Amazon fake CPU warning: user orders AMD Ryzen 7 9800X3D, receives old-school FX-4100 instead

A user has ordered AMD's new Ryzen 7 9800X3D processor from Amazon, but didn't get anything close: instead, they received a fake CPU in a sealed box that ended up being the AMD FX-4100 processor... a far cry from the 9800X3D, to say the least.

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Aris from Hardware Busters purchased an AMD Ryzen 7 9800X3D processor from Amazon, but upon opening the box he saw the CPU had pins underneath. We all know AM5 processors don't have any pins as they've been moved to the motherboard, which would've had his heart sunk in an instant.

Aris explained: "I needed an extra 9800X3D processor for my CPU test-system. Since my other one is permanently installed in my GPU test system, I ordered one from Amazon (DE). The processor arrived on March 4th, and on March 9th, after I finished the benchmarks of the other processors, I finally opened the sealed box to install it on the test system".

"All seemed legit till I opened the box, with the weird looking processor, having nothing to do with the 9000 series. I immediately noticed the different heatspreader, the pins (!) on the bottom side, and the writing on the heatspreader which tells from miles away that it is"fake"! After realizing I have no 9800X3D to use in my upcoming CPU review, I grabbed my camera to shoot some photos and a video!"

"There was some news recently about fake 9800X3D CPUs circulating in China, but these 'fakes' look similar, at least to the PCB. In my case, we are talking about a different level of scam, where someone can easily see that the processor is not a 9800X3D. Moreover, I bought this processor at a standard price by Amazon itself, not a 3d pary seller, and it was new and not a used one! So having it returned by a user, who threw an older processor inside the box, is not the case. My processor's package was sealed! I was the first to open it. So Amazon has to make a deep search now and see by whom they received this processor, and probably alert AMD.".