Linus Tech Tips vs. Gamers Nexus: Why are the tech review giants at loggerheads?

Linus Tech Tips is facing rampant criticism from fellow tech reviewers. At the spearhead of them all is Gamers Nexus - a publication known for its in-depth reporting on evolving events in the consumer tech (especially computer hardware) space. Major complaints against the Canadian tech review juggernaut include discrepancies in testing methodologies, inadequate quality control, and resorting to unethical means for the sake of quantity.

For the past couple of years, many viewers of Linus Media Group (LMG) channels have voiced their concern against the falling depth of their videos. This has resulted in many classifying it as "techtainment" instead of treating it as a source of high-quality, in-depth, and accurate tech reviews.

Gamers Nexus dug deep into this story, citing multiple examples of inaccuracies in the work. Linus replied to the video within a few hours with possible explanations that might have caused the issue. Recently, Gamers Nexus replied to Linus' comment by debunking the claims and presenting more evidence. Let's go over the latest developments in this evolving story.

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What went wrong with Linus Tech Tips?

Linus Tech Tips is one of the most followed tech channels, with over 15.6 million subscribers on YouTube alone. However, LMG (Linus Media Group) encompasses multiple other channels. Other big channels under their hat include Techquikie, ShortCircuit, Mac Address, and others.

Gamers Nexus has criticized the majority of channels for discrepancies in testing methodologies. For example, the graphics card reviews were criticized for unexpected differences in performance marks. The differences, according to Gamers Nexus, were mostly created due to human errors and rushing content even after realizing the mistakes pre-publication.

However, recently the story has shifted to focus on a particular Billet Labs, which sent LTT a prototype water cooler for the RTX 3090 Ti to test. LMG reportedly tested it with an RTX 4090, which resulted in poorer-than-ideal performance.

On top of this, Linus did not send the prototype back to the company after making a video on it. According to the latest revelations, the company promised Billet a tracking number within a week back in July, only to auction it off at LTX. Billet confirmed to Gamers Nexus that LMG didn't promise any form of compensation until their video was published yesterday.

Linus' response to the Gamers Nexus video on the LTT forum (Image via LTT Forum)

In addition to this, multiple other discrepancies were spotted in graphics card reviews that completely deviate from what gamers can expect from the products. Some examples cited in the GN video included Linus Tech Tips' RTX 4090 review, which showcased massive gains on the RTX 4090 in Cyberpunk 2077. The reality is different, as the results were logged due to improper testing methodology and inadequate care.

Gamers Nexus argues these discrepancies shouldn't be found so regularly in a company that is building a future based on the accuracy of the data it publishes. Video host Steve cited Linus' previous claim of LMG receiving a whopping $100 million offer for acquisition as a classic example of why Linus Tech Tips and other channels under the company should refrain from unethical practices.

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Ex-employees are opening up about misconduct and harassment at LMG

In addition to the Gamers Nexus video about inaccuracies in content, ex-employees at Linus Tech Tips are now opening up about the shocking misconduct they had to face at the company, including s*xual harassment.

Madison Reeve, a.k.a Suop, has commented that she was overburdened with work and was consistently harassed while working at the company from 2019 to 2021. She was belittled and her work was called "dogshit." In addition, she has also complained about physical and verbal abuse from her co-workers.

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Are Linus Tech Tips and Gamers Nexus fighting against each other?

Both Linus and Steve from Gamers Nexus have confirmed they don't want to drag this into a prolonged fight. While Steve considers honest reporting a part of his job and something he prides on, Linus has said,

"It saddens me how quickly the pitchforks were raised over this."

Despite the discrepancies in past videos, Linus from LTT has claimed they are continually working on improving their testing methodology and production process to iron out any issues that prevent their content from being top-notch. However, only time will tell how their videos pan out.