Don't fall for "PC rental" scams like NZXT Flex

[r.linder]

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0pomC1CfpC0

TL;DW for people that don't want to watch a super long video:

1. NZXT offers a "service" called Flex, where consumers can rent a gaming computer from NZXT for a certain monthly fee.

2. The monthly fee is constantly increasing and cancellation has proven to be a hassle, and also a massive security risk for users as NZXT lays claim to all user data left behind on the machine, even if that data is deleted but still recoverable from the storage drives.

3. NZXT constantly changes the specifications of their machines but doesn't change the price and forgets to change performance data on the webpages, so you might rent a machine and expect much better performance than what you actually got. People often wait before buying as well so they might even go back to finalize their purchase without noticing that NZXT downgraded the specs for the same price without notice.
The only caveat to this is that NZXT's contract states that if the machine isn't within 10% of the advertised performance, then the machine can be returned on those grounds, and because NZXT doesn't update all of the advertising information, they're making that front easier.

4. NZXT advertises this service through various brainrot influencers on YouTube, TikTok, etc. that spread NZXT's scripted lies. Things like "for as little as 59 dollars per month, you can own a high end gaming PC!" (when you don't own the machine, NZXT does, and the hardware is far from high end on the low end side of the program), making false claims on warranty (there is no warranty for the user, and if they break it, NZXT will likely expect them to pay damages), and false claims on there being "no strings attached" when there are many strings attached in NZXT's contract with the consumer.
One such advertiser also claimed that you could rent the PC for a month to win a Fortnite tournament to build or buy your own machine and then cancel the Flex contract.
These advertisements are clearly targeting youths and people in dire financial straits that can't afford to dump over $1000 at once on a gaming machine and don't know how to maximise performance per dollar with other methods like deal hunting on the second hand market.

5. GN has completely permabanned NZXT from ever advertising through them ever again (and started a ban list on their website) and their $23,000 ad campaign set for December was cancelled with no charge made for NZXT. They will only cover NZXT when absolutely necessary like in instances like this and the H1 case fire issues that NZXT danced around.

[Bad 💀 Motha]

Yea it's all good and fun until you get ousted as being a scummy practice. Then all of a sudden you want to try and make up a means of coming clean with the public. If no one pointed it out you'd stil continue to use what was a good brand name in bad faith practice towards consumers. Course in a case like this I have to suggest any consumer willing to go such a route is just dumb and needs their head examined to be honest. But that's no excuse on NZXTs part

[r.linder]

Originally posted by Guydodge:

Originally posted by Crashed:

JayzTwoCents just dumped NZXT and is editing his videos to remove the sponsors.

only after people found out ..HOW NOBLE !!!
but he got paid till then.you dont think he knew ? its his job to know these things.

GamersNexus was advertising NZXT off and on for years as well since they showed off the H440 case, so what's your point? Your suggestion that Jay knew about it the whole time they were doing it is just absurd, makes zero sense. He didn't know and he never made it his personal job to investigate companies like GN has been doing.

I don't like the guy either but your claims are so laughably ridiculous.

[primeinsurrection]

They might be like that crazy uncle you cant tell if hes a moron or genius but they are making some nice mobos now.

[primeinsurrection]

It seems like people are bashing NZXT acting as if this is some type of betrayal to customers. I dont get it. Renting out high end PCs is nothing new. Are car rental services doing a horrible thing to people who really need to rent a car? There is concern of viruses, but that would be from people, that only effects NZXTs computer, which they attempt to remove or likely will just replace a HD if needed. There are plenty of companies out there that actually rip people off, but nothing wrong with providing a service that the customer appreciates. Now some kid who wouldnt ever get to play games can for a while because his family doesnt have a spare $4,000 to spend on the kid.

[Tonepoet]

Originally posted by primeinsurrection:

It seems like people are bashing NZXT acting as if this is some type of betrayal to customers. I dont get it. Renting out high end PCs is nothing new. Are car rental services doing a horrible thing to people who really need to rent a car? There is concern of viruses, but that would be from people, that only effects NZXTs computer, which they attempt to remove or likely will just replace a HD if needed. There are plenty of companies out there that actually rip people off, but nothing wrong with providing a service that the customer appreciates. Now some kid who wouldnt ever get to play games can for a while because his family doesnt have a spare $4,000 to spend on the kid.

