're not just paying for the screen itself. You're paying for the labour to troubleshoot the issue, identify the necessary repair, and the labour to perform the repair. Plus possibly shipping as well.

[QLawGic]

I'm not sure if this is the right place to ask this or if this has been discussed before. 

I was just watching a video Gerald Undone's video with Linus and in it was a brief section where they tripped over a Ruggable rug and Linus had mentioned that they don't work with them anymore. It seemed like from the tone it might be because of their quality, with the context surrounding it. I know that Linus has been vocal on the Anker issues and why they are no longer a sponsor and I remember a couple of others that were really transparent about why LMG has stopped sponsorships. 

My question is, can we get a list of why sponsors are no longer sponsors? I think it would be useful to have something to go on if a company just has chosen to spend their dollars elsewhere but LMG still feels like a good product/company or if the product and/or company did something unagreeable that we should be aware of to see if we would rather avoid giving them money for. 

I know this would be super helpful to people like me who don't have a lot of disposable income and keep an "I'd like the have that someday" list. I may not be able to take advantage of the promo discount on something advertised by LMG at the time but, I may keep it in mind for down the road. Ruggable, is one of those things. I'd just like to have something to reference so when the time comes to pull the trigger on a purchase I can go and see if there is something I might have missed discussed in a WAN show or live stream as to why LMG doesn't work with a company anymore. 

 

To be clear I'm not asking for anything super detailed especially if there is some legal stuff surrounding it. Just a list and short reasons like:
"Quality and/or support didn't meet LMG/community standards."
"Community didn't like this sponsor." 
"Great products that we still use, just hadn't heard from them in a while." 
Just something like that.

Thanks for all the transparency guys. 

[IkeaGnome]

44 minutes ago, QLawGic said:

To be clear I'm not asking for anything super detailed especially if there is some legal stuff surrounding it. Just a list and short reasons like:
"Quality and/or support didn't meet LMG/community standards."
"Community didn't like this sponsor." 
"Great products that we still use, just hadn't heard from them in a while." 
Just something like that.

Thanks for all the transparency guys.

It might be hard to back date all past sponsors, but I like this idea. There's a lot of people that will ask about past sponsors whether LMG are still sponsored by them or not. It'd be nice to have that stuff in one spot instead of digging through various videos and WAN show VODs to find they got dropped/why. 

[Skipple]

52 minutes ago, QLawGic said:

To be clear I'm not asking for anything super detailed especially if there is some legal stuff surrounding it. Just a list and short reasons like:
"Quality and/or support didn't meet LMG/community standards."
"Community didn't like this sponsor." 
"Great products that we still use, just hadn't heard from them in a while." 
Just something like that.

 

7 minutes ago, IkeaGnome said:

It might be hard to back date all past sponsors, but I like this idea. There's a lot of people that will ask about past sponsors whether LMG are still sponsored by them or not. It'd be nice to have that stuff in one spot instead of digging through various videos and WAN show VODs to find they got dropped/why. 

There may be legal reason why they are not allowed to do this. 

[Raiyu]

1 hour ago, IkeaGnome said:

It might be hard to back date all past sponsors, but I like this idea. There's a lot of people that will ask about past sponsors whether LMG are still sponsored by them or not. It'd be nice to have that stuff in one spot instead of digging through various videos and WAN show VODs to find they got dropped/why. 

 

1 hour ago, Skipple said:

 

There may be legal reason why they are not allowed to do this. 

https://lmg.gg/partners

[Holmes108]

8 minutes ago, Raiyu said:

 

https://lmg.gg/partners

 

That's a bit different than a "shit list" that requires reasoning. I also worry about the damage such a list could do. Some companies deserve it, but some could be dropped for more innocuous reasons and I could see LMG not being interested in smearing them, or leaving a permanent blemish on the internet for something that could theoretically be addressed, fixed, or simply be a difference of opinion/philosophy.

[IkeaGnome]

1 hour ago, Skipple said:

 

There may be legal reason why they are not allowed to do this. 

Would be nice to hear though. If we just got a "Legally we can't do that" response, I'd be happy. 

11 minutes ago, Raiyu said:

https://lmg.gg/partners

That is for current sponsors. When/Why was R:SL dropped? Anker? Privacy? Zerolatency VR? 

