RMA to manufacturer cost/time

[Junglebizz]

Hey guys, I was wondering if anyone had a rough idea of what the total cost is to ship a motherboard back to the manufacturer in the US for an RMA? I was told that I would have to pay freight in and out as well as all customs and duties. Depending on how much this is going to be, I just wonder if it would be worth getting a new motherboard instead.

Motherboard in question is an ECS G45T-M2 from a friends HTPC. This would be the second RMA for this board (first one was to NCIX within 30 days) so I'm hesitant to think that the 3rd times a charm with this board. If the cost is too high, I may just go with a Gigabyte GA-G31M-ES2L instead for $64.

Anyone have to deal with this shipping situation before and have an idea of what the cost will be (or for that matter, the turn around time?)

[SugarJ]

For $64, I'd probably just buy a new mobo. I paid $28 to express ship a GTX260 one way to EVGA a couple of weeks ago.

[gingerbee]

just buy a new one i normal do unless it a biggie ( in price )

[dataxpert]

trash it, but for your info, canadapost.ca have all the info for ship something, you enter the destination, the weight and dimention of the box.

[Junglebizz]

I'll check that out and let my friend know the options. Odds are the new one is going to be the way to go. Any opinions about the GA-G31M-ES2L? I have had good luck with gigabyte boards, so I figured I would go with it. Any other options? It does not have to be mATX, but it needs to support 45nm 775 cpus and have built-in video.

After visiting the canada post site and guessing the dimensions of the box it would ship in, the one-way cost was just over $31. So ~$62 for both ways, plus any duties... Yeah, that's pretty well as much as the board was worth new

[Soultribunal]

FedEx Ground = $19.27 or something (5-7 days) .
And, customs and duties are Exempt if you put that it is a Warranty or RMA with a total Customs value of $10.
I've done this for a VC and PSU now, and never had anything held at the border nor have I paid customs.

That being said,
If you want Onboard and Rockstable , and no intention of OC'ing, get the same board I have in My Main rig.
Intel DG35EC, it supports upto and including the Q9650.
I've had it since they first came out.
Its had 3 Different Chips in it now, and not one problem or issue.

Best Regards,
ST

[Junglebizz]

It's only running an E5200 and overclocking/quad core CPU isn't exactly on the horizon for this system. It's good to know about the exempt option. I may look into fedex as an option, but that's still almost $40 assuming there's no duties when ECS sends it back.

FedEx site said the price would be similar to what you quoted, but I am still guessing on the size/weight of the package.

Also the site says: Important for Customs: To prevent delays, your shipment must have the following customs documents attached: Commercial Invoice, Certificate of Origin, Shipper's Export Declaration. Additional clearance documents may also be required.

Smells like hassle....

[Soultribunal]

Originally Posted by Junglebizz

It's only running an E5200 and overclocking/quad core CPU isn't exactly on the horizon for this system. It's good to know about the exempt option. I may look into fedex as an option, but that's still almost $40 assuming there's no duties when ECS sends it back.

FedEx site said the price would be similar to what you quoted, but I am still guessing on the size/weight of the package.

Also the site says: Important for Customs: To prevent delays, your shipment must have the following customs documents attached: Commercial Invoice, Certificate of Origin, Shipper's Export Declaration. Additional clearance documents may also be required.

Smells like hassle....

Yeah size weight is always consideration, but I'm going on the last price I got sending something down stateside for RMA (my VC) and trust me, the box it was packed in makes a motherboard box look small.
So thats my charge for dimensional Weight.
As for the Documents.

You only need one, not being a buisness. That is a Proforma Invoice, which is a customs document that has information 'to the best of your knowledge'.

That being said, if it smells too much like a hassle, then get a new board.
DG35EC can be found cheap online, and will take your E5200 without a hitch.

Regards,
ST

[Junglebizz]

So in the 2+ weeks since I asked them for an RMA number they have transferred me to a different department where I almost had to repeat my tests I did for the first department, then they asked me twice to contact NCIX to get them to deal with it as shipping will be heinous. I'm really getting bored of this running around.

[Nodscene]

I'd say it's not worth the hassle, especially if you can get the Gigabyte for $62. It's a better board overall and chances are it will be trouble free and rock solid for years.