EVGA vs. XFX

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BTJustice

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Between these 2 companies, which makes the better product, has the best support, and has the best warranty?
 
Both are good but I'm leaning more on EVGA. I'd have to say better support and with the step up program they offer, it really puts them ahead of the game.
 
I've purhcased from both and would have a tought time deciding.

Better product? Don't know how to rate this. I've had two or three cards from both camps, but never had the same card from both (ie go from XFX 7800GT to eVGA 7900GT to XFX 8800GTS).

Best support? I've never had to go to eVGA for support. Although I'd give them points for their step-up program. I've had to RMA a 6600GT by XFX a while back and it was a 2-week quick and painless process. Kudos to them for that.

Best warranty? Probably XFX. They have a double life time warranty and a quick search on eVGA's warranty revealed they're still doing a regular life time warranty (which aint bad anyway).

Bottom line is you really can't go wrong with either brand. I'd go with XFX simply because I sell my cards on these boards before I upgrade (I hope the buyer appreciates double life time warranty).
 
The product quality is equal (except for packaging and overclock) being as they both use reference cards that come from the same manufacturer.

But yeah I got the slight lean towards EVGA.
 
XFX used to have double lifetime warranty, which is great for re-sale.

EVGA has step-up.

I like the support of both. EVGA even puts spies on forums like this one to be proactive to address issues before it spreads.

Right now, I like evga the best, because of how they dealt with the 680i issue with the upcomming Quads.
 
BTJustice said:
What is double liftetime warranty? Only one company has a step up program?
Click to expand...

I believe double lifetime warranty means that say there's a 2nd owner of the card, they are entitled to the lifetime warranty.

Hmm.. I had thought that eVGA would have had that kind of deal too? I could've sworn hearing they offered it around the 7800gtx ko time. And a regular warranty, I guess, would only be if you did not register the product after 30 days from purchase?

About step up program, not sure if xfx offers it, but yes, eVGA offers it BTJustice.

True to what Spartan said, both are great companies ^^
 
BTJustice said:
What is double liftetime warranty? Only one company has a step up program?
Click to expand...

XFX's double lifetime warranty is a warranty that's trasnferable: http://www.xfxforce.com/web/support/showWarranty.jspa?regionId=1&productGenerationId=730964

eVGA's step-up program allows you to trade your card for a new card within 90 days after purchase, you just need to pay the difference between your card's *current* value and the card you're stepping up to:
www.evga.com/stepup/

<edit>Speedy, it looks like they're still doing the double lifetime warranty.

<edit 2> Just learned something:

To qualify, any 6 Series or greater Graphics Card purchased on or after April 17, 2007 must be registered within the first 30 days of purchase or the protection for the card will be limited to 1 year.

Hrm, I didn't register my card. So there goes that.
 
SpeedyVV said:
XFX used to have double lifetime warranty, which is great for re-sale.

EVGA has step-up.

I like the support of both. EVGA even puts spies on forums like this one to be proactive to address issues before it spreads.

Right now, I like evga the best, because of how they dealt with the 680i issue with the upcomming Quads.
Click to expand...

Agree with everything, except this...

Used to? They still do;
http://www.xfxforce.com/web/support/showWarranty.jspa?regionId=1&productGenerationId=730964

It only mentions 6, 7 and 8 series video cards. Not sure about 9 series and the 680i/780i motherboards...

I have an XFX 780i motherboard and I believe their warranty mentions 3 years, but I'd have to look again to confirm.

I'm going to be buying some video cards here this weekend and I'm going the EVGA without a doubt becase of the 90 step-up program. But both EVGA and XFX have great warranties. (so does BFG, by the way)

I've only had one experience with either in regards to customer service, and that was EVGA. I had a problem with my 7800GS, I sent it in for RMA and they sent me back a new one within the week. I was very happy. Their return shipping was overnight as well, if I'm not mistaken, or at least only 2-3 days. It didn't take long.

(That said, even though it's off-topic, I gotta give kudos to Zalman RMA, they are very quick and professional. Brand new sealed PSU shipped overnight the day they received my RMA PSU.)

EDIT:// Make sure you register ANY product from XFX or EVGA within 30 days!!!

- Joey
 
So both companies offer lifetime warranties on their products.

XFX wins in that their warranty is transferable as long as you register within 30 days of purchase.

EVGA wins in their trade-in program but that is only goos for 90 days after purchase and I assume it is pro-rated.

So EVGA's warranty is not transferable and XFX doesn't have a trade-in program. Correct?

Also, are these old companies that have been around for awhile?
 
BTJustice said:
So both companies offer lifetime warranties on their products.