3 minutes ago, Holmes108 said:

That's a bit different than a "shit list" that requires reasoning

I think shit list is a bit harsh of a name. Sponsor Break Up List would be a little better. Also wouldn't have to be very specific. "Poor CS" "Poor product quality" etc. 

[Skipple]

15 hours ago, IkeaGnome said:

I think shit list is a bit harsh of a name. Sponsor Break Up List would be a little better. Also wouldn't have to be very specific. "Poor CS" "Poor product quality" etc. 

I think LMG as a company would have a hard time justifying something like this. It's antithetical to the main business objective, which is to sell advertising.

 

Think of it this way: A guy publishes a list of the women he used to be with and everything wrong with them. Any future women who may be interested in him would be very hesitant to get into a relationship. Knowing that if the relationship when sour all of their dirty laundry will be put on display is a massive red flag.

 

From a business to business relationship point of view, you're now putting yourself in the proverbial crosshairs of a fairly large and engaged audience should that relationship be strained. 

 

Besides that, I'm fairly certain a bunch of old white people in a corner office would think it's pretty tacky to attack your former business relationships. The idea of a "proper way" of doing business is still very pervasive throughout the world regardless of industry. I have no doubt that Linus ruffled more than a few feathers with his latest video criticizing the customer support of his sponsors.

 

LMG's primary objective is to sell advertising. The more advertising they can sell, the more demand there is for a certain slots, the more they can charge for said advertising slots. They certainly don't want to discourage companies from wanting to work with LMG. LMG is in a nice position now where they can be choosy about which companies they work with. I think that's the best we are going to get on this front.

[97hummer]

14 hours ago, Starwaves1 said:

About Asus:
chatgpt4 summary, ik most won't read the whole thing:

- Watching wan show, on Asus sponsorship. Their products are cool and they do solve my issues, but it takes forever and demands a lot of effort on my part.

My Asus Strix 3080 Ti, bought during the shortage for 2,000 USD, died and I had to pay $60 shipping for a replacement, which unfortunately had very loud coil whine. After another replacement and same issue, they swapped it with a 3090 that doesn't have this problem. It took six weeks and a $2,000 deposit, and $60 shipping but the issue got solved.

 

Next, I got a b450M-K II motherboard. It caught fire after building, destroying 2 old Quadro cards. After the first representative forgot about me, the second one managed to get me a replacement, the b450M A II, in about a week and a half.

Then there was my Strix x570-E. It was great until it started overvolting my CPU, causing silicon degradation and finally died after a BIOS update. The representative confirmed the death after several calls, then promised to replace it with a ROG STRIX Z790-E. So, I bought a 13700k CPU. But, the next email stated they can only provide the same model replacement. Despite my 60+ interactions with different representatives over 48 days, I am still waiting for the issue to be resolved.

Yes, Asus did eventually agree to replace my old motherboard with a more expensive model, which is commendable. But the amount of time, effort, and the sheer number of interactions needed to get to this point has been frustrating. The process is ongoing and I'll update when it's relevant.

 

- Human take with details:
I'm watching the live wan show, where they discuss asus in the sponsor secret shopper video. I would like to share my experiences with asus.

Tldr: cool products, They do ultimately solve my problem, usually going leaps and bounds more than they have to, but they take forever to do so and require a huge amount of effort from the consumer.

3080 ti

My asus strix 3080 ti I bought during the shortage for 2,000 usd died. Things happen, okay. $60 and 2 weeks later I get a replacement 3080 ti with insane coil whine. With fans at 100%, and noise canceling xm4 headphones it was very loud. Asus replaced that gpu, this time paying $60 shipping after request. The second replacement had the same issue as the first. Sent it back, they swapped me for a 3090 that does not have the coil whine issue. All in all it took ~6 weeks and a 2,000 deposit. Problem was solved, It just costed me my only desktop pc for many weeks. 3090 swap is awesome to say the least but still... 6 weeks.
The reps were easy to get in touch with, and helpful the first time. 

 

b450M-K II
This was purchased after sorting price low to high, for am4 motherboards on pcpp. After putting the system together it literally caught on fire, killing 2 old quadro cards. Flames shot from near the 16x pcie. What are the chances? lol. Call em up, 1st rep forgot about me. Second had their escalated support team call me. After ~1.5 weeks the replacement motherboard shows up at my door, the b450M A II. I would have expected something better than the bare minimum for killing 2 gpus and catching on fire but it is what it is. 

