I have a small business client who I have worked with for nearly a year now, it is a retail business with 5 computers networked together. When I first started working with them, all 5 computers were at least 7 years old, running Windows98. As I assessed their situation, I suggested that they upgrade their hardware over time, because all of their computers were on borrowed time. Everything worked fine but I wasn’t comfortable with the age of the hardware. I recommended replacing one PC at a time, or maybe two at a time, depending on what their budget allowed.Â
A few months ago, they were able to replace all 5 at once with Dell OptiPlex GX520′s and that was a great move, I thought. Right away, I configured 4 out of 5 of them and was excited for them. Since that time, they have had nothing but trouble. There are regularly a whole variety of errors, many of which are documented, some are potentially network related, some are potentially software related and some are definitely hardware related.Â
The owner has talked with Dell off and on and recently I called Dell for them as well. We checked some things and he pointed me to some diagnostics, which I ran. Everything checked out. They had seen the blue screen of death on occassion and that is likely a hardware error. It happened again last Saturday and today they called the ‘direct’ number to Dell that I was given, since they have been closed since Saturday. It was a quick call, let’s see, from 8:30am until 3:00pm! 6 1/2 hours and Dell has still not stepped up to the plate on this one. The owner purchased the 3 year on-site, next day support, at the time of purchase, but apparently, if the phone techs can’t troubleshoot it down to the exact problem, they won’t send someone onsite. Dell wanted to talk to me again, but they were told no, for a number of reasons:
- Since I charge by the hour, my client wasn’t going to pay me to sit there on the phone having the same conversation that has already been had. (I agree!)
- My point, when I heard that, was there was nothing that Dell asked my client to do that they could not do. It’s not like Dell stumped my client and it would’ve really helped to have the tech guy on hand to run some diagnostics or unplug a cable. They performed every task that Dell asked of them.
- After 6 1/2 hours, nothing had been resolved, another lengthy phone call would not change anything.
The on-site techs do not troubleshoot, apparently, they only go to fix a known problem.Â
At one point, on the phone was, my client, a Dell technician, a Dell regional sales manager and a Dell customer support person and the tech recommended just sending out 5 new computers. Since they couldn’t diagnose them properly and couldn’t come onsite, even though that service was purchased, the tech thought that would cover it, whatever the problem was. Great idea! I wasn’t there but it sounds reasonable to me, I’ve spent many hours on this as it is and have not come to a definite conclusion. (I’ve taken some shots in the dark, but nothing really successful.) Actually, that plan was killed by the CS rep, shut down. What?!? Everyone on the phone agreed to that plan but one person.
So, anyway, I’m just venting my frustration about something that should be a non-issue. I recommended Dell and I recommended the onsite service and now, both have failed me, bigtime! I’ve had good success with Dell in the past on similar situations and I know others have as well. I know of several large/mega churches that Dell bends over backwards for, but maybe my little 5 PC client is not big enough for Dell to be concerned with.
C’mon Dell! Why can’t your techs troubleshoot on-site, that’s ridiculous.Â
I’ve been pricing out a new Dell laptop to buy for myself in the near future, but I’ve got a bad taste in my mouth now, maybe I’ll save a little more up and get a Lenovo. Or maybe I’ll save up quite a bit more and get that MacBook Pro, now you’re talkin’.Â
Personally, I’ve never had anything but trouble with Dell, especially their tech support. Two examples of such problems:
1) I once ordered a terabyte server with rack mounts, but the screw and the screw hole on the mounts didn’t line up, so the server couldn’t be secured in the rack.
2) My mother-in-law has a Dell, and a few months after getting it the CD drive shut down. After a few hours on the phone, the tech promised to look into replacement options (she had the in-home servicing) and get back to her by the end of her shift. Two weeks later, she got a call back from her (while at my wife’s college graduation ceremony, no less), prompting her to ask “What kind of crazy shifts do they make you work in India?”
Dell’s are popular and cheap, I just have a hard time actually recommending them to anyone. I’ve had much more luck with HPs, especially in office environments.
This is why when a transition occured at work and we lost our easy part ordering for Dell I request to be Dell Certified at work. I can go on a website and bypass all of that and just order the parts myself. The Dell Diags which should be on the driver/resource cd can do quite a bit and help you bypass a lot of the time on the phone. I spent all of that time on the phone and documented it all. Once I sent it to my manager, she was more than happy to get some of us certifed with Dell to skip the phone.
dj
FWIW, we’re not having much love from Dell either these days. We switched most of our laptops over to T60/T60p Thinkpads and are seriously looking to build our own “Intel Certified” desktops.
Macs have their problems too! Our Tech Arts guys just ordered a VERY EXPEN$IVE MacPro workstation (dual Xeons, 8GB ram, Fibre Channel, 3TB disk, etc) and it arrived DOA. We’ve had other mac hardware issues, but of course Macs never have problems right?
I know that feeling of recommended something to a client and having nothing but problems with it … it’s not a good feeling at all!
Just remember that over 90% of all Windows problems are driver related … especially BSOD.
My experience with Dell Home/Office support mirrors the previous comments. However, since the church started purchasing through Dell’s corporate sales division, gold support is automatically included with all our workstations and notebook computers. So far, I haven’t spent more than 30 minutes on the phone with a tech for any issue since the transition. If required a tech is onsite the next day with parts in his/her hand. I sympathize with your plight, their normal support is an abomination, however, you might want to make some inquiries into moving your account to Corporate sales, it is worth the effort.
In my previous church, we purchased a Dell laser color printer. Our experiences with Customer Support convinced me of one thing: I intend never to again buy a Dell product of any type for any reason. Ever. Hours upon hours on the phone with CS produced little but bungling incompetence on their part.
Once upon a time, we purchased two Dell Optiplex with three-year onsite warranties. The floppy drive failed on one of them so I made a call to Dell to get it replaced. The tech inquired how I came to my conclusion, and I explained that several known-working disks were unreadable in this computer (they were readable in several other computers)… he then asked that I run the “Dell Diagnostics” program.
“Oh, the diagnostic program that is on this 3.5″ floppy disk?” I said? Yes. “It won’t load… perhaps it’s because the floppy drive has failed?” Sorry… I cannot release a replacement part without a diagnostic code. “Well, I can’t give you a code… sinc ehte program won’t run.” Sir, without the code there is really nothing I can do. Call us back when you have a code.
All that for a floppy?