Yeah, you really got it tough.
I don't feel any better.
If you learn the major languages of India you should do much better with customer service.
I got both of my Bare Bones pc’s within about 8 days of placing the order @ pricewatch.com with a few other parts from newegg.com.
I would not even consider owning a name brand pc at this point.
Dell has indeed gone downhill. Not sure of the reason but it was right around the time they moved support and production offshore.
Do you have an Nvidia card in the computer? Nvidia has been notorious for promising cutting edge cards even as their foundary partners are unable to produce the chips in quantity.
I’d change the order to an ATI 5800 or 5900-series card, if so.
Building your own from scratch is more fun. I figure out what I want, what I want to spend; read the reviews; find the best prices, and get it. Pick up some extra stuff for when things break down, and start planning early for the next build. ...Probably not what you want to hear, or not even something that applies to you, but it’s the only thing I have to say when it comes to getting computers. ...I hope you get things worked out.
Sorry Dell closed it’s customer service center in Twin Falls, Idaho last year or the year before so you have to deal with India.
By the way, Michael Dell partnered up with George Soros on purchasing a bunch of mortgages from IndyMac. They are foreclosing on them every chance they get because the FDIC is forced to give them 80%-95% of the original value of the loan, not the distressed price Dell/Soros bought them for.
I’m currently hoping that my Dell laptop survives long enough for my newegg-ordered parts to get to me for my first custom build gaming system. I’m getting one component per paycheck. The HAF 932 case should be here tomorrow.
I KNOW how you feel my friend. I wrote a diatribe of my at http://www.tableofwisdom.com/MrArbitrage_Stock_Picks.html
over a year ago. Since it is mine, I’ll just paste it below to add to yours.
I am about to purchase a new PC this month and it will probably be an HP - but definitely not a DELL. They are like the GM of PCs. Good luck!
Dell: “Dude, You’re getting a ...”
by MrArbitrage
I’m writing as one who is objective on Dell stock. I have never been long nor have I ever been short DELL as I don’t see a great deal of investment potential in the “screw driver shops”. The margins in this business will not get better. I did purchase a Dell desktop about 2 years ago and it went through 2 mother boards in 1 year – now it makes some really crazy, LOUD noises when I download from the Internet. It sounds more like an old washing machine than a computer.
Yes, they were “gracious” enough to replace the motherboards after I haggled with the company and got passed around to a few different departments. I had to wait a few days for some sub-contractor to come out and repair it. He was very nice. He said this motherboard problem was widespread that year and he repairs these all the time because the parts (I forget what he called them but they look like AA batteries cut in half) were not adequate to handle the…” I said “why didn’t they have a recall?” He said that it’s cheaper for them to send out repair people to each location per incident and have the technician repair them onsite.
Keep in mind, this computer is now a few years old (and out of warranty). I thought surely they wouldn’t make this mistake again – but about a month ago I was talking with someone in the course of business who told me they had just bought a brand new Dell this year and to my surprise – he said he has already had the motherboard of all things – replaced.
Prior to my Dell experience, I had always bought Gateway, since 1996. Their customer service was wonderful. My laptop is a Gateway. I had nothing but good experiences with GTW. I am going to be purchasing a new notebook computer this Christmas. I would automatically buy a Gateway but I’m going to do some homework just to make certain they’re still as good as they were before the acquisition by Acer.
One good portent regarding Gateway is that I recently called their technical support department to help me with a possible virus and I was very pleased to talk with a kind young AMERICAN from the mid-west! That was actually an improvement that resulted after the acquisition. The tech support was good before but it was re-routed through Bombay and depending on who picked up the phone, it was at times hard trying to understand their English.
If my research on Gateway under new ownership returns favorable results, I will probably buy the new notebook from them. If not, I’ll look at HP. One thing I can say for certain is that I will never buy one from Dell. I should have been skeptical from the beginning when they were running those commercials with that kid who acted like a stoner and whom later was arrested for Marajuna. Instead of the slogan being “dude – you’re getting a Dell” it should have been “dude – you’re getting a crap box”.
Contact: mrarbitrage@tableofwisdom.com
Your experience may be nothing more than just another example. My company is taking a beating from our customers taking their business to China and elsewhere overseas. But there is ALWAYS a downside. And the downsides become worse than any benefits in time. It will just take time.
By the time you get it - it will be obsolete!
After buying only Dell computers for years and recommending them to friends, we will never ATTEMPT to buy another product from them and discourage friends from it as well. I think the problem starts in their production facilities and grows when you have to talk to customer no-service offshore. It’s just not worth it.
You are not alone.
I tried to order a video card from them over the phone. They could not give me any assistance in picking the correct one for my computer.
I order only from tigerdirect now because they can tell me what fits in my computer.
ping
I then spoke to a sales person who said that he called the warehouse in my city and told me they had one in inventory and would ship it in one day and I would get it within three days. I got his name and telephone extension only to be told by customer care in India that it was a fake extension I was given, didn't work and I was lied to. I tried one last time and got connected to the Philippines where a salesperson offered to get me the same monitor in three days if I paid the difference between the sales price I paid for it and the current price, all while some woman could be heard singing and talking in the background.
This was the third monitor I ordered from Dell over ten plus years, the previous ones arrived quickly. Dell absolutely sucks now and my experience with them was one of the worst customer service experiences that I have every had.
I prefer to build my own machines plus I can pick the components that will work with Linux. The only store bought machine I would get is Apple. But PC side, I build my own.
The UPS man told me it was in the local depot. It was about 20 miles away. Called the 800 number. Absolutely no help. Didn't care. Their message to me was plain: it sucks to be you.
Thankfully, I knew someone who worked at the local UPS depot. Gave me a number. Fifteen minutes later, the package was located, and I picked it up that night.
My opinion of UPS has plummeted. If I didn't have to deal with them, I wouldn't.
"Sucks to be you." Yeah, love that customer service.