 

 

Strix x570-E
Oh boy. About 2 years ago, mid 2020 I purchased this motherboard (same time as 3080ti). It served me well with my 5800x until I noticed it was shoving 1.472 volts into the cpu during single core loads with pbo on. This lead to extreme cpu performance degradation (scoring 12828 pts r23 min test duration off) and running the poor 5800x at over 5 ghz on the fastest core sometimes. As high as 5.05-5.1ghz without me telling it to do so. I have screenshots and further details that I wont include now for brevity. After clearing cmos, and updating the bios the motherboard died. No power outage, no nothing. format the usb, rename file, push button, light doesn't blink like it should, instead is solid green. 

4th asus representative (call kept disconnecting) confirms the motherboard is dead after further troubleshooting with me. That was on Jun 13. It is now July 31st 48 days later. Due to the 5800x being damaged, and me already preparing to upgrade to 13th gen I requested a z790 board, specifically the z790-i since I'm going itx. On june 24th I received the 5th email, stating
"Once the facility received the faulty motherboard, they will replace it with ROG STRIX Z790-E GAMING WIFI or ROG STRIX Z790-E GAMING motherboard. Please make sure to purchase or use INTEL 13th Gen processor."
So I purchased a 13700k shortly after. 
 

The very next email (jun 25) from asus reads: 
"My name is (name). First and foremost, thank you for your patience while we completed our review and research of this issue. We apologize for the delay, and are grateful for the opportunity to continue to assist you.

Unfortunately, we can only provide same model replacement. Please be advised that with the advance replacement, there will be a hold amount for that, and after we receive the hold amount, we are going to ship the replacement unit to you. When you receive the replacement, you can test it and after confirming that it is working, you may send the defective unit to us. Once defective unit is received, we will release the hold amount to you within 14 calendar days. To begin this process, we will have to make an escalation first for stock checking and reservation for your product's model."

bruh.

(jun 26) asus: "Is it okay if we provide you, same model, replacement?"

Email #16 jul 12:
"My name is (name). and it's my pleasure to help you with your problem.

 

Please be advise that the warranty is for repair/replacement and the replacement is for the same model if there is a defect with the MB. We do not take model change requests. "
 

After 26 emails, many more calls, and many many more live chats (I estimate 30+calls and live chats) and being escalated 4 times to different departments and 48 days after I first contacted them, I got the email:
"The following RMA# (number) has been issued for our Advance Replacement Program. Reservation team is currently allocating a possible replacement. You should receive the authorization hold amount form once a replacement unit was allocated.

 

Upon receipt of the authorization hold amount, you will have 5 days to submit credit card information to proceed. After 5 days, the inventory will be returned and the RMA will be closed. "

 

This is still an ongoing case. I'll edit this post when It's relevant. As of now, I await for another email so I can pay them, to get a motherboard replacement. It's amazing they are willing to send me a different model, most companies wouldn't have. I applaud that, I am very greatful and thankful it is being solved. There's significant cost to asus to doing this as well. The motherboard that died costed $332 initially, and they were willing to replace it with a $500 new motherboard. That's amazing. On the other hand, It required over ~60 interactions with various representatives and I have been out of a desktop pc for 48 days now. The entire process has been frustrating, tedious and there were times I didn't receive and email for over a week. Most of the emails were a rep that had no clue what the case was, and doing nothing to move it forward, even contradicting the previous email that was just sent. 

Maybe the warranty is different on the motherboard but when I needed a replacement monitor after Asus damaged mine they offered me different models because the same model wasn't in stock but I didn't take them up on any of the offers. 

But after having several replacements of the same model that all had flaws/issues I asked to get a different model replacement and that had to be allowed by the upper level support and it was. Just now it's taken months to try and get a different model and they can't seem to get their game together.

So unless the warranty is different for the motherboard I don't understand why they told you that while that was never a problem for me. 

 

Now 1 year and 1 month into this RMA though and no end in sight.

[Athan Immortal]

Shortcircuit Ebay sponsorship.

 

Specifically to do with refurbished phones video from 1st August 2023, the recent ShortCircuit video was sponsored by Ebay.

 

Louis Rossman did a video on it with a refurbisher (Credit @Caillou on Floatplane for the link). In summary, Ebay told the refurbishers they could no longer sell phones in the refurbished category and had to put them in Used. The seller then applied to join the refurbisher program on ebay, but was first asked to sign an NDA before they could even see the terms.