XFX wins in that their warranty is transferable as long as you register within 30 days of purchase.

EVGA wins in their trade-in program but that is only goos for 90 days after purchase and I assume it is pro-rated.

So EVGA's warranty is not transferable and XFX doesn't have a trade-in program. Correct?

Also, are these old companies that have been around for awhile?
Click to expand...

Sounds like you got it right. Not sure about eVGA's warranty, but feel free to read the fine print www.evga.com

Don't know how long the two have been around, but long enough to build rock solid reputations.
 
SPARTAN VI said:
To qualify, any 6 Series or greater Graphics Card purchased on or after April 17, 2007 must be registered within the first 30 days of purchase or the protection for the card will be limited to 1 year.

Hrm, I didn't register my card. So there goes that.
Click to expand...

I recall reading that. I remember when the 7800gtx ko's came out for eVGA, I was sold on the offerings of the lifetime warranty! But when I read the details of the warranty on evga's website, after a month of owning it.. Warranty was totally out the door for me >.< But all is well, the card has been performing rock solid since then ^^ , though I preferred the nv silencer 5 rev3 over their unique cooling system as it still ran pretty hot, especially since I live on a tropical island.

@BTJustice Don't know about xfx's history, thought I'm fairly certain they've got a section that tells about their beginnings like with evga's.
 
As others have said, all the cards/motherboards are based on the reference design and are made by the same manufacturer. The packaging/warranty/overclocking is done by eVGA and XFX (among other companies) and then sold to us, the end consumers.
 
I think I will go with XFX on the 9600 GT I am going to order. I like the ability to transfer the XFX warranty if I were to sell it at a later date.

The EVGA step up program doesn't really mean much to me, but I am sure others have probably used it if they were in a buyer's remorse stage after a video card purchase, lol.

Thanks for all the info guys.

Here are a few handy links...

EVGA
Step-Up Program
Warranty

XFX
Double Lifetime Warranty

Is a division of PINE which was founded in 1989.
 
XFX if you tend to resell / give away your video cards (since their lifetime warranty is transferrable). EVGA's step-up program is really only useful when your step-up period is around the same time a new range of cards is coming out (if you got a new EVGA card now, you'd probably be able to step-up to one of the upcoming 9xxx cards) or in cases where you have buyer's remorse after the return period has passed. Also, the availability of step-up depends on EVGA's stock.

I've had pleasant experiences w/ both companies' customer service. I recently received a 320MB 8800GTS from EVGA for a 7900GS I RMA'd. I had a similar experience w/ XFX back when I had to RMA a 6800 Ultra. Got a 7950GT Extreme in return.
 
If I go to the XFX warranty page here...

http://www.xfxforce.com/web/support/warranty.jspa

And select NORTH AMERICA and the GeForce 9 Series. It says...

"WARRANTY PERIOD: XFX warranties hardware Product for a period of two (2) years."

That seems strange as every vendor I have seen with the XFX 9600 GT states it has a lifetime warranty.
 
BTJustice said:
If I go to the XFX warranty page here...

http://www.xfxforce.com/web/support/warranty.jspa

And select NORTH AMERICA and the GeForce 9 Series. It says...

"WARRANTY PERIOD: XFX warranties hardware Product for a period of two (2) years."

That seems strange as every vendor I have seen with the XFX 9600 GT states it has a lifetime warranty.
Click to expand...

Wow you're right. 9 Series cards are NOT covered currently under the double lifetime warranty.

http://www.xfxforce.com/web/support/showWarranty.jspa?regionId=1&productGenerationId=730964
Double Lifetime Warranty

What do I get?

* Lifetime Warranties
* Transferable Protection
* Modder Friendly

Whats covered?
All 6, 7, and 8 series Graphics Cards are protected.

How do I get it?
All you have to do is purchase an XFX Graphics Card and register the product within 30 days of purchase to activate your Lifetime Protection.
Click to expand...

Anyway, eVGA seems to have lifetime warranty on ALL their cards/products..

Also, their step up program is as such:

I paid 350 for a 8800GTS 640mb a while ago, and I just stepped up to a 8800GTS 512mb. It's price is 349.99 on evga's site, and I paid nothing to step up to it. It's the price of what you paid for your original card.
 
BTJustice said:
If I go to the XFX warranty page here...

http://www.xfxforce.com/web/support/warranty.jspa

And select NORTH AMERICA and the GeForce 9 Series. It says...

"WARRANTY PERIOD: XFX warranties hardware Product for a period of two (2) years."

That seems strange as every vendor I have seen with the XFX 9600 GT states it has a lifetime warranty.
Click to expand...

