A hot potato: NZXT has responded to a damning video from YouTube channel Gamers Nexus accusing the PC hardware giant of running a “predatory, evil computer rental scam”. The program in question is the subscription-based Flex service for desktop PCs, which, according to GN, uses “bait and switch tactics.” There are also other allegations, including fake benchmarks and aggressive terms.

NZXT’s Flex program essentially allows people to rent a gaming PC, meaning they don’t have to pay the one-time high price that comes with these devices. However, as already mentioned, the often triple-digit monthly rental costs add up very quickly and exceed the amount you would pay to purchase a new PC in just a few months.

Gamers Nexus noted that NZXT changes not only the prices but also the specifications of some of its models regularly, sometimes even daily.

One particularly underhanded move was to offer PCs with the same name for both purchase and rental. But the subscription-based PCs swap out some of the hardware for lower-performance/older/cheaper parts without making it clear.

One example was the Player:Three PC, which upon purchase comes with an Nvidia GeForce RTX 4070 Ti Super graphics card and an Intel Core i7-13700KF, while upon subscription the GPU is swapped for a 4070 Ti non-Super model. What’s worse is that the FPS gaming benchmarks for both PCs are unchanged, which, as our review shows, is incorrect.

NZXT’s pricing is also criticized. Gamers Nexus shows that in the case of the Player: Two PCs, only seven months of rental payments would be needed to pay for the parts to build an equivalent machine. A more expensive prefabricated building could be purchased with nine months’ worth of rental payments. Even with a payment plan (loan, credit card), it would only take a year for the PC to be fully paid off and for you to own it outright.

GN noted that the five-year payment for the NZXT subscription was $15,540. This corresponds to an illegal loan with 103% interest – you also end up owning several PCs.

There are many other areas of NZXT Flex explored in the hour-long video, including privacy concerns, influencers pushing the Flex program, aggressive terms and conditions, and no guarantee that the specs listed will match what you get on PC.

NZXT responded to the Gamers Nexus video with a post on social media.

“To the NZXT community. We have heard your concerns. We are aware of recent claims made against us and are actively reviewing the situation. Rest assured, we are committed to addressing the issue thoroughly and will issue an official statement soon,” it reads

As a result of the investigation, Gamers Nexus canceled a $23,000 deal that NZXT had to promote on the popular YouTube channel.