 

I find it very hard to trust the whole ebay refurbished program now when they feel the need to hide the terms of their refurb category behind NDAs.

 

This isn't something that would stop me watching, but it kind of leaves a bad taste.

[Lumenarian]

I've posted this in the thread discussing the secret shopper video, but I figured this is a more appropriate place for it.

 

For so long, I have believe ASUS to be a reputable company with a product that warranted the increase in price. This couldn't be further from reality, and I wish tech reviewers would stop showcasing their products. Start showing alternatives that we can trust. ASUS products are the only products I have ever had to RMA in the 15 years that I've been building systems. After this most recent experience, I will never do business with them again. Here's a chronicle for anyone who cares:

 

06MAR2023 - Purchased ROG Strix x670E-A motherboard from Amazon.

 

15MAR2023 - Motherboard delivered. Can't recall when I actually built the system, but the first thing I noticed was that after the first boot, it became near impossible to get into the bios because it would not provide a video output until Windows 10 loaded up. I thought this was weird, but didn't immediately do anything about it.

 

Week of 17APR2023 (just outside of return window) - spent several hours talking to ASUS tech support online about an issue with the white QLED staying on, indicating an issue with the motherboard's ability to register the GPU (an EVGA RTX 3080 FTW3 which worked perfectly fine with my previous 3700x setup). I was instructed to file for a RMA. I attempted to do this multiple times, but the RMA process was broken, and it would not allow me to fill out and submit the form.

 

25APR2023 - Contacted ASUS tech support again. After another hour, they filled out the RMA request for me, and I finally got a RMA number

27APR2023 - Paid $30 to ship the motherboard USPS priority to ASUS.

15MAY2023 - Received a "new" motherboard. Pretty sure it was refurbished since it did not come with retail packaging.

17MAY2023 - Rebuilt my system, booted it up, and had the same problem with the QLED. At this point, the system was at least running, so I gave up on trying to fix this issue.

22JUL2023 - network adapter starts disappearing after going to standby. Requires a full reboot of the system in order to get it to show up again. Tech support isn't available on weekend.

24JUL2023 - contact ASUS tech support again. Talked to a great person who said they would elevate the problem immediately and that I would receive a phone call within the next two days. I received an email that asked for my number and a time to call me, which I provide.

25JUL2023 - Received another email that says they "understand that this is frustrating and we want to assure you that we understand the importance of this issue. We are currently working with our Technical Support Department to determine the best next steps for resolution. You will receive a follow up within 24-48 business hours. We appreciate your patience in advance."

28JUL2023 - Problem has steadily gotten worse, requiring 2-3 reboots in order to get the network adapter to show back up. Still have not received a follow-up email or the phone call promised. I ask ASUS for a refund, and tell them they can have this garbage motherboard back at their expense.

29JUL2023 - ASUS informs me they will not issue a refund, only a repair or replace. They provide a technical repair form, and ask me to fill it out with hardware details. I provide this back to them same day along with a video of the issue. I tell them they can easily provide a refund, they just won't because they don't care about their customers.

30JUL2023 - I receive an email stating "We understand that the replacement you received was not working and you want a refund. We understand that this is frustrating and we want to assure you that we understand the importance of this issue. We are currently working with our Technical Support Department to determine the best next steps for resolution."

31JUL2023 - Problem has gotten worse. I now have to turn off the power supply after the reboot in order to get the network adapter to show up. I ask ASUS if they have a resolution.

01AUG2023 - ASUS "thanks me for my patience" and provides instructions to disable Windows' ability to turn off the power to the network adapter. The only problem is that the problem is even worse, and the computer won't boot. This is where the issue of not being able to get into the BIOS really created a problem, because I had no idea what was going on. It took over 5 hours to finally be able to get into the BIOS and get the computer to boot. All the while, I tell ASUS again to give me my money back so I can buy a functional product.

01AUG2023 - After dealing with this all day, I was finally able to get the computer to boot and disable Windows' ability to turn off the network adapter. This has seemed to resolve the small issue, but I suspect much more is wrong with this motherboard. ASUS sends me instructions on how to proceed with a RMA, AGAIN! They want me to pay to ship them the replacement motherboard so that they can send me a third board of the same model, and wait another month to receive it. Instead, I tell them to send me the replacement board first, which of course they won't do because they don't care about their customers or "understand that this is frustrating and we want to assure you that we understand the importance of this issue."