Interesting. You should contact XFX about it or PM XFX's employee (XFXSupport) here on the forums:
http://www.hardforum.com/member.php?u=143946
 
Gaiden133 said:
Wow you're right. 9 Series cards are NOT covered currently under the double lifetime warranty.

http://www.xfxforce.com/web/support/showWarranty.jspa?regionId=1&productGenerationId=730964


Anyway, eVGA seems to have lifetime warranty on ALL their cards/products..

Also, their step up program is as such:

I paid 350 for a 8800GTS 640mb a while ago, and I just stepped up to a 8800GTS 512mb. It's price is 349.99 on evga's site, and I paid nothing to step up to it. It's the price of what you paid for your original card.
Click to expand...


Not everything, some older 6 series and 5 series products dont. And some very low end 7 series dont either. Otherwise, almost everything EVGA offers carries a lifetime warranty with almost not restrictions other than 30 day registration.
 
RussianHAXOR said:
Not everything, some older 6 series and 5 series products dont. And some very low end 7 series dont either. Otherwise, almost everything EVGA offers carries a lifetime warranty with almost not restrictions other than 30 day registration.
Click to expand...

See what I mean about the evga "spies" :D

BTW, I hope you guys get that I am joking with the "spy" thing. I think that is great that RussianHAXOR that runs the evga forum, and Joe Darwin a director of tech marketing are active in these forums.
 
In comparison of product from the warranty standpoint, XFX wins with the double lifetime (less 9k series). Step-Up is cool but not important to everyone. Shipping costs and having to buy at full retail are going to eat into your benefit there - making it cheaper to sell on ebay then buy a new card at discounted rebate price. That's where a transferable XFX warranty scores another win.

I have had numerous cards from each and found both to be of the highest quality. EVGA follows the nvidia designs closer, while XFX makes some classy black boards and fansinks. The stiffener bar is a nice touch. I prefer XFX for that reason alone.

Time will tell if this warranty change is permanent going forward. That would push me into a monogamous relationship with EVGA.
 
I forgot about that. I really like my 8800GT's black PCB and the black bar they put along the top edge of some of their cards is really classy looking.
 
BFG has lifetime warranty on their video cards and psu's, no registration at all, something about supporting their product no matter who it belongs too. They've been known to help out customers who had to rma a card just before a lan party that they both were going to attend by bringing along a new card for the customer.
 
i have a question about the evga, xfx, and bfgtech warranty service.

if i bought a 8800gts from them and it breaks do any of these 3 companies pay for the cost of shipping back to them? like do they give you a fedex or ups label you can print and use to ship back? or do you have to eat the cost of shipping?

i think that is another point that should be added in rating a company's warranty program.

double lifetime is great but i would prefer not having the hassle of an added $10 for ups ground or $20 for 2day shipping and the like.
 
In my experience, EVGA and XFX only pay for shipping under certain circumstances which usually differ. EVGA also has the option to pay for premium or upgraded RMA service where they provide a prepaid shipping label and expedited RMA service, but again you have to pay for it.
 
hmm i've read about a couple of cases where people who rma'd BFG tech video cards were sent pre paid shipping labels by email for their returns.

can anyone confirm that this is the case for all of BFG tech rma procedues?

if it is that would be a pretty big selling point in my mind.

like xfx has the double lifetime, evga has stepup, and if bfg prepays for return shipping i would have to add bfg to my list of vendors to keep as an option. so far i've only ever considered between xfx and evga and i usually went with evga cuz they were lower priced usually.
 
I'd take XFX's and EVGA's lifetime warranties and excellent customer service over a >$10 shipping label...
 
Here is BFG's warranty...

http://www.bfgtech.com/warranty.aspx

Lifetime, must register within 30 days of purchase, and (for video cards made on or after 2/21/2008)...

"Was not damaged while being installed.

"Was not damaged by software or hardware from a company or individual other than BFG Technologies or by motherboard incompatibility.

"Was operated in accordance with BFG Technologies specifications, instructions and any technical support directions.

"Was not modified or damaged by overclocking, tampering, user error, accident, disaster, abuse, misuse, power supply, power application, alteration, repair, modification, a fix or replacement by someone other than BFG Technologies.

"Third party products, such as motherboards and other system components using or interacting with this Product are not covered by this warranty."
 
If you want step-up, go EVGA.

If you want double-lifetime, go XFX.

If you want standard lifetime, go BFG.

It also depends on price of the card. Also keep in mind some items are not covered by lifetime warranties. Some have 3 years, 1 years, BFG has a 10 year, etc, etc...

