Soluții

How to buy used Computer Hardware without getting scammed

• Data 07/08/2025
• Autor Ianis Dumitrescu
• 0
• 7

Corsair CX650M

As for storage, both SSDs and HDDs degrade over time, so while they can be an okay purchase if you find a good deal, you’re still risking losing all your data. That said, if the seller has checked the storage health, and it’s above ~95%, then it could be an okay purchase.

Now that you know what hardware is worth buying, it’s time to learn how to identify good deals. This step involves a bit of time and effort on your part, but trust me, every minute you spend learning about the current market prices will be well worth the savings in the end. Regardless of what component you’re planning on buying, you need to learn about the current market prices so that you can determine if the deal is worth the risk.

Start by setting your maximum budget for the component in question. Let’s say you have $400 to spend on a graphics card. First, learn a bit about the current offerings by NVIDIA, AMD, and Intel, then check how they stack up against the past two generations. For instance, AMD sells the RX 9060 XT 16GB for $349, and NVIDIA has the RTX 5060 Ti 8GB for $379. I’m skipping over the Intel B580 because it wouldn’t be a fair comparison given the card’s $250 MSRP.

Now, let’s see which older GPUs compare to the AMD RX 9060 XT 16GB and NVIDIA RTX 5060 Ti 8GB in terms of performance and price. On the AMD side, the RX 7700 XT (~$370–$400 used) and RX 6800 XT (~$360–$390 used) are strong contenders. NVIDIA’s closest equivalent is the RTX 3080 (~$380–$420 used). I personally picked up a used RX 6800 XT for $330 before the RX 9000 Series launched, and I’ve been very happy with the value I got.

Performance can vary quite a bit between these cards due to factors like ray tracing capabilities and upscaling technologies. Also, the new cards currently cost well above MSRP, and used cards cost more than usual, too, due to high demand. These are just rough comparisons, so take them as general estimates.

If you were able to buy the new cards at MSRP, they could actually be a better deal than these used cards. You might sacrifice a bit of raw performance, but you’re getting a warranty, better long-term driver support, and additional features like AMD FSR 4 and NVIDIA Multi-Frame Generation, which can boost performance significantly.

However, since new cards are currently priced well above MSRP, if you need a GPU right now, a well-priced used card is likely the better choice.

This situation highlights how quickly market conditions can change—a principle that applies to all types of hardware, not just GPUs. Always do your own research based on current prices and trends. Compare benchmarks for the hardware within your budget, but don’t forget to factor in long-term driver support, reliability, and other features.

Where to buy and how to recognize Scams

The safest places to buy used computer parts are sites that sell refurbished goods, such as Micro Center, Amazon, and Newegg. While you’re unlikely to find the absolute lowest prices, it’s also much harder to get scammed. Many items are inspected, certified, and often include a warranty and return protection.

That said, if you’re looking for the best deals, you’re more likely to find them on general-purpose digital marketplaces like eBay or Facebook Marketplace. These platforms often include local listings, which let you save on shipping and inspect the item in person. Plus, with seller review systems in place, it’s easier to spot trustworthy listings and avoid scams. This is my preferred method for buying most things, especially expensive computer hardware.

The third option is specialized used computer hardware platforms like Jawa, Swappa, and even subreddits like HardwareSwap. These sites fall somewhere between the previous two options—potentially better prices than retailers, but with fewer protections and deals than digital marketplaces.

Regardless of the platform, stick to the more popular listings and sellers to avoid scammers. The old proverb of “If something sounds too good to be true, it probably is” definitely holds true here. I’m not saying you should avoid the cheapest options on your site of choice, but be cautious. For example, if someone is selling a used RTX 4070 for $200 while most others list it at $400 or more, there’s a very good chance the card either doesn’t work or doesn’t even exist.

Once you contact the seller, if you find that they’re not answering your questions and are overly eager to sell you the item, be cautious. While there’s always the off chance they just need quick money, scammers often use this tactic to sell broken or stolen parts. They might say something like, “I have other buyers lined up, so if you don’t order now, someone else will take it!” Don’t fall for those tricks.

The most important step of all is to test the hardware in person. While not everyone will agree to these terms, and you might not always find the part you’re looking for locally, that’s okay. If you’re not in a rush, you can simply wait and keep an eye out for a local listing. I’ve bought and sold dozens of computer parts this way, having both had sellers test the hardware for me and tested hardware for my buyers.

Once your test rig is set up, first inspect the computer part for physical wear or damage like bent motherboard (or CPU) pins, then run a stress test and benchmark for at least 15 minutes while monitoring GPU and CPU temperatures. Run a few demanding games as well, since these can reveal issues like GPU artifacting or overheating.

Also, don’t forget that this is your opportunity to ask questions. Don’t be shy—ask about the part’s history and if it has any issues that they’re aware of. If it’s a GPU, ask if the card was used for mining and if the thermal paste and pads have been replaced.

If your only option is to have the computer part shipped to you, contact the seller and ask them for a quick video showing the computer part in action. Even better, ask them for a quick video call and have them run a stress test and some games with MSI Afterburner or the GPU’s overlay enabled.