02AUG2023 - ASUS has agreed to send me an advance replacement with a certified refurbished board of the same model. I don't have high hopes that the third board is going to work any better than the previous two, but at least I won't have to be without my computer for weeks while waiting for the replacement.

03AUG2023 - ASUS has refused to replace the board with a different model. Here's to hoping I don't get a third faulty board of this model. They have graciously agreed to pay for return shipping "as a one-time courtesy." Thanks, ASUS you have made my computer faulty for four months, but thanks for being willing to absorb the $20 in shipping costs. Maybe provide me the working motherboard that I paid you $420 for, and we would all be happier.

04AUG2023 - The temp fix of turning off Windows power control no longer works. The network adapter turns off on every sleep state and requires multiple reboots to get it to come back.

07AUG2023 - Asus has shipped the next replacement board. Let's hope the third board finally works.

 

I have paid them $420 for the motherboard, spent $30 in shipping, and have dealt with an incredible amount of problems with two motherboards over a 4-month period. And they want me to do it again. ASUS is a terrible company, with a terrible product, and I will not ever purchase another again. @LinusTech stop doing business with ASUS.

[Neroon]

So lets talk about this Ebay sponsorship.

 

I checked these prices against new in USD and Euro in my own country (Netherlands). And yes, I fully understand CAD is worth quite a bit less, about a quarter vs USD and about a third to Euro.

1. In both currencies the 3 year old A71 could be gotten for under 300, in the US it is currently under that price. The refurbished with scratches on the screen, is 250 CAD.
2. The Pixel 6a is about 1 year old, have been available for 300 in both currencies, currently 350 euro in mine, and 300 in the US. It sells for 330 CAD with light damage on the back.
3. The price of the 3 year old Pro Max 12 have been under 900, but generally speaking 900 is a price that have been seen quite bit. Goes for 900 CAD.
4. Last but definitely the worst, is the year old Z Flip 4, which has dipped under 600, and can be easily gotten for under 700 brand new. Goes for 1100 CAD. This one is 840 CAD new directly from Samsung.

Some of these deals are flatout horrible for a second hand phone, with limited warranty. The Flip 4 is just a giant rip off.

 

But lets talk about the 'MSRP' prices, Riley shortly mentioned it, that you can usually get phones below MSRP, let's face it, MSRP is a joke, and they are generally just used to trick people into believing they are getting a good deal. Just recently I saw people getting about 30% off on the Z Fold 5, which isn't out yet.

 

Refurbished is generally good, we want tech to be used longer, but when companies are making a killing on them, while the consumers pay almost new price, or even more than new, then how can you as a company support this?

What's worse, is that there is no mention of actual new prices. 

 

This was honestly the biggest sellout video I've ever seen, and it can't be blamed on misinformation, or hard to find info. This is a case of getting a giant bag of money, to convince your viewers to buy overpriced second hand phones.

 

Also considering the video Linus recently did about the 'starting prices' of tech like laptops, which I fully agreed with, this video seemed even more out of place. Because in both cases prices are used to make a product look like a better deal then they really are. Sure it's different in the sense that 1 offers a 'cheap' laptop in a config that almost no one wants, while the other (this being LMG) talks MSRP while knowing these prices aren't the actual prices, but both do it for the exact same reason. To mislead potential buyers.

I guess this ain't so much a sponsorship complaint, as a LMG complaint, since you guys are going along with it.

 

There is a reason why I do not buy refurbished, because it's generally a rip off. Compared to the lowest prices I might get like 5% off, but generally I find the prices equal or worse than new. This obviously depends on how old the product is, with newer products it's generally a bad deal. I just go second handed myself, since at least here, the 2 year warranty on tech stays on the product, even when you didn't originally buy it.

 

My hope is that you won't deal with these kinds of sponsorships again, unless they can give a really solid discount, where they might not be as cheap as from a private seller, but it's a lot cheaper than the prices when they dumped them to get rid of their remaining stock. And you as LMG should share the real prices. 

 

[LogicalDrm]

On 7/26/2023 at 10:52 PM, Monknot said:

I was thinking about getting a computer from Build Redux after seeing you guys promote it. However I decided to see how much the parts were and I'm glad I did. On Amazon I can get almost everything cheaper. In case of the NVME M.2 drive it's half the cost on Amazon. Seems like a way to inflate the cost of the PC while only charging "$99" for build cost. 