Honestly, you're covered with whatever you buy, so just go with whatever offers the most performance for the better price, or whichever you like best. You can't really go wrong, and you'll have a solid warranty regardless of it's valid time frame. Just be sure to register your product within 30 days regardless of the company.

- Joey
 
I agree. I just found it funny that BFG doesn't cover overclocking whereas XFX appears to cover it.

EDIT...

EVGA apparently is not overclocker-friendly either...

http://www.evga.com/support/lifetime/

"There is no physical damage to the PCB, GPU/chipset, or components that are caused by: Damage due to improper installation, damage during modification of any kind, damage during any type of Aftermarket cooling installation, and water damage of any kind."

XFX is looking better and better to me. I would think they will extend their "Double Lifetime Protection" plan to the 9 series GeForce cards. I sent them an e-mail inquiring about this.

http://www.xfxforce.com/web/support/showWarranty.jspa?regionId=1&productGenerationId=730964

"Here&#8217;s the deal: We will repair and service your 6, 7, and 8 Series Graphics Card for as long as you live. Even for those of you who know how to push our cards to the limits, if anything goes wrong, we&#8217;ll service it free of charge. All you have to do is register the card with us online." So as long as you are registered within 30 days of purchase, you get this. XFX is SWEET!
 
EVGA is overclocker friendly unless you physically damage the board while changing HSF or similar.

If XFX covers this damage then they are #1 for sure.

Here's my order of preference based on warranties as they stand today (thru 8x00 series):

XFX
EVGA
BFG

Price is still king but it will take a lot to get me down to BFG from XFX since I overclock EVERY card my hands touch. In most cases I won't replace the HSF so it comes down to price between the two leaders.
 
Myself, i choose XFX usually.

The reason: Resale factor.
Video cards specifically.
I move out of product so frequently that the 2x lifetime protection is a great aid in selling parts to pals.

to quote:
There is no warranty out there that can compete with what XFX offers. On top of a lifetime warranty, it’s transferable. So if you end up selling or giving your 6, 7, or 8 series card to anyone, they wont have to worry about it breaking down on them. It’s also great for those who know how to push our cards to their limits.
 
I like XFX. The double lifetime warranty is nice to have when you sell the card. Also XFX will still cover your card if you overclock it or replace the stock heatsink and fan(as long as you don't crush the GPU or something stupid) with a third party cooler...just make sure you keep the original heatsink and fan and remount it before RMAing it.

The evga step-up deal is of no use to me since I usually keep my cards for a lot longer than 90 days.
 
BTJustice said:
I agree. I just found it funny that BFG doesn't cover overclocking whereas XFX appears to cover it.

EDIT...

EVGA apparently is not overclocker-friendly either...

http://www.evga.com/support/lifetime/

"There is no physical damage to the PCB, GPU/chipset, or components that are caused by: Damage due to improper installation, damage during modification of any kind, damage during any type of Aftermarket cooling installation, and water damage of any kind."
Click to expand...

Unfortunately you are misinterpreting the warranty policies. This policy just states that if you are taking off the heatsink fan assembly and you damage the PCB somehow you are at fault. Its like, dropping your card and it breaks. Im pretty sure any company wont allow that. As for replacing heatsinks, go ahead and do that but remember to keep all of the parts from the heatsink because when you RMA you will need to reattach it.

Anyways, you can overclock... as high and far as you want as long as there is no visible physical damage like a bunch of missing capacitors or a bunch of scraped off resistors.
 
My extremely biased vote goes to XFX (we use their products in our systems and I use their stuff personally as well). It is tough though, because as a few people already said the manufacturing for these products are both done by nVidia, so they are very similar on the baseline. However, XFX has long been differentiating themselves with passively cooled products, so that is one difference, especially if that is what you're going for.
 
RussianHAXOR said:
Unfortunately you are misinterpreting the warranty policies. This policy just states that if you are taking off the heatsink fan assembly and you damage the PCB somehow you are at fault. Its like, dropping your card and it breaks. Im pretty sure any company wont allow that. As for replacing heatsinks, go ahead and do that but remember to keep all of the parts from the heatsink because when you RMA you will need to reattach it.

Anyways, you can overclock... as high and far as you want as long as there is no visible physical damage like a bunch of missing capacitors or a bunch of scraped off resistors.
Click to expand...

I'd still like to see (in writing) that overclocking is covered with EVGA. Until then, I have to go with the fine print "damage during modification of any kind".

Regardless my decision is made on which company I will go with thanks to all that have posted here. I ordered an XFX 9600 GT just a few minutes ago.
 
I'd go with XFX (better re-sale value should, no, when I decide to sell my old card). EVGA isn't bad either though. I just prefer Double Warranty over Step-Up.
 
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