As much as I think this issue should not be overblown, and Nzxt as a whole should not be condemned over their Flex side-hustle, there are a few major problems with the service:

The main problem is that they are propositioning this as an affordable long term solution, when it i not. You don't need a "lifetime warranty" for a product you are only going to keep for a couple of months, and they also advertise free upgrades every two years, when, by the time you have kept the P.C. for two years, you would have overspent on the system by about 40%. The $60 a month Player One P.C. a kid is or poor family most likely to try and rent is only worth $830 going by Nzxt's own M.S.R.P. anyway[nzxt.com], and that is a system with technically superior spec. over the one being rented out (13400f instead of 12400f, D.D.R. 5 R.A.M. and motherboard instead of D.D.R. 4 R.A.M and motherboard). If you stay on this rental system long term, Nzxt is basically going to commit highway robbery against you. They don't really have to be advertising their P.C. rentals like this, or if they are, the price of the rental has to come out to be less than the cost of the system by the time they upgrade it for it to be the type of affordable alternative they are expressing it to be.

The second is that without a proper I.D. check you're possibly going to get kids spending all of their allowance money on something that easily isn't worth it. There's a reason we generally don't let kids get into legally binding contracts. Moreover, without a proper I.D. check, it'd be easy to commit identity theft for somebody to steal the computer and put somebody else on the hook for paying back Nzxt. Heck, even if they were checking photo I.Ds., the fact of the matter is that you are not walking into the establishment to have them checked against your person to verify that the I.D. belongs to you.

The third is that they interlink the webpages of systems they are selling with systems they are renting, and the rental systems are lower spec. than the sold systems. If you're not paying attention, you end up getting a 12400f with 16 gigs. of D.D.R. 4 3200 instead of a 13400f with 16 gigabytes D.D.R. 5 5200. The interlink to the purchasable product is labeled "buy it", implying that it is the same system, when it is not. This feels like a bait 'n switch.

Finally, when Gamer's Nexus rented a product and tried to cancel and return it, they contacted Nzxt customer support and got led to a broken webpage. That could be a stalling tactic to try and put somebody on the hook for extra billings cycle, which aren't even subject to a prorated refund of unused time with the system per the Flex terms. There is a provision in the agreement that says you don't have to pay if Nzxt is at fault for you being unable to return the device, but this is likely to come down to a dispute between you and the billing dept.

If Nzxt advertised the service properly, had a proper I.D. check and had their returns process in order, I do not think there would be a problem with them having a rental service. However, these are all bad business practices for a rental service, and we should not pretend as if they are not.

[primeinsurrection]

Originally posted by Tonepoet:

Originally posted by primeinsurrection:

It seems like people are bashing NZXT acting as if this is some type of betrayal to customers. I dont get it. Renting out high end PCs is nothing new. Are car rental services doing a horrible thing to people who really need to rent a car? There is concern of viruses, but that would be from people, that only effects NZXTs computer, which they attempt to remove or likely will just replace a HD if needed. There are plenty of companies out there that actually rip people off, but nothing wrong with providing a service that the customer appreciates. Now some kid who wouldnt ever get to play games can for a while because his family doesnt have a spare $4,000 to spend on the kid.

As much as I think this issue should not be overblown, and Nzxt as a whole should not be condemned over their Flex side-hustle, there are a few major problems with the service:

The main problem is that they are propositioning this as an affordable long term solution, when it i not. You don't need a "lifetime warranty" for a product you are only going to keep for a couple of months, and they also advertise free upgrades every two years, when, by the time you have kept the P.C. for two years, you would have overspent on the system by about 40%. The $60 a month Player One P.C. a kid is or poor family most likely to try and rent is only worth $830 going by Nzxt's own M.S.R.P. anyway[nzxt.com], and that is a system with technically superior spec. over the one being rented out (13400f instead of 12400f, D.D.R. 5 R.A.M. and motherboard instead of D.D.R. 4 R.A.M and motherboard). If you stay on this rental system long term, Nzxt is basically going to commit highway robbery against you. They don't really have to be advertising their P.C. rentals like this, or if they are, the price of the rental has to come out to be less than the cost of the system by the time they upgrade it for it to be the type of affordable alternative they are expressing it to be.

The second is that without a proper I.D. check you're possibly going to get kids spending all of their allowance money on something that easily isn't worth it. There's a reason we generally don't let kids get into legally binding contracts. Moreover, without a proper I.D. check, it'd be easy to commit identity theft for somebody to steal the computer and put somebody else on the hook for paying back Nzxt. Heck, even if they were checking photo I.Ds., the fact of the matter is that you are not walking into the establishment to have them checked against your person to verify that the I.D. belongs to you.

The third is that they interlink the webpages of systems they are selling with systems they are renting, and the rental systems are lower spec. than the sold systems. If you're not paying attention, you end up getting a 12400f with 16 gigs. of D.D.R. 4 3200 instead of a 13400f with 16 gigabytes D.D.R. 5 5200. The interlink to the purchasable product is labeled "buy it", implying that it is the same system, when it is not. This feels like a bait 'n switch.

