Dell is so absurd...

[takotchi]

(if you get offended easily, better turn back now)

I really am getting tired of Dell. I just have to say it.

I ordered my PPC 2003 upgrade CD way back in June, the 24th I believe. So far, I have received one ghetto-looking e-mail delaying it all the way until the middle of September, while people that ordered AFTER me got dates of August 22. NOW, people already have their upgrade CDs, and people that are ordering RIGHT NOW, within a few days ago, already have their CDs shipped! To conclude this section about the CD, I got shafted two ways; I ordered early and had to pay MORE, and they still haven't even shipped it yet, while other people already have it!

Now, I'm not terribly angry about that, because I already, *ahem*, upgraded mine myself. But, Dell finally, after months upon months, placed the Snap-on Keyboard, the thumb keyboard, up for sale on their web site. So I don't have to deal with somebody who can't speak clear English and miss out on the web coupons to buy it. However, it is still for the slightly high price of $50, and now, for some bizarre reason, they are charging a whopping EIGHT dollars for the crappiest shipping option, and furthermore, they are charging me TAX now! (I live in Virginia, by the way, and have never been charged tax on-line before... not even from Dell just a month or so ago)

So mere hours after ordering the keyboard, which was listed as IN stock, I get an e-mail delaying it all the way to the middle of August. It's not like I can go inside a store or something and buy accessories, because Dell won't put their accessories in stores, and they have zero third-party support, other than universal things like CF and SD cards.

I would call and complain about my orders to Dell, but it's lost on their extremely foreign (and extremely rude) staff.

*sigh* I guess you get what you pay for, I'll buy a more expensive HP next time. At least I won't be at the mercy of Dell for accessories. Though, their support and service is probably still as bad as Dell, as far as speaking clear, native English. :roll:

I tried to pick an emoticon to sum Dell up... here it is: ukeface:

[takotchi]

(if you get offended easily, better turn back now)

I really am getting tired of Dell. I just have to say it.

I ordered my PPC 2003 upgrade CD way back in June, the 24th I believe. So far, I have received one ghetto-looking e-mail delaying it all the way until the middle of September, while people that ordered AFTER me got dates of August 22. NOW, people already have their upgrade CDs, and people that are ordering RIGHT NOW, within a few days ago, already have their CDs shipped! To conclude this section about the CD, I got shafted two ways; I ordered early and had to pay MORE, and they still haven't even shipped it yet, while other people already have it!

Now, I'm not terribly angry about that, because I already, *ahem*, upgraded mine myself. But, Dell finally, after months upon months, placed the Snap-on Keyboard, the thumb keyboard, up for sale on their web site. So I don't have to deal with somebody who can't speak clear English and miss out on the web coupons to buy it. However, it is still for the slightly high price of $50, and now, for some bizarre reason, they are charging a whopping EIGHT dollars for the crappiest shipping option, and furthermore, they are charging me TAX now! (I live in Virginia, by the way, and have never been charged tax on-line before... not even from Dell just a month or so ago)

So mere hours after ordering the keyboard, which was listed as IN stock, I get an e-mail delaying it all the way to the middle of August. It's not like I can go inside a store or something and buy accessories, because Dell won't put their accessories in stores, and they have zero third-party support, other than universal things like CF and SD cards.

I would call and complain about my orders to Dell, but it's lost on their extremely foreign (and extremely rude) staff.

*sigh* I guess you get what you pay for, I'll buy a more expensive HP next time. At least I won't be at the mercy of Dell for accessories. Though, their support and service is probably still as bad as Dell, as far as speaking clear, native English. :roll:

I tried to pick an emoticon to sum Dell up... here it is: ukeface:

[Excalliber]

I hate Dell so much. They said that Roxio Easy CD Creator 5 was included in the computer. I get it only to find that it's a trial version. Well, i got the program in the end (anyone want to guess how?), but it still pisses me off.

In addition to this, the CD drive that they put in the computer doesn't have any drivers... Anywhere! When XP deleted it's Optical Drive drivers (???), there was no place on the web that i could find them, and in addition to that, the drivers CD wouldn't work from another computer so i could pull them off into a floppy disk. Ugh, what a pain ukeface: Eventually, I just wiped the Harddrive clean. Only after Windows was gone did the Computer recognize the Disk Drives. I installed an Indiana University version of XP, and never had any problems again. BTW, the instillation for the OS was warped when it got here. :roll:

I would have been OK with it if there were drivers ANYWHERE for these no-name drives, but there aren't. That's what you get with Dell... (or at least, a chance of that happening :evil: ).

After that, there was no way an Axim would even be considered, no matter the cost or features. I went with an h2210.

[jake080]

awe, poor things, did you cry?
***Nasty comment deleted.***

oh, by the way, you're welcome for the comment

***Edited by moderator SJC 8/9/03***

[takotchi]

Hmm... I didn't think we had people on this board that were that immature and unintelligent. I guess I'm wrong. :roll:

[Janak Parekh]

Originally Posted by jake080

***Nasty comment deleted.***

Jake080: personal attacks are not tolerated on this board. Please refrain from making any more.

Excalliber: sounds like you did have an unusually bad experience. Regarding Easy CD Creator 5, there's a "Basic" and a "Premium" version. Are you sure you didn't get Basic and you got a trial version instead? The Basic is a full-fledged CD creator software -- it just doesn't have the graphics and audio editing tools that Premium comes with. Also, CD drives never come with drivers anymore, and haven't since Windows 98. A virus is one common source of CD drives not being recognized.

takotchi: I would submit your experiences to Dell's feedback channels. It's obvious their online store is a bit broken.