I checked that same build against Amazon US. If you look part-by-part, it goes about even. There SSD is $30 less on Amazon, but CPU is same amount less with Redux. Just those CM fans are $20pc on Amazon, GPU is bit less on Amazon and so on. So saying outright that they are inflating the prices is not quite accurate. Sure there's some inflation going on, thats normal. They have to get margins and they are buying their stock at one point, most likely months prior to when you happen to look at Amazon. So the prices on their site are reflecting to prices their stock was worth when bought. At some point they ofc would need to adjust their pricing, and as result sell at loss for a while before they can acquire more stock for cheaper.

 

 

On 7/31/2023 at 9:01 PM, QLawGic said:

My question is, can we get a list of why sponsors are no longer sponsors? I think it would be useful to have something to go on if a company just has chosen to spend their dollars elsewhere but LMG still feels like a good product/company or if the product and/or company did something unagreeable that we should be aware of to see if we would rather avoid giving them money for. 

Linus has stated they won't disclose all dropped sponsors or reasons why. Some are more public than others (Anker, Tunnelbear and the other VPN after that, Plex), but rest are unknown. Partly probably because sponsorship stopping doesn't automatically mean it was bad. 

[ThermicWaffle]

Regarding the EyeBuyDirect sponsorship last week...

I want to clarify some facts about blue light and its effects on our eyes. Blue light is emitted by the sun and some screens, and it can alter our circadian rhythm if we are exposed to it at night. However, that is the only harm that blue light can cause. Contrary to what some (I'll get to how EyeBuyDirect plays into this part) companies claim, blue light does not cause macular degeneration, eye strain, or eye dryness. You would experience the same eye strain and eye dryness from reading a book for the same duration. Moreover, the “blue light filter” that EyeBuyDirect and others offer does not even filter blue light. It's snake oil. To filter blue light, you need a lens with a red/orange/yellow tint, which is the opposite of blue. As warm tinted lenses actually filter blue light, there is a benefit to wearing warm tinted lenses at night to avoid altering your circadian rhythm, but no benefit to the "blue light filter" that companies sell. We actually get more blue light from the sun than screens. If blue light has all these "potential harms", shouldn't we have experienced them in the past hundreds of thousands of years? There is no scientific evidence that blue light glasses prevent any “potential harms” of blue light, or that blue light is even harmful in the first place, except for displacing our circadian rhythm. CBC made an excellent video about this topic a few years ago: https://youtu.be/NkJY9bgLyBE .


EyeBuyDirect was clever to phrase it as “potential harms” in their advertisement, falling short of making a statement--but they know their audience. They know people will recall the false claims they heard about blue light and its alleged negative effects on the eyes. They know people will be afraid of these effects, and buy their product. The macular degeneration, eye fatigue, dryness, you can see why! For EyeBuyDirect, it's a win-win. They avoid legal trouble by using “potential” instead of making a direct claim, and they profit from the fears of consumers. If blue light was really harmful, why would they use such a vague word?


I urge LMG to cease all brand deals with EyeBuyDirect. They are using deceptive advertising to trick consumers into buying an unnecessary addon, based on claims with no evidence. Even if they are selling it based on speculation, I think LMG is better than promoting a sponsor based on speculation.

 

Edited August 14, 2023 by ThermicWaffle
Fixing typos, improving clarity, improving organization, improving flow, adding context

[Catapult_]

Hey LMG community,

I'm sharing my recent ordeal with Best Buy after purchasing two open box LG 32GP83B-B monitors, hoping to receive some advice or support from anyone who may have faced similar situations.

After reading numerous positive reviews, I believed these monitors would be a perfect fit for my setup. I ordered them from Best Buy, and they arrived quickly. However, my excitement turned into disappointment when I discovered they were far from the "excellent" condition promised on Best Buy's website.

Both monitors had physical damages; one had been poorly packaged without padding, and the other showed marks on the plastic back. In addition, they were missing crucial components, specifically the power brick/ac adapters, and one was lacking the screws to attach the base. It felt like these monitors were anything but "open box excellent" as advertised.

Hoping to resolve the issue, I contacted Best Buy Support through their webpage, and they advised me to take the monitors to my local store for an exchange. But upon arriving at the store, I was met with unhelpful responses. The staff refused to handle online purchases, wouldn't get a manager when asked, and directed me to "deal with the online people." So I left with the broken moniters and returned home.

