Hey guys, I want some second opinions on an issue I'm having.
I bought a new Gigabyte GTX 780 Ti GHz Edition from Newegg (sorry, couldn't find a US forum) and it arrived today (inb4 "you should have gotten a 900 series" -- I have my reasons for choosing it and I'll gladly discuss my reasons in a PM if you'd like, but that's not what this thread is about).
I opened the shipping box and was shocked to see that the retail Gigabyte box wasn't sealed (no shrink wrap or sticker on the box). My spidey senses immediately went off, because I've heard of companies like Newegg nefariously trying to pass off good used items as new before, so I did the rest of the unboxing with latex gloves on to see if I could find some fingerprints where they weren't supposed to be. The retail box contained in it a black box. My first observations were that it (the inner black box that shouldn't have seen the light of day since the factory) looked scuffed-up. Not damaged per se, but like someone put it on a dirty hardwood floor and slid it across a few times. Then I opened that box to find all the accessories where I expected and the card correctly in an anti-static bag, sealed with a piece of tape. I opened up and I found my final clue: a finger-print on the IO bracket (remember I was wearing gloves). The rest of the card however was immaculate. I looked at the gold contacts in the PCI-E slot and it doesn't look like it was ever inserted.
First thing I did was look at some unboxings of the SKU. None of them had sealed boxes, which I thought was really strange, and I expected that a product that cost over $700 (at least when it was designed -- don't worry, I only paid $380) would have its retail box sealed. Anti-static bag congif the same too (as in it was sealed w/ a piece of tape).
Anyway, I called Newegg and the rep was nice. He sent me a shipping label so they can get me a replacement.
Per the Newegg guy's suggestion, I called Gigabyte to see if I should expect a sealed box (can't blame the Newegg guy for not knowing if an individual SKU is sealed or not), and he informed me that the majority of Gigabyte products ship sealed to retailers.
So now I'm just confused and I have a few questions:
1) Am I justified in thinking I was shipped an open-box item? I asked my wife for a second opinion, and after looking at my evidence she confirmed I wasn't being crazy. She's not afraid to tell me when I'm overreacting, so I trust she's being honest.
2) Due to the conflicting stories I'm getting from the Gigabyte rep and the unboxing videos, I have no idea whether I can expect a sealed box next time. What do you guys think?
I have no problem with open box items, and if Newegg offered me a partial refund (which they didn't), I'd accept it and live with the refurb, but I'm not okay with paying for a new item and getting an open box.
