I have a GTX 970 and I bought it recently enough to be qualified for the step up program. I have never done this program before and am just wondering what to expect. I chose the ACX 3.0 version of the GTX 1080 and I know there is a huge demand for the cards right now so will I have to wait months until I get my card after everyone else who isn't on the program gets theirs or will I be first on the list when the new batch of cards comes in?

Scarlet-Tech
Evga will pull a few cards out of each batch to fulfill the Step ups. I can not promise a quick process, but you will be able to utilize your 970 until it is time for you to send in the 1080, which makes it much more bearable while you wait.

 
Oh,ok makes sense. Thanks for the info and quick response.

Scarlet-Tech
Evga will pull a few cards out of each batch to fulfill the Step ups. I can not promise a quick process, but you will be able to utilize your 970 until it is time for you to send in the 1080, which makes it much more bearable while you wait.

so you can keep your card til they have one ready for you?

Yes you will be in queue and once a card is ready for you, you will be asked to ship your card. Only when they received your card they will ship the new one but that should go quickly.
 
The initial queue will take a while though. Anyone that can chime in on how long it took with their previous step up at a launch?

SAMOEDADDY
Yuck, sounds like we need some type of cross shipping option here!!

There is no cross shipping as this program is far better than any other company offers.

JWeimer
Sorry to jump on someone else's thread but seems pertinent.
 
If I was in a hurry to update my GPU (to keep up with a new monitor) on an otherwise completely new machine with an old card, I could purchase a 980ti right now and step up to one of the 1080's in a few months when demand settles down?

My experience is completely anecdotal so take it with a grain of salt, but I had a friend who bought 2 GTX 670s for SLI and ended up not liking the SLI configuration. The ti version of the 600 series had already been out for about 2 months and he was able to step up to the ti series. This is similar to what you would be doing, buying an older card now and stepping up later even though the newer card is already on the market. I wouldn't advise doing this though because there never is a 100% guarantee it will work so if you buy a brand new 980ti right now you might be taking a $600 gamble. If I were you I'd ride out your current card just a little bit longer because you have made it this far so there is no sense it making a big gamble when you could only be a month or so away from the best card on the market.

So what happens to the trade in cards?

S3VR0
Yes you will be in queue and once a card is ready for you, you will be asked to ship your card. Only when they received your card they will ship the new one but that should go quickly.
 
The initial queue will take a while though. Anyone that can chime in on how long it took with their previous step up at a launch?

OK...so step 1 is in cue.  What is step 2? (Is it when they have a card for you and ready for payment?).  I would think that payment would be step 3.  Send card back step 4 and step 5 is EVGA receives old card and ships new one.

bobmitch

S3VR0
Yes you will be in queue and once a card is ready for you, you will be asked to ship your card. Only when they received your card they will ship the new one but that should go quickly.
 
The initial queue will take a while though. Anyone that can chime in on how long it took with their previous step up at a launch?

OK...so step 1 is in cue.  What is step 2? (Is it when they have a card for you and ready for payment?).  I would think that payment would be step 3.  Send card back step 4 and step 5 is EVGA receives old card and ships new one.

EDIT: Hrm, sorry bout that; it's a bit wonky as it won't let me paste links it seems. Noob here.
 
Just researching this now myself and I'm sure you've already seen this, but just in case:
 
It's looks like in your example, you're next step is at #5.
 
Stepping through the Step-Up
1. Register your valid product within 90 days from your original purchase
- If your qualifying product has a 3 year warranty purchased on or after 3/1/2013 and registered within 14 days of the invoice date by the original owner from an authorized reseller, then you will receive the option to step-up for the first 90 days of ownership.
- If your qualifying product has a 3 year warranty purchased on or after 1/1/11 and registered after 14 days of the original purchase date you must also purchase an extended warranty in order to be qualified for the step-up program.
2. Upload a copy of your invoice
3. Request to start your Step-Up within 90 days of your original purchase from your product detail page
- Navigate to My Products under Member Home
- Click on View Details of the product
- If your product qualifies, you will see the option to start your Step-Up
4. Wait in queue until approval - this step can last from a few days to many weeks depending on demand
5. EVGA will review your request and you will be approved if you have met the terms and conditions
6. You will have 7 days to pay for the difference between the two products, plus return shipping and applicable taxes, after you have been approved
7. You will be instructed to send your product in and you will have 14 business days to do so after your payment is verified
8. When EVGA receives your product, we will return your new in box upgrade
9. EVGA will automatically register your product so you will receive the full warranty on your Step-Up (as of 1/1/11)
- Any product auto-registered will have its Extended Warranty transferred automatically.
10. You will receive your product shipped via the shipping option you chose and paid for - game on!
 
You will receive detailed emails at every step to instruct what must be done to continue. All Step-Up requests must go through this exact process, you may not purchase the new product and send your original product back for a refund afterward.

Looks like when it's available they'll ask you to pay the difference. It would seem there's a gap in their steps here to take into account out of stock. Should be a waiting for stock and it looks like you'll get notified via email when that happens (step 6).
 
Guessing here but that's how I'm reading it.

JWeimer
Looks like when it's available they'll ask you to pay the difference. It would seem there's a gap in their steps here to take into account out of stock. Should be a waiting for stock and it looks like you'll get notified via email when that happens (step 6).
 
Guessing here but that's how I'm reading it.

The *cue* is the waiting for the product that is currently not in stock. You'll be given an number for your position in the queue which will decrease as the step ups are filled.

The only bummer is, there isn't the choice of the classified or ftw. With 16 days left for me, I guess I can't wait too long

daohaus
The only bummer is, there isn't the choice of the classified or ftw. With 16 days left for me, I guess I can't wait too long

there is rarely a choice for an FTW (970 ftw+ was the only one I have ever seen) and the Classified is never part of the step up. Base models only, as clearly stated multiple times in this thread and in the step up page, instructions, faqs and all other areas.

Thank, I wish I had noticed that earlier.  I would have been further up in the queue since I was looking at it early the day of the release!  Still it is a great deal and I can not complain.  I am impatiently waiting in line now for my 1080 FE :)