Undeterred, I called another support agent, only to be informed that they could only offer a refund, contrary to Best Buy's return and exchange policy. They suggested I buy different monitors instead. I pointed out the policy, but they claimed the system prevented them from assisting further and transferred me to a sales representative.

To my dismay, the sales rep was clueless about the situation and couldn't offer any help. Frustrated, I requested an online agent to initiate the return process while still hoping to get replacements as there is a 15 day time limit on returns and the local store had already turned me away. The next day, I tried to use Best Buy's Twitter support, and they seemed to be the most helpful, arranging new replacements for me. Finally, some progress!

However, despite the reassurance from Twitter Best Buy support, I never recieved the confirmation e-mail. So, I checked my orders page on the Best Buy webpage and both replacements were listed and due to be delivered so things seemed to be moving foward. When I got up this morning and checked again it showed the replacement order was canceled due to a "system error." This added to my frustration and doubts about the entire process.

I've spoken to online reps again and now Best Buy is asking me to re-purchase the monitors at a higher price than before and they will reimburse the price difference. I've been relying on funds raised through a GoFundMe campaign to cover the costs of the monitors. Any additional expenses incurred in purchasing new replacements would have to come out of my own pocket. Given the circumstances, I am apprehensive about going through with the re-purchase, especially considering the risk of encountering the same issues with incomplete and subpar monitors once again. The generosity of those who contributed to the GoFundMe campaign has been a lifeline, but I want to ensure their support is used wisely. This leaves me feeling even more doubtful about the outcome, as I fear I might end up with the same incomplete and far-from-excellent monitors as I did the first time.

Has anyone else dealt with a similar situation with Best Buy? These monitors are available ONLY at Best Buy and I would greatly appreciate any advice or support from the LMG community on how to resolve this frustrating predicament.

Thanks for your time and understanding.

[Applefreak]

4 hours ago, Catapult_ said:

Best Buy is asking me to re-purchase the monitors at a higher price than before and they will reimburse the price difference. I've been relying on funds raised through a GoFundMe campaign to cover the costs of the monitors.

Seems shady. Are you sure you talked to best buy and not some call center? Raising money to buy yourself a gift is a different kind of story so I'll leave it at that. Best of luck

[Catapult_]

36 minutes ago, Applefreak said:

Seems shady. Are you sure you talked to best buy and not some call center? Raising money to buy yourself a gift is a different kind of story so I'll leave it at that. Best of luck

I take care of my elderly parents, one of whom has dementia so I can't just go get a traditional job. I've streamed in the past so I'm looking to take it up again as I can do it in my spare time and pick up sponsorships for some money every now and then. I'm part of a really nice group of gamers and they've helped me out quite a bit with trying to get things going again. I was going to pick up some 27 inch monitors but I got diagnosed with a rare disease called macular telangiectasia type 2, there's no treatment or cure, currently, which means I'm going to lose my central vision. So I though, maybe get some 32" instead, so i can still try to play games when I can't "see so good no more". What a great gift for myself! I appreciate the little "ayyy I'mma say something and then say I'm not saying anything". 

 

Anyhow, yes, it's actual Best Buy, thanks for the input. 

[lxl_Arctic_lxl]

In your most recent "Secret Shopper" video where you rated your sponsors, you guys pointed out Manscaped with their fake urgency "limited time deals". I ordered a new pair of Vessi shoes and a message popped up saying "Hurry -- your special offer ends in: 6:36. Figured I'd share this as it may be a good sponsor to tackle in part two. 

 

**Side note: A separate order from Vessi, I ordered their gloves last fall and when I reached out to them about never getting a tracking number (after a week), they responded with the following...

"I wanted to reach out with an update on your order Waterproof Knit Gloves 3.0. Our warehouse team was about to fulfill your purchase request when they noticed that due to a system error, the inventory count was incorrect and the shoes you chose are currently not available.

 

Because these shoes were a limited edition, they won’t be coming back in stock at this time. I understand this is far from ideal, and I apologize that we didn't communicate this within a more appropriate time frame."

 

 

 

There was more to this email and further communication as well. The fishiest thing about this was the fact that it was clearly a copy and paste response which means that they undergo this issue frequently enough. 

