Asus is currently in a bad spot, as they released a BIOS update as Beta, which should address an issue where their boards would cause a CPU to explode.
They did, however, leave the usual "this is beta, install on your own risk, this will void your warranty" disclaimer on, which currently backfires, as it seems as if Asus does not want to take responsibility. It is unknown if the statement was intentional , or just the usual disclaimer.
Another well-known channel stated that they used Asus for a long time, and noticed a decline in quality of the samples provided (as far as receiving boards that have been RMA'ed before), and also noticed that the RMA experience for average Jane and Joe has become worse. Asus also failed to negotiate further sponsoring the channel by simply not getting back to requests. As such, the channel completely canceled all business relations to Asus.
> this is beta, install on your own risk, this will void your warranty
I’ve seen an increasing number of products I own prompt me to join a beta program that, if accepted, voids the warranty of the device.
I help them vet early features before they roll them out to all of their users and, in exchange, they… ask me to let them maybe brick my device at my expense?
Just so you know, overclocking also voids warranties regardless of manufacturer or vendor recommendations. This includes AMD EXPO[1][2] and Intel XMP[3][4].
If you want warranty coverage, don't overclock no matter how much the marketing encourages you.
[2]: Overclocking and/or undervolting AMD processors and memory, including without limitation, altering clock frequencies / multipliers or memory timing / voltage, to operate outside of AMD’s published specifications will void any applicable AMD product warranty, even when enabled via AMD hardware and/or software.
[4]: Altering clock frequency or voltage may damage or reduce the useful life of the processor and other system components, and may reduce system stability and performance. Product warranties may not apply if the processor is operated beyond its specifications. Check with the manufacturers of system and components for additional details.
This sounds exactly why software companies need to have strict liability. Can you imagine a hardware/software combo that blows up something you own is acceptable?
I have been out of the hardware loop for quite a while now. The referenced Beta BIOS in the GN video (the first link) is from May 2nd, and Steve claims that the voltage is still too high, as it is the boards task to set the correct VSOC setpoint, as the EXPO profile doesn’t have one per definition.
(Only half valid knowledge, just reiterating what I saw)
Anecdote: I recently had a very good repair experience with Asus. Free and fast shipping both ways via Fedex -- overall turnaround in a week, and the issues resolved. Based on the repair experience, I wouldn't hesitate to buy an Asus laptop again.
You do understand that this drama is for enabling them to get more views? Dude literally has two side by side mountains of free asus gear and is crying. The white motherboard, he doesn't say he bought it, he says he "requested" it and goes on to cry that his request for free shit wasn't handled properly. I ended up blocking his channel because sensationalist BS on youtube needs to die.
I do understand that there are channels out there doing drama for the sake of drama. I do understand that, after over 6 years of following now, JayzTwoCents and especially GamersNexus are no such channels. Furthermore, I do understand that if you have a business relationship with a sponsor, you request products which you will then show on your channel for the sake of reviewing. You are not getting it for free. Companies do get a review or visibility in return. That's how I do understand "sponsoring" and "marketing". So do you?
It isn't legal for them to buy positive reviews in the UK.
They might have some problems with the Advertising Regulator, but their bigger problems would be with the Competitions & Market Authority. Misleading & deceptive conduct to sell your goods is illegal in the UK (and the EU & Australia and other places).
Negative reviews would seriously open you to being sued by the people you are review bombing..
I thought that deceptive conduct to sell goods is illegal everywhere, as that pretty closely matches the textbook definition of fraud ("gain through deception")?
My dentist here in Canada has signs up that advertise that you get a free electric tooth brush if you leave a 5 star review on Google. I've not done that, it seems quite wrong, but I would imagine this is also very much against Google's policies? I was surprised how clear and obvious the signage was.
Seems to have worked though, the dentist's office has lots of 5 star reviews.
This sign always has the opposite desired effect on me. If I see a sign trading for 5-Star reviews, there isn’t any way for me to tell which reviews were written for a free burrito. So I immediately discredit all 5-star reviews the restaurant receives.
I do this anyway, I just don't trust rating systems so tend to remove the top and bottom marks.
