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MSI and ASUS Accused of Sending Reviewers Overpowered Graphics Cards (theverge.com)
An anonymous reader writes from a report via The Verge: TechPowerUp discovered that the MSI GeForce GTX 1080 Gaming X card they were sent for review was running at faster GPU and memory clock speeds than the retail version. This was because the review card was set to operate in the OC (overclocking) mode out of the box, whereas the retail card runs in the more regular Gaming mode out of the box. This may result in an unobservant reviewer accidentally misrepresenting the OC performance numbers as the stock results from the card, lending MSI's product an unearned helping hand. The site found this was a recurring pattern with MSI stretching back for years. Fellow Taiwanese manufacturer ASUS, in spite of having better global name recognition and reputation, has also show itself guilty of preprogramming review cards with an extra overclocking boost. Needless to say, the only goal of such actions is to deceive -- both the consumer and the reviewer -- though perhaps some companies have felt compelled to follow suit after the trend was identified among competitors. The Verge notes that TechPowerUp revealed its finding on Thursday of last week, and has not received any official response from either MSI or ASUS. They did update their story to note that MSI addressed the matter, in a comment provided to HardOCP Editor-in-Chief Kyle Bennett, back in 2014.
Shouldn't some blame be placed on the review sites, for not purchasing cards at retail? That's SOP for reviewing products in many industries.
"National Security is the chief cause of national insecurity." - Celine's First Law
A good reviewer should buy things anonymously for their review, lest they tempt the producer to send them a higher quality product. Of course, it's harder to buy things anonymously when you want the producer to gift it to you. This has been obvious for a long time.
And thou shalt take no gift: for the gift blindeth the wise, and perverteth the words of the righteous.
Don't waste your vote! Vote for whoever you want, unless you live in a swing state it won't matter anyways
Shouldn't some blame be placed on the review sites, for not purchasing cards at retail
I think the public would be better served by that.
But where is the money going to come from to purchase all these cards at retail?
Many of the review sites are not exactly raking in many dollars, or their current source of revenue might actually be sponsorship dollars from the very companies whose products they are reviewing (Which seems even worse to me than getting review samples).
I agree they should disclose if review samples were given by the manufacturer...... They are subject to possible cheating.
Consumer Reports seems to have the model figured out... They've been discreetly buying the stuff they test — including cars — for decades now. And then selling their reviews to paid subscribers...
In Soviet Washington the swamp drains you.
Shouldn't some blame be placed on the people that rely on other people's advice/research instead of doing their own?
What? So I am supposed to buy all the cards, and test them myself, so I can decide which one to buy?
They've been discreetly buying the stuff they test — including cars — for decades now.
I like consumer reports, but they concentrate on products that appeal to the masses, not highly-technical products like computer video cards that the average consumer is not interested in.
It's amazing what you can do, when you have 7 million subscribers, each paying $30 a year, isn't it?
The market for consumer computer hardware component reviews, does not have this kind of reach, however.
Think there might be a lot more consumers looking for reviews on products in the $100 billion+ per Year market for Cars, Versus the $50 mllion+ per Year market for video cards?
It has not always been like that, but In fact.... I would dare say that discrete video cards are becoming a niche market for hobbyists. There's no way 7 million people are going to subscribe to a publication that reviews computer components; not going to happen.
That is going to be one hell of an expensive subscription (which people will therefore not buy), Or, it's going to by necessity wind up subsidized by manufacturers anyways.....
I'm sure there's no way they could get that, if they weren't concentrating on things of interest to their subscribers. Also, the fact they are buying Cars means that's money they aren't spending on other types of products for review....
A heck of a large amount of money, also, by the way: cars are expensive.
Video cards have a small market and are expensive enough that a significant commitment is necessary.
Also, I see Consumer reports would more likely be reviewing something such as Smartphones that would bring in interest by subscribers and potential subscribers.