Is the ``GeForce RTX 4090 with the GPU and VRAM removed and turned into a glowing board'' being sold on the second-hand market falsely as a fully functioning item from an AI board factory that circumvents regulations in China?
Graphic boards are among the most expensive PC parts, so many people are looking for used graphics boards to keep costs as low as possible. However, a frightening case has been reported in which a user purchased a used high-end graphics board 'GeForce RTX 4090' from an online shop and received a 'GeForce RTX 4090 with the GPU and VRAM removed.'
Carousell Buy Second Hand MSI RTX 4090 卡 上机唔 拆海無 GPU Scammed 1.3 million - Electronic domain HKEPC Hardware - All port No.1 PC network
Scammers Selling Used RTX 4090 Graphics Cards without Memory or GPU in China
https://www.guru3d.com/story/scammers-selling-used-rtx-4090-graphics-cards-without-memory-or-gpu-in-china/
Mr. Hung Hong, who lives in Hong Kong, bought a used graphics board without GPU or VRAM. On January 4, 2024, Mr. Tsuji purchased a used MSI GeForce RTX 4090 from the online shop `` Carousell '' for HK$13,000 (approximately 240,000 yen). However, the purchased GeForce RTX 4090 only turned on the exterior LED light, but the fan did not rotate and no processing was performed.
When we disassembled the GeForce RTX 4090 in question, it became clear that the GPU and VRAM had been extracted and turned into a 'glowing board'. If you look at the photo below, you can see that the GPU socket is empty and that the VRAM that should have been installed around the GPU is gone.
Mr. Sasa tried to contact the seller, but was unable to contact him. He also consulted the police, but was told that ``second-hand transactions between consumers are difficult to trace.''
In addition, Mr. Sasaki was scammed by pretending that ``GeForce RTX 4090 with GPU and VRAM removed'' was a working item, but he received a used product that advertised that it was ``GeForce RTX 4090 with GPU and VRAM removed.'' There have also been reports that the item itself is widely distributed on the second-hand market in China.
China is under an embargo on high-performance AI chips from the United States, making it difficult to obtain high-performance hardware necessary for AI research. For this reason, it has been reported that some companies are beginning to remove GPUs and VRAM from consumer graphics boards and transfer them to research boards. It seems likely that the 'GeForce RTX 4090 with GPU and VRAM removed' is an item from such a vendor.
Related Posts:
in Hardware, Posted by log1o_hf