Obv not a perfect solution and unfair to those who aren't gaming but over the top 5 star and bitchy one star reviews even when genuine aren't always that representative.
Last week I returned a borrowed suit and I was afraid to be late because it had been more than a week. The owner of the place told me it would be fine if I left a 5 stars review. Now I’m wondering how common this gaming is.
Asus used to be a great company run by great engineers, but in the last couple of years their motherboards have become terrible. By far the worst of the big 4.
Who is considered good right now? Asus was my go-to brand for quality, but I haven't looked in a decade or more.
I'm glad to pay a modest premium for reliability. I'd like parts which are well-tested, use high-quality capacitors, and have basic safety features (like over-current / over-voltage protection on power supplies).
What I'd really like is a review site which steps through the engineering of things like motherboards and power supplies, tests things like short circuits on the output, and checks which passives are used and quality of things like solder joints.
As much as I tried to believe in Asus' reputation in the past 20 years, I'm pretty much done with them.
2 of 2 mainboards (TUF and Maximus series) with random reboot issues, 1 of 2 GPUs with firmware issues causing BSODs, 1 of 2 routers (high-end models) with power supply failure problems and sometimes corrupting settings on reboot.
I agree completely. I replaced a 2015-era Asus Intel board with a 2021-era Asus Intel board of the same general product line (Prime) and found a great many deficiencies relative to their prior product. I had even moved "up" from the basic entry in the line. Many hassles and several missing features later, I am convinced not to purchase Asus again.
So who's better? Shopped around for ITX system and it seemed that if I wanted half-responsible firmware updates I'd have to get a SuperMicro and they don't really have what I had in mind.
Is the term “big 4” for motherboard manufacturers commonly used to refer to ASRock, Asus, Gigabyte, and MSI, like it is for the big 4 accounting firms?
I updated my motherboard with a latest bios version and any os i tried just crashed. All sorts of weird errors. Reverted and all worked fine (fine for an asus board means that it sometimes doesn’t post). I’d stay away from their motherboards.
My only reason for buying an ASUS motherboard was because, for a while, they had (as far as my research went a couple years ago) a complete monopoly on Thunderbolt 3-compatible AMD motherboard (ASUS ProArt Creator, IIRC?)
So does the entire group of “tech reviews” creators on YouTube. Finding an actual review of a product has become impossible, since most videos are just the guy basically reading the product landing page with some nice angles on camera. Ban this and the entire category disappears from YT.
With proper disclosure there may be some leeway, but I wouldn't just assume paying someone for a fake review is legal. UK advertising laws can be very strict in some cases (and rightfully so, in my opinion).
I don't know UK law, but at least in the US, there's a clear difference between "illegal" and "liable". There's a lot of stuff that's perfectly legal, but that I may be liable for.
You're right that paid reviews may be legal if they're clearly advertised as adverts, as opposed to framed as impartial reviews. But walking that line is fine, right, because people expect reviews to be impartial.
Regardless, the legal obligation[1] to transparently advertise this is on the firm, not (just) the bought reviewer. IIRC the Advertising Standards Authority recently had a case on a social media paid promotion, which reinforced this. Regardless, IMO the statute is quite clear the obligation is on the firm.
It's just always surprising when companies think that legality and morality are the same thing. Either they didn't expect to get caught, or they see nothing wrong with it, that latter being worse.
The majority of companies that gets punished by consumers these days seem to me to be those who think that just because something is legal, then it's without consequences.
It is of course not legal, but practiced by everyone nonetheless. I mean, even 20 years ago all "awards" and other nonsense were just paid, different award figurines from different "review" sites arriving with the same sender address... Like after 20 years on a dating sites one may forget that they were supposed to pretend that they were looking for the "true love", people can forget it here too... Not even sure these lies are a benefit to anyone anymore, like people aren't dumb. It's more of a ritual dance.
Readit News
They did, however, leave the usual "this is beta, install on your own risk, this will void your warranty" disclaimer on, which currently backfires, as it seems as if Asus does not want to take responsibility. It is unknown if the statement was intentional , or just the usual disclaimer.
Of course, that PR statement doesn’t help.
