Solved New R9 280X or recertified R9 290?

Alright, I've got a budget of around $340 for a new GPU after getting two faulty (used) 280Xs in a row. On Amazon, I can get any number of new R9 280X cards for that price, but there is also a re-certified R9 290 sold through Tegra Tech (who are apparently an "authorized wholesaler and on-line reseller of MSI full line products") for $309 with free shipping.

The question is...should I go for the better, but recertified, card with all the risks that entails, or should I just plunk down for a new 280X and settle for the lower specs/performance but have the knowledge that it's a new-in-box card?

Any opinions are appreciated.

It all boils down to warranty because even 280 will handle anything you can throw at it (for now anyway). New is new, which ever way you look. That "re-certified" is probably just a polite way of saying "repaired ".

CountMike said:

It all boils down to warranty because even 280 will handle anything you can throw at it (for now anyway). New is new, which ever way you look. That "re-certified" is probably just a polite way of saying "repaired ".

Click to expand...

It's a 90 day manufacturer's warranty with all warranty issues handled through MSI themselves. The only reason I'm even considering the re-certified 290 is because the 280X I had before couldn't quite handle Watch Dogs on full Ultra settings.

The more I think about it, though, the more I feel I should just go for the new 280x. The three free games I'll get with it kind of make up for the spec downgrade anyway. Thanks for the input.