--janak

[takotchi]

I did submit a few paragaphs to Dell's on-line comment... thingy. I doubt that is what made the snap-on keyboard appear on their web site, but that was my main complaint.

Not that it matters, since it's still very difficult to find and is listed as shipping in 1-2 days... when mine is not shipping until next week. Before anybody asks, no, I am not counting weekends. :razz:

[droppedd]

I ordered a digital camera from dell, a Sony DSC-U20 miniature digital camera. After they accidentally cancelled my order, i had it reinstated. Then it was delayed for several weeks, and after I called to check on it they assured me it was expected in stock soon. That friday, I found a package with a digital camera sitting and waiting for me. Great, right?

Except it was the wrong camera. They sent me some big bulky Kodak that doesn't even remotely resemble the DSC-U20.

They were pretty good about the return; they paid for an Airborne Express pickup... but still, something that should never have happened.

[isilver]

I guess everyone has there complaints about Dell. Even though you bring up interesting complaints I can't help but think how small each complaint is in the scheme of things.

Ordering PPC2003. I prefer to think of the possitive end of this issue. Several other PPC refuse to offer upgrades to there Pocket PC's. Not to mention the one's that charge an arm and a let just to get it.

With everything that has happened with the new Dell OS. First there was a OS problem causing speed issues on the Axim's. When they found this out they tried to nutrilize it as quickly as possible. Then when they released a patch it was hacked within 2 hours.

We all need to remember that PPC are a new world for Dell and they have experienced nothing but problems. I even remember back when there web site was displaying the incorrect price for the Dell Axims'. Offering it at 1/3 of the price. This forced Dell to offer everyone who order a Dell about a $150.00 discount. I'm sure most of which may have been losses.

Dell has only acted admirally when they have found out about every problem with the Dell Axim (except for maybe Sandisc memory cards which was not there fault).

Basically. I salute Dell for the work they have put into there PPC's. I am certainly going to buy the next version that they come out with (X3 or X7 or X9?).

[Hyperluminal]

Takotchi and Excalliber, I know exactly what you mean. I had a problem with my Dell notebook, where for some reason it would die often when I took it out of suspend or hibernation. I tried everything software-wise, including reinstalling XP twice, reinstalling 98 (which it came with) twice, and it still did it. Even so, they insisted it was a software problem, often saying it was the video driver (I have no idea why). I told them that I reinstalled 98, from the Dell restore disk, meaning at the original factory software condition it was doing that problem. They didn't care. It didn't help that the reps were mostly from India who couldn't understand English, and had thick accents that were hard to understand over the phone.

At one point, they had me send the notebook in (never mind that I have on-site service) to do some diagnostics. I was pleasently surprised when I got it back two days later. However, all they did was flash the BIOS, even though I had the latest version, change some basic power settings, and get this weird black stuff all over my screen. Speaking of power settings, all too often when they heard my problem they simply predeeded in telling me how to disable hibernation and suspend!

I dealt with this problem for about ten months before I finally decided to call Dell and insist they give me a new computer. Most people I spoke with didn't care, and weren't very helpful (like usual), but finally I got someone who give me a system exchange. They were actually very generous, and I got a practically top of the line Inspiron 8200 (before it was discontinued).

Still, because of the fact that it took them nearly a year to resolve that problem, I'll never give Dell more money unless I don't have a choice (ie. no one else is selling what I want). Not getting an Axim was a no-brainer, so like Excalliber, I also got a 2215. BTW, I've actually had very good service with HP. My old iPaq 3835 had some problems, and they were very knowledgable, friendly, and didn't treat me like I was a complete idiot.

[takotchi]

I have other, bigger complaints about Dell, but they weren't Axim-related so I didn't post them, but here is an example...

I bought an Inspiron notebook, with a 3-year warranty. After about a year and a half, I think, they recalled the batteries (remember the South African girl that got her thighs burnt off?) because of fire hazards. So, they sent me TWO new batteries to replace the one I sent in. How nice of them, right?

Not really. About a month after I received my free battery, it simply stopped working... it only lasted about 5 minutes and then would die. So I called up Dell, and asked for a replacement. I got the rudest Indian lady... ever. After only asking once, she screamed at me "NO! YOU BATTERY HAVE-A THIRTY DAY WAH-UN-TEE! YOU NO GET A NEW BATTERUH!" and so on. I eventually just hung up on her.

So, I just tossed that battery. I still had one working, right? Well, no. I got all the parts to build a new desktop computer for my graduation, so I'm using that now, and I give somebody else the notebook from Dell. The other battery no longer works either, the same "only-lasts-5-minutes" deal. I call up again, and get yet another rude Indian-sounding person that says "NO! The batteruh only have-a the 90-day wah-uhn-tay". Of course, I have a 3-year warranty, which you would think would at least include the FIRST battery that comes with the computer, as it is essential to the function of the computer. Nope. I argued back and forth, but it seems they will not include the battery in the 3-year warranty you buy with the computer. So, you are pretty much screwed. Even though this notebook is outdated by several years, the price of the battery has not moved from $99. I refuse to pay that, since I still have my warranty until October. But for now... I give up.