[QwertyChouskie]

12 minutes ago, lxl_Arctic_lxl said:

In your most recent "Secret Shopper" video where you rated your sponsors, you guys pointed out Manscaped with their fake urgency "limited time deals". I ordered a new pair of Vessi shoes and a message popped up saying "Hurry -- your special offer ends in: 6:36. Figured I'd share this as it may be a good sponsor to tackle in part two. 

 

**Side note: A separate order from Vessi, I ordered their gloves last fall and when I reached out to them about never getting a tracking number (after a week), they responded with the following...

"I wanted to reach out with an update on your order Waterproof Knit Gloves 3.0. Our warehouse team was about to fulfill your purchase request when they noticed that due to a system error, the inventory count was incorrect and the shoes you chose are currently not available.

 

Because these shoes were a limited edition, they won’t be coming back in stock at this time. I understand this is far from ideal, and I apologize that we didn't communicate this within a more appropriate time frame."

 

 

 

There was more to this email and further communication as well. The fishiest thing about this was the fact that it was clearly a copy and paste response which means that they undergo this issue frequently enough. 

Given that the offer is to add something to an order that you already submitted, I would expect that there would be some sort of time limit, because if they can't pack it in with your other stuff, you would have to pay shipping twice.  Whether specifically an approx 10 minute window makes sense, I can't say, as I don't know the inner workings of their order system/logistics/etc.

[Skipple]

On 8/4/2023 at 5:53 AM, Applefreak said:

Raising money to buy yourself a gift is a different kind of story so I'll leave it at that.

You have no idea what the GoFundMe campaign was for / it's intentions. How in the would can you say he's using the money to "buy himself a gift"?

[Draevalis]

On 6/24/2023 at 5:20 PM, Vandorlot said:

I have a complaint against SecretLab. I bought one of their Titan Evos 5 years ago, but after aboat a year the armrest started developing cracks and holes. After contacting their support they said this is normal wear and tear and wouldn't provide any support for it but I wasn't using it in any extreme way and I had the product for a very short time at that point when the issue started. They never resolved my issue and I just dealt with it. The bigger issue I have is that even today the chairs still have this defect on the armrests and they havent fixed it and its been 5 years. Many people are complaining about it online and are experiencing the same issue. The armrests are designed poorly and they shouldn't be degrading this much and this quick. I attatched photos of my wrist rests and other people online complaining. 

 

 

 

I was looking for this. Made an account specifically to complain about Secret Lab's poor quality control over something that has clearly had problems for many years from what I can tell with that first reddit post about armrest tear.

 

I have a 2022 model, using it for about a year (wasn't using it for a few months when I first got it), and my left armrest already has a rip in it.

 

Support tried to brush it off as "normal wear and tear", asking me to pay a shipping fee for just one cover (which, considering the defect, they should at least try replacing both).
I wouldn't have cared all that much, but when I asked about also replacing the right while we were at it, they threw in that I could do so for a subsidized $90 CAD. For a right cover. When I could get a set of covers on their site for around $100 CAD (depending on style), or $25 on their "spare parts" page (which lists each side cover as $25 each). It sounded like some joke, as I can't see how that makes sense in context.

That's when I started googling it, and finding that it was a common problem...

 

The chair itself is fine, no problems there otherwise. But they really need to get called out on their quality control and customer support...

[kirashi]

On 8/4/2023 at 11:55 AM, lxl_Arctic_lxl said:

In your most recent "Secret Shopper" video where you rated your sponsors, you guys pointed out Manscaped with their fake urgency "limited time deals". I ordered a new pair of Vessi shoes and a message popped up saying "Hurry -- your special offer ends in: 6:36. Figured I'd share this as it may be a good sponsor to tackle in part two. 

 

**Side note: A separate order from Vessi, I ordered their gloves last fall and when I reached out to them about never getting a tracking number (after a week), they responded with the following...

"I wanted to reach out with an update on your order Waterproof Knit Gloves 3.0. Our warehouse team was about to fulfill your purchase request when they noticed that due to a system error, the inventory count was incorrect and the shoes you chose are currently not available.

 

Because these shoes were a limited edition, they won’t be coming back in stock at this time. I understand this is far from ideal, and I apologize that we didn't communicate this within a more appropriate time frame."

 

 

 

There was more to this email and further communication as well. The fishiest thing about this was the fact that it was clearly a copy and paste response which means that they undergo this issue frequently enough. 

Oof. Any company that uses artificially time-limited deals is blacklisted from ever receiving my money. Thank you for the heads up.