Finally, when Gamer's Nexus rented a product and tried to cancel and return it, they contacted Nzxt customer support and got led to a broken webpage. That could be a stalling tactic to try and put somebody on the hook for extra billings cycle, which aren't even subject to a prorated refund of unused time with the system per the Flex terms. There is a provision in the agreement that says you don't have to pay if Nzxt is at fault for you being unable to return the device, but this is likely to come down to a dispute between you and the billing dept.

If Nzxt advertised the service properly, had a proper I.D. check and had their returns process in order, I do not think there would be a problem with them having a rental service. However, these are all bad business practices for a rental service, and we should not pretend as if they are not.

Your first point is that in the long term, you are spending more money than buying a computer. That is the case in any rental agreement. Thats why you rent things for a short time. I dont think people do not understand this or are being misled in any way.

Secondly you said kids are likely spending their allowance money. They need a credit card so I doubt that. And what would be wrong with spending it on a computer instead of anything else like buying candy at the store?

Third point, seems that you are saying that if you do not pay attention, you can rent the wrong system. The same can happen on Amazon, pay attention. And I am sure they have an easy refund system and good customer service if you make a mistake. If too many people in a single day felt deceived and reported to their credit card company, they would stop service and NZXT would be out of business the next day. So either mistakes are not being made or being taken care of.

And I am sorry but the fourth I do not believe. I work in technical design. We can have 20 devices with the same first word in the name, which is common and goes back to pay attention what you buy. I have been buying computer parts in mass for years and never once has NZXT even asked me a question on any return. I just checked the site and its working fine. So to hold onto "someone else said it didnt work one time long ago" is obviously being biased against them and unfair compared to how any other company would be treated.

It seemed like a desperate argument.

[primeinsurrection]

NZXT is a company that has always been known to treat customers right. Theres no reason to hate them or rally against them. And their rates to not just go up to be mean, they go up if you havnt returned the computer long after it was due. It seems more like malice from personal experience than honesty happening here. I agree renting a computer is a strange concept and wouldnt make sense if long term. But NZXT just doesnt go around ripping people off.

[Dr.Shadowds 🐉]

Originally posted by primeinsurrection:

It seems like people are bashing NZXT acting as if this is some type of betrayal to customers. I dont get it. Renting out high end PCs is nothing new. Are car rental services doing a horrible thing to people who really need to rent a car? There is concern of viruses, but that would be from people, that only effects NZXTs computer, which they attempt to remove or likely will just replace a HD if needed. There are plenty of companies out there that actually rip people off, but nothing wrong with providing a service that the customer appreciates. Now some kid who wouldnt ever get to play games can for a while because his family doesnt have a spare $4,000 to spend on the kid.

Lol no.

Think of it this way if someone don't travel a lot that going on a very far away trip to somewhere for short time, and want a cheap easy way to avoid some of the shipping, and import fees cost it make sense to rent for such a short timeframe.

But if that someone just renting it at home, then that someone an idiot as financing is better option as not only own the PC after paying it off, but you're not obligated to provide status, install spyware, or be hit with any hidden fees.

The problem here is that if watch the video, they're swapping parts under same product name which confuses people what they're getting, and providing false information of hardware capabilities, which is a major red flag, so yeah that one major problem, the other problem is hidden fees when they offer free things only to be charged more, another problem is giving customers run around with broken links to avoid giving refunde, then there the ad space with whole misleading part, which either they were paid to say the things, or been misinformation when giving the ad out.

So yeah there is a problem what they're doing wrong, it's not the idea, it what they're doing the problem.

Also whom going spend $4000 for their kid? Maybe rich family, but avg lol no, also most sane people likely spend around $500 ~ $1200 for their kid basically getting mid to high end hardware so really yeah makes less sense to rent you can't even own. Again financing is basically better option & you own it. Example paying $60 a month can't own, or $20 ~ $50 a month for 24 months you own the PC, and pay at your own pace this for $500 ~ $1200 range, can have it paid off way before 24 month hence at your own pace. Imagine paying $1000+ to give the PC back that how silly rental is for PC.

[primeinsurrection]

Originally posted by Dr.Shadowds 🐉:

The problem here is that if watch the video, they're swapping parts under same product name which confuses people what they're getting, and providing false information of hardware capabilities, which is a major red flag, so yeah that one major problem, the other problem is hidden fees when they offer free things only to be charged more, another problem is giving customers run around with broken links to avoid giving refunde, then there the ad space with whole misleading part, which either they were paid to say the things, or been misinformation when giving the ad out.