Once you’ve finally brought the purchased computer part home, there are a few things that you should do. If it’s a dusty GPU or cooler, give it a thorough dusting and wipe it off with a microfiber cloth. If it’s a CPU, clean off the old thermal paste with rubbing alcohol. Next, add it to your PC if you’ve already bought the other components.

If it’s a motherboard or CPU, install the latest chipset drivers and consider updating the BIOS. If it’s a GPU, get the latest drivers. For storage, RAM, and fans, you generally don’t need to install anything, except RGB software if the components have RGB lighting.

Once everything is installed, I usually test the hardware thoroughly with stress tests and games one more time, especially if it’s a graphics card. For example, my friend bought the same graphics card from the same seller as me and only started experiencing problems under load during demanding games. He was able to get a replacement from the seller without issue, but if he hadn’t tested and reported the problem within a few days, the seller might have blamed him and refused the replacement.

How I get an Email when someone logs into My Windows 11 PC

• Data 07/08/2025
• Autor Ianis Dumitrescu
• 0
• 22

Create a Script to Send the Email

The first step is to write the script that sends an automatic email when someone signs in to a user account on your Windows 11 PC. This script contains your email account’s login details and the custom message that you receive when someone has signed to your PC.

To create the script, access Windows Search (press Windows+S), type Notepad, and launch the app. In a new document, type the following script:

# Email Settings
$smtpServer = "smtp.youremailprovider.com"
$smtpPort = "587"
$smtpUser = "yourname@youremailprovider.com"
$smtpPass = "youremailpassword"
$toEmail = "recipient@email.com"
$subject = "Login Alert on $env:COMPUTERNAME"
$body = "User $env:USERNAME has just logged in at $(Get-Date)."

# Send Email
$msg = New-Object System.Net.Mail.MailMessage $smtpUser, $toEmail, $subject, $body
$smtp = New-Object Net.Mail.SmtpClient($smtpServer, $smtpPort)
$smtp.EnableSsl = $true
$smtp.Credentials = New-Object System.Net.NetworkCredential($smtpUser, $smtpPass)
$smtp.Send($msg)

In the script, in the Email Settings section, replace the SMTP settings with those that reflect your email account. You can get these details from Gmail, Outlook, or another email provider that you use. In case you’ve enabled two-factor authentication for your email account, you’ll have to create an app-specific password and use that instead in the SMTP settings section.

• After you’ve configured the settings in the script, save the script.
• From Notepad’s menu bar, select File > Save As.
• On the Save As window, choose the folder in which you want to save the file.
• Select the “Save as Type” drop-down menu and choose “All Files”
• Click the “File Name” field and type something like SendLoginEmail.ps1
•  Then, choose “Save”.

Your email script is ready, and you’ll now use Task Scheduler to run the script each time someone logs in to a user account on your PC.

• To do that, open Windows Search (press Windows+S), type Task Scheduler, and launch the utility. On the right pane, click “Create Task.”
• In the General tab, select the “Name” field and type a name for the task. This could be something like Login Email Alert.
• Turn on the “Run Whether User Is Logged On or Not” and “Run With Highest Privileges” options.
• From the top bar, open the “Triggers” tab. Click “New” to add a new trigger. Select the “Begin the Task” drop-down menu and choose “At Log On.”
• If you want to get an email alert when any user logs in to your PC, choose “Any User.” To only get an alert when someone logs in to a specific user account, enable “Specific User.” Then, click “Change User” and select the account.
• Open the “Actions” tab and click “New” to add a new action.
• Select the “Action” drop-down menu and choose “Start a Program”
• Select the “Program/Script” field and type powershell.exe.
• In the “Add Arguments (Optional)” field, type the following. Make sure to replace the script path with the path to the script you created earlier.

-ExecutionPolicy Bypass -File "C:\Scripts\SendLoginEmail.ps1"

• Select “OK,” enter your admin password, and save the task.

From now on, Windows 11 will automatically send you an email when someone logs in to your PC. In the future, if you don’t want to receive these alerts, right-click your task in Task Scheduler and choose “Delete”. To quickly find these emails in your inbox, you can set up a label. The script above uses “Login Alert on” as the subject line, which you can use to filter all these emails.

Hide the PowerShell Window on Startup

To send you an email alert when someone logs in to your PC, Windows 11 launches PowerShell for a brief moment. This means anyone logging in to your PC will see that window. If you’d like to hide the window, do the following.

Open Notepad and type the following. Make sure to replace the script path with your script’s path.

Set objShell = CreateObject("Wscript.Shell")
objShell.Run "powershell.exe -ExecutionPolicy Bypass -File ""C:\Scripts\SendLoginEmail.ps1""", 0, False

From Notepad’s menu bar, select File > Save As. Select the folder in which you want to save the script. Click the “Save as Type” drop-down menu and choose “All Files.” Click the “File Name” field and type SendLoginEmail.vbs. Then, choose “Save.”

Open Task Scheduler and edit your task. For the action, change “Program/Script” to wscript.exe. In the “Add Arguments (Optional)” field, type the following, replacing the path with your script’s path.

"C:\Scripts\SendLoginEmail.vbs"