Nvidia, together with sales platforms, bans the trade of second-hand GPUs in China

Nvidia, together with Chinese e-commerce platforms, has reportedly imposed a ban on the sale of used and refurbished video cards from the GTX 10, GTX 16 and RTX 20 series, among other things, because many fake video cards are allegedly being sold under those names.

This is written by the Chinese MyDrivers. Brands such as 51RISC, Corn and Mllse are said to sell Nvidia video cards on various Chinese platforms for relatively low prices. By the way, they also offer AMD hardware. In reality, this could be a deception: the cards have already seen heavy use in crypto mining or they are converted mobile GPUs. These brands are also not officially licensed to produce Nvidia cards.

To tackle the problem, Nvidia is joining forces with the platforms on which these sales take place: JD.com, Douyin, Pinduoduo and Tmall have already cooperated, MyDrivers writes. Sellers on those platforms are no longer allowed to sell used, refurbished or counterfeit Nvidia video cards from the 10, 16 or 20 series. The reasoning is that those cards have been hit hardest by the crypto mining boom of recent years and that the 30 and 40 series are not or less so.

Nvidia also provides some tips to avoid such counterfeits. The company recommends purchasing later 30-series or 40-series cards and sticking with known, official Nvidia partners.

This GTX 1660 has not been approved by Nvidia and is 100 euros cheaper than the cheapest 1660 Ti in the Pricewatch.