Report: some Gigabyte power supplies are failing, and could take GPU with them
Going out with a bang
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Users lucky enough to purchase a new graphics card via the Newegg Shuffle bundle are now being warned about their purchases, as reports are claiming Gigabyte’s GP-P750GM and GP-P850GM power supplies (that were often bundled with highly coveted GPUs) have a high risk of serious malfunction or failure.Popular tech YouTuberGamers Nexusclaims to have spent several months investigating these reports after noticing a high level of DOAs, failures, and faulty MOSFETs (essentially the voltage control switch).
Of more than 10 power supplies tested, it has claimed 50% failed in an ‘explosive capacity’, with one reportedly even frying the Gigabyte AorusRTX 3080GPU that was attached to the testing rig.We have reached out to Gigabyte and Newegg for comment.
Things are getting a little heated
“Gigabyte’s GP-P750GM and 850GM power supplies were and are in combo ‘deals’ on Newegg Shuffle. If you wanted the graphics card but not the PSU, you’d have trouble to return one without the other.” writes Gamers Nexus.Newegg’s return policy means that it’s difficult to return a dead power supply purchased in a forced bundle, without also requiring you to return the graphics card you purchased it with. The current return policy regarding bundle purchase on Newegg’s website reads as follows:“Bundles are offered as a way to purchase multiple items together at a discounted price. If you wish to return a Bundle for a refund, you must request a return within the applicable Newegg Return Policy period and you must return the ENTIRE BUNDLE. Items sold as part of a Bundle may be returned individually for replacement if you request a replacement within the applicable Newegg Return Policy period for that individual item.“Gamers Nexus points out: “You’re essentially stuck with a product that you don’t want. Many of the Gigabyte PSUs were reported DOA (dead on arrival), and in testing, we found many were explosive. We quantify the Newegg reviews, our own survey, and load test the PSUs.“Both of these PSUs are rated 80+ Gold, which should indicate that this is a reliable product. 80+ is a certification designed to denote that a power supply isat least80% efficient at 20%, 50%, and 100% loads.
Ratings also include (from least to most efficient) Bronze, Silver, Gold, Platinum, and Titanium to further categorize efficiency. As Platinum and Titanium ratings are generally reserved for use in Workstation PC’s, an 80+ Gold power supply is a desirable rating for most gaming desktop computers.
I’ve been advocating a lottery system for high demand PC parts like the #RTX3080, so it is great to see @Newegg finally implement it. But the combo “deals” need to be ditched. Can’t build an AMD+Nvidia computer without buying an Intel motherboard. #fail #AMD #Nvidia #Intel pic.twitter.com/HeQjypjWsRJanuary 20, 2021
Computer chips and fried PSUs
Selling graphics cards with less desirable hardware in order to shift stock has been prevalent for months, with onlinemarkets flooding with cheap motherboardsafter customers buy bundles and then sell off the unrequired items.That said, our advice is unsurprising: if you already have one in your system, we would suggest keeping a close eye on it, especially if it’s a recent purchase.We appreciate that makes buying parts tobuild your first computerall the more difficult, but the market progress in recent weeks suggests that GPUs are dropping in price and becoming more readily available thanks to a mix of cryptomining falling in popularity (thanks to thecrashing price of Ethereum) and production slowly meeting demand. It’s still going to take a good while for many of us to see a major difference in the market so if you’re desperate to jump into PC gaming but want to avoid using the Newegg Shuffle then we have the following suggestions:
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Jess is a former TechRadar Computing writer, where she covered all aspects of Mac and PC hardware, including PC gaming and peripherals. She has been interviewed as an industry expert for the BBC, and while her educational background was in prosthetics and model-making, her true love is in tech and she has built numerous desktop computers over the last 10 years for gaming and content creation. Jess is now a journalist at The Verge.
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