So yeah there is a problem what they're doing wrong, it's not the idea, it what they're doing the problem.

Also whom going spend $4000 for their kid? Maybe rich family, but avg lol no, also most sane people likely spend around $500 ~ $1200 for their kid basically getting mid to high end hardware so really yeah makes less sense to rent you can't even own. Again financing is basically better option & you own it. Example paying $60 a month can't own, or $20 ~ $50 a month for 24 months you own the PC, and pay at your own pace this for $500 ~ $1200 range, can have it paid off way before 24 month hence at your own pace. Imagine paying $1000+ to give the PC back that how silly rental is for PC.

Im on their site again and I dont see any of those things you are saying. There is no spec swaps. The refund page comes right up when typed in google. And if there were hidden fees it wouldnt even be legal and any complaints by credit card companies are investigated so that wouldnt be a real ongoing thing. Sorry man but I dont see any of what you are saying in reality. The only valid point I see is if you keep it for 2 years you will pay alot of money and I mean duh. And if you can hold it for 2 years for $1000, then that sounds like an incredible deal.

[Dr.Shadowds 🐉]

Originally posted by primeinsurrection:

Originally posted by Dr.Shadowds 🐉:

The problem here is that if watch the video, they're swapping parts under same product name which confuses people what they're getting, and providing false information of hardware capabilities, which is a major red flag, so yeah that one major problem, the other problem is hidden fees when they offer free things only to be charged more, another problem is giving customers run around with broken links to avoid giving refunde, then there the ad space with whole misleading part, which either they were paid to say the things, or been misinformation when giving the ad out.

So yeah there is a problem what they're doing wrong, it's not the idea, it what they're doing the problem.

Also whom going spend $4000 for their kid? Maybe rich family, but avg lol no, also most sane people likely spend around $500 ~ $1200 for their kid basically getting mid to high end hardware so really yeah makes less sense to rent you can't even own. Again financing is basically better option & you own it. Example paying $60 a month can't own, or $20 ~ $50 a month for 24 months you own the PC, and pay at your own pace this for $500 ~ $1200 range, can have it paid off way before 24 month hence at your own pace. Imagine paying $1000+ to give the PC back that how silly rental is for PC.

Im on their site again and I dont see any of those things you are saying. There is no spec swaps. The refund page comes right up when typed in google. And if there were hidden fees it wouldnt even be legal and any complaints by credit card companies are investigated so that wouldnt be a real ongoing thing. Sorry man but I dont see any of what you are saying in reality. The only valid point I see is if you keep it for 2 years you will pay alot of money and I mean duh. And if you can hold it for 2 years for $1000, then that sounds like an incredible deal.

So you're claiming GamersNexus are lying, and this NEVER happen?

Also Yeah if someone only paying $1000 basically for 2 years they either finance it, or out right bought it instead of renting it. If someone moves a lot, or travel then they would've gotten a laptop instead, that why whole renting thing PC desktop for home just dumb idea.

[smokerob79]

first off this is not the only reason to dump support for NZXT.....they made cases that were literal FIRE HAZARDS!!!!.....anyone missing this fact is missing to much to have a valid point on the company and what they have already done......

gamers Nexus laid it all out and even had a lawyer on to talk about what is legal......since none of you talked about the fire hazard i wont even go in to pointing out the fact this is their 3rd time of pulling garbage like this.....

NZXT is done as a company.....end of story.....cry more cupcakes.....

[Omega]

Originally posted by smokerob79:

first off this is not the only reason to dump support for NZXT.....they made cases that were literal FIRE HAZARDS!!!!.....anyone missing this fact is missing to much to have a valid point on the company and what they have already done......

gamers Nexus laid it all out and even had a lawyer on to talk about what is legal......since none of you talked about the fire hazard i wont even go in to pointing out the fact this is their 3rd time of pulling garbage like this.....

NZXT is done as a company.....end of story.....cry more cupcakes.....

Production errors happen, it was the crappy response to it and plain denail of the problem which was the issue.

[r.linder]

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DAANNGvMANM

NZXT is now essentially trying to gaslight.

[kingjames488]

you wouldn't rent a PC!
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PLzy-IJg4_4

[Electric Cupcake]

Originally posted by smokerob79:

first off this is not the only reason to dump support for NZXT.....they made cases that were literal FIRE HAZARDS!!!!.....anyone missing this fact is missing to much to have a valid point on the company and what they have already done......

gamers Nexus laid it all out and even had a lawyer on to talk about what is legal......since none of you talked about the fire hazard i wont even go in to pointing out the fact this is their 3rd time of pulling garbage like this.....

NZXT is done as a company.....end of story.....cry more cupcakes.....

Leave me out of this, hooman.