Intel CPU Warranty Invalid w/o CPU Fan? 100
saberint asks: "Recently, I had a good argument with Intel as I had a 3.2G P4 chip die on me within 6 months. I sent the CPU back to Intel only to be told that they will NOT honour the warranty because I did not send the fan back with it. Apparently the fan and the CPU's serial must match or else there is no warranty. This 'policy' is not listed on the warranty card or on their website. So for all you network admin or IT support people out there, keep the fan and the CPU together. Has anyone else experienced this with Intel?"
Re:Overclockers and their "huge mamma" fans (Score:5, Informative)
Re:Overclockers and their "huge mamma" fans (Score:3, Informative)
I'll tell you why. I don't overclock (I've been known to underclock though) and I like quiet systems. The stock fan/heatsink combo doesn't cut it. I tend to use a larger sink than necessary and run a larger fan at a low voltage. I enjoy silence. You don't know what you're missing out on.
With that said, if it's a retail CPU then I keep the old sink and fan so I could send it all back if needed. I rarely buy retail packages any more though.
Totally legit. (Score:5, Informative)
If I remember right the OEM have something like a 15 day warranty from Intel, after that you need to take it up with your reseller.
The retail CPUs have a three year warranty but they come with a fan designed for the processor right from Intel. It comes as a package and you are only supposed to use the Intel fan, any other will void your warranty.
I imagine getting the fan serves multiple purposes. Did the CPU die because the fan was weak/dead. Did the user swap it out for another unapproved fan, etc.
Can you read? (Score:3, Informative)
Re:Overclockers and their "huge mamma" fans (Score:3, Informative)
"
No it's not. It's 'obviously' a scheme to make sure they only do the warranty stuff on factors they can actually control. If a 3rd party fan failed, why would that be Intel's fault?
Re:Overclockers and their "huge mamma" fans (Score:3, Informative)
Actually, my brother is a mechanic at a Ford dealer. He says that they will not honor the warranty if a wheel bearing fails prematurely and the car does not have the stock tires on it. Putting wide or offset tires on a car causes the weight of the car to not be supported directly beneath the bearing and can lead to premature bearing failure.
Re:Overclockers and their "huge mamma" fans (Score:3, Informative)
Intel Retail (boxed): 3 years direct with Intel
AMD Retail (boxed): 3 years direct with AMD
AMD OEM (chip only): 1 year through reseller (us)
Intel OEM (chip only): dunno, the boss didn't bother buying them because they were almost as expensive as the retail versions
Re:Overclockers and their "huge mamma" fans (Score:3, Informative)
On a related note, don't buy your case from Intel. They use a Delta 120mm fan, which is famous for being the loudest fan in production. (Sounds like a vacuum cleaner.) Once I replaced the rear 120mm fan, and the front 90mm fan, the two CPU fans became quite noticable. Replaced those, and now it sounds like a normal system.
Re:Overclockers and their "huge mamma" fans (Score:3, Informative)
Having or not having the fan doesn't make it any easier or harder for them, anymore than it does for western digital hard drives. Hell WD even has a util on the website that will determine not only if it's oem or retail but the date the warranty started and if the drive is in warranty (which is bunk, they go by the date of manufacture rather than the date of sale).
update on the fan type etc (Score:3, Informative)
Re:Stupid Question... (Score:2, Informative)
Re:Overclockers and their "huge mamma" fans (Score:3, Informative)
Re:Overclockers and their "huge mamma" fans (Score:2, Informative)
Re:Can you read? (Score:2, Informative)
Of course, a 2.8GHz P4 is grossly obsolete. Perhaps Intel has subsequently changed their packaging.
Re:not on the warranty card? (Score:3, Informative)
I'd say either
usage not in accordance with product instructions
or
improper installation
are the clauses that Intel are using to get out of the warranty.
The question is, in the installation instructions, I'd be sure they specify to use a fan, however, do they specify to use the supplied fan ?