The world of high-end hardware isn’t just about shiny graphics and record-breaking FPS. Sometimes it’s more about tears and very expensive lessons. So far, 2026 has served up some truly bizarre stories in the GPU Fails section, showing that graphics card issues can take many forms today – from technical errors to criminal ingenuity. If you thought that buying a card for the price of a used car would guarantee quality and safety, the following lines will prove you wrong.
An RTX 5090 for $3 550? The package contained stones wrapped in a towel
Imagine this moment: you finally manage to snatch up the unavailable and brutally expensive NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5090. You pay over $3 550, wait impatiently for the courier, and when you finally unpack the box from MSI Suprim , you are in for a shock. No PCB, no massive cooling, just ordinary stones wrapped in an old towel.
This particular case from late January 2026 happened to a Reddit user who was shopping through the Amazon Resale program. The scam was ingeniously simple and sadly effective:
- The original “buyer” ordered the card, took it out of the package, and replaced it with rocks to make the package weigh the right amount.
- The package was returned to Amazon, which, due to insufficient quality control (QC), apparently only checked the weight and integrity of the outer box.
- Amazon then sold these rocks to another customer as a discounted item.
For the victim, this was yet another unsuccessful attempt to buy an RTX 5090, which only underscores the desperate situation on the market. This GPU fail is a clear warning that graphics card issues may not always be related to the silicon itself, but also to flawed processes at large retailers. When buying second-hand, it’s best to record the contents of the package on video as soon as you open it.
Sapphire RX 9070 XT NITRO in flames: Problematic connectors are back
If you thought that the burning connector scandal was a thing of the past for the competition, we have bad news for you. The premium Sapphire RX 9070 XT NITRO model is currently facing a growing number of reports of melted 16-pin power connectors (12V-2×6 standard).
The latest reports add two more cases where the blue adapter ends literally “burned out” during operation. It turns out that technical problems with the new generation of graphics cards revolve mainly around physical stress:
- Inappropriate placement: In the NITRO model, the cables are routed directly above important connectors on the motherboard, causing them to bend excessively.
- Adapter failure: Most incidents occurred when using the included adapters (3x 8-pin to 12V-2×6), which apparently cannot handle load balancing during sudden card consumption.
Problematic warranty claims (RMA)
The icing on this unfortunate cake is the approach to complaints. Some users report that Sapphire has rejected their RMA requests, citing “incorrect installation by the user.” The situation is made even more serious by the fact that even after returning the allegedly repaired cards, owners report performance drops in 3DMark or random black screens during gameplay.
This GPU failure shows that even the transition to the new 12V-2×6 standard has not completely eliminated the risk of melting. If you want to avoid similar graphics card issues in your setup, make sure the connector is perfectly snapped in and avoid bending it sharply right at the card’s input.
To avoid similar issues, buy from verified sellers and use properly applied cabling.