I forgive the dude's annoying narration because he just received a fake Intel Core i7-920 processor from Newegg. A Newegg supplier, D&H Distribution, sent them 300 fake processors in a batch of 2000. And threatened sites who reported it. UPDATED.
Several people received demonstrably fake Core i7 processors from Newegg, like the guy in this video, and reported it into HardOCP's forums. Newegg's been immediately replacing counterfeit processors with legit ones, but the whole thing's still pretty fishy. They're blaming one of their suppliers, D&H Distribution, for sending them the bad chips.
For reporting on it, D&H is serving up a C&D to HardOCP, telling them to "remove the contact and any reference to D&H from your website" and to "post an immediate retraction and apology which shall remain posted for not less than thirty days." They're acting like shady dudes, obviously, so what do you expect? Update 2: Since D&H is usually a reliable distributor, a possibility to keep in mind is that they got hosed by these parts.
But what makes me sad is Newegg's shitty cover story:
"Newegg is aware of a shipping error that occurred with certain recent orders of the Intel Core i7-920 CPU. After investigating the issue internally it appears one of our long term partners mistakenly shipped a small number of demo boxes instead of functional units."
Demo boxes with completely fake products? Right.
Update: Here's the email Newegg's sending to affected customers:
"Dear Valued Customer,
It's been brought to our attention that you may have received a Demo Version of the Intel Core i7 Processor you recently purchased. We would like to first and foremost apologize for any confusion this may have caused you. Please take a moment to examine the product you received thoroughly to determine if you in fact received the wrong product. The Demo Version of these CPUs were purchased between March 1, 2010 through March 4, 2010 and will have FPO/BATCH# 3938B006 printed on the product's packaging.
Additionally, the Part Number on the heat sink will read CNFN936612 and there will be no wiring on the heat sink itself. If you have determined that you received the wrong product, please except our deepest apologies. To resolve this matter immediately, simply forward this email to both [redacted]@newegg.com and [redacted]@newegg.com and state which of the two following options best suit you:
• Full Refund - We are more than willing to issue an RMA for a full and complete Refund.
• Replacement for the Correct Product - If you are still interested in the product, we will issue an Advanced Replacement RMA to get the product to you immediately.We would like to once again extend our sincerest apologies for the inconvenience and we appreciate your cooperation in this matter. Kindest Regards.
Once You Know, You Newegg.
Your Newegg.com Customer Service Team "
Intel, meantime, is currently investigating a flood of counterfeit Core i7-920s hitting the market.
Myself, meantime, isn't ordering anything from Newegg, until they're more forthcoming about the issue. And I was just thinking about building a new PC for Bad Company 2. Good thing the game's still pretty broken! (Thanks EA.) [HardOCP via Hot Hardware]
Update: Newegg has given a statement confirming the fake processors and clarifying which supplier was involved.