Source: https://youtu.be/cbGfc-JBxlY
(There are more sources to it)
//Edit:
Another well-known channel stated that they used Asus for a long time, and noticed a decline in quality of the samples provided (as far as receiving boards that have been RMA'ed before), and also noticed that the RMA experience for average Jane and Joe has become worse. Asus also failed to negotiate further sponsoring the channel by simply not getting back to requests. As such, the channel completely canceled all business relations to Asus.
Source: https://youtu.be/wZ-QVOKGVyM
I’ve seen an increasing number of products I own prompt me to join a beta program that, if accepted, voids the warranty of the device.
I help them vet early features before they roll them out to all of their users and, in exchange, they… ask me to let them maybe brick my device at my expense?
Who agrees to these terms?
If you want warranty coverage, don't overclock no matter how much the marketing encourages you.
[1]: https://www.amd.com/en/technologies/expo
[2]: Overclocking and/or undervolting AMD processors and memory, including without limitation, altering clock frequencies / multipliers or memory timing / voltage, to operate outside of AMD’s published specifications will void any applicable AMD product warranty, even when enabled via AMD hardware and/or software.
[3]: https://www.intel.com/content/www/us/en/gaming/extreme-memor...
[4]: Altering clock frequency or voltage may damage or reduce the useful life of the processor and other system components, and may reduce system stability and performance. Product warranties may not apply if the processor is operated beyond its specifications. Check with the manufacturers of system and components for additional details.
This is a sentence on a website. If they wanted it would be gone in 5 minutes. You don't need to "work on it".
(Well at least for my tuf gaming x670e-plus wifi)
(Only half valid knowledge, just reiterating what I saw)
This doesn’t really sound like an unbiased source with respect to the quality of Asus products.
I assumed not, but maybe I've just been away from it for too long.
They might have some problems with the Advertising Regulator, but their bigger problems would be with the Competitions & Market Authority. Misleading & deceptive conduct to sell your goods is illegal in the UK (and the EU & Australia and other places).
Negative reviews would seriously open you to being sued by the people you are review bombing..
How often is this enforced?
Seems to have worked though, the dentist's office has lots of 5 star reviews.
Obv not a perfect solution and unfair to those who aren't gaming but over the top 5 star and bitchy one star reviews even when genuine aren't always that representative.
There is a reason salespeople will bring you a coffee and donut.
I'm glad to pay a modest premium for reliability. I'd like parts which are well-tested, use high-quality capacitors, and have basic safety features (like over-current / over-voltage protection on power supplies).
What I'd really like is a review site which steps through the engineering of things like motherboards and power supplies, tests things like short circuits on the output, and checks which passives are used and quality of things like solder joints.
Most of this stuff isn't expensive.
AsRock has the best technical support.
2 of 2 mainboards (TUF and Maximus series) with random reboot issues, 1 of 2 GPUs with firmware issues causing BSODs, 1 of 2 routers (high-end models) with power supply failure problems and sometimes corrupting settings on reboot.
Normally, successful hardware companies are very good.
Apart from that, tempted to agree.
I care about the product performance and how well it holds up after few weeks abuse.
The fight to be first with a review even if you haven’t even reviewed anything is getting ridiculous. Just wait until AI get thrown into this mix.
The obligation is on the reviewer to highlight they've been paid for a review, otherwise they are illegally misleading their readers.
Whether that's moral is another thing.
> Don’t commission third parties to write fake reviews – you may be liable for their actions
https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/online-reviews-an...
With proper disclosure there may be some leeway, but I wouldn't just assume paying someone for a fake review is legal. UK advertising laws can be very strict in some cases (and rightfully so, in my opinion).
Regardless, the legal obligation[1] to transparently advertise this is on the firm, not (just) the bought reviewer. IIRC the Advertising Standards Authority recently had a case on a social media paid promotion, which reinforced this. Regardless, IMO the statute is quite clear the obligation is on the firm.
[1] https://www.legislation.gov.uk/uksi/2008/1277/part/2/made
The UK Government are also in processing tightening this up…
https://ripoff-tipoff.campaign.gov.uk/
The majority of companies that gets punished by consumers these days seem to me to be those who think that just because something is legal, then it's without consequences.
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