Easy as Dell? Like Hell
Written: Nov 25 '01
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The Bottom Line
DELL has no customer service. If you buy from them you better be prepared to fly solo.
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| Full Review |
Ah, who amongst us has not seen that fresh faced boy on the TV hawking the wares of DELL? He makes it sound so wonderful. A great product and a wonderful price... and the best customer service anywhere. EASY AS DELL. Like hell.
I will attempt in the diatribe not to let my venom get the best of me but it is born of a well spring of frustration. My experiences with Dell have been tedious and irritating however I shall attempt to be as lucid as possible during this review.
I am a simple man. I am not psychic. I do not possess an otherworldly power of perception. I cannot read minds. I have silly expectations.... like getting what I pay for, receiving courtesy from a worker and having people know their jobs. I know. Quite foolish.
I work for a company that as part of its benefits package offers a discount with DELL computers. As I was in the market for a new computer I decided to give them a try. The first thing I noticed was that the website I went into thru work and the normal DELL website were quite different. I decided that it was better to be safe than sorry so I called the DELL customer service line.
Here is where I should have gotten my first clue. I held for over 15 minutes. This was during the week during the day so I didn’t think anything of it. When the Dell rep answered the phone I was assured that it didn’t make any difference which site I used. He then tried to take an order for me. I refused saying I was still thinking about it. I hung up and called again, just to be sure. The second person told me that I most assuredly DID need to go thru the website from my work or I would not get my special discount. This sounded more reasonable to me so I hung up and decided to wait and shop around for awhile.
A few weeks later I decided to order. I went to the correct site and picked what I wanted. The first problem I encountered was that it would only let me pick 128 MB of RAM with my computer. I called and was assured that after my order was placed I could call and have this adjusted to 256MB easily. (This person also tried to take my order over the phone) I completed the order and then called and was assured they had updated my order to have 256 MB or RAM and were making sure the discounts were correct.
Fast forward- the computer arrives. I didn’t get the additional RAM. AND with shipping and handling I paid $2500 for a system that I could have bought locally for $2000 or less. Fine print. Buyer bewares. Etc....
I went back to the sites and went over my email confirmations and realized two things. One, I had never gotten and email confirming the RAM upgrade to my order. My mistake for assuming someone is going to do their job. The second thing was to me even more disturbing. The discount I was to get was billed as 10% off and a discount on shipping.
But when you compared this to the main site they gave you a much better deal there. The price on the "special" website was INFLATED.
Well, that is more an issue of my company and DELL but it is still not full disclosure... at least as far as I am concerned.
But, again, after many calls and MASSIVE amounts of hold time (a cordless phone with a full charge actually ran out of juice during one session) I was made to feel like it was my fault and given a pitiful 5% discount for my trouble. This was after explaining I just wanted the problem fixed and the issues addressed.
Did they address the issues of fix the problem? No. Money should solve the problem apparently in their book. It didn’t.
So... no additional RAM and a horrible taste in my mouth from this business transaction. I paid off the computer so that I would not have to deal with DELL at all.
But then, of course, I hit a snag. I still needed that additional memory. According to my DELL warranty I should use their equipment so that I don’t void it. So back to their site I go, three months later and a lot more suspicious.
I read and read and read and read the site.
It says to make sure your stuff is compatible pick your system. I did this. Dell Dimension 8100.
Make your selection. I did this. I need 128MB of RD RAM.
Login to the site to place an order. AH- Here I thought. I have a file with them already so they can double check my order and make sure it is compatible. RIGHT?
WRONG!
They sent me one 128 MB stick of RAM.
My computer was built with two 64MB of RAM.
I just found out you replace them in pairs. How was I to know? I am not a computer expert. Nor am I schooled in the art of PC building. I am a novice. THEY are supposed to be the experts. THEY are supposed to be validating my order before they send it.
So, I call. I try to get it to work. I find out that RD RAM cannot be used without a matched pair. The two technical reps I talked to admitted to me that it was just laziness or apathy on the part of the person who filled my order to not cross reference with what I already had.
The whole purpose of getting it thru DELL was that they already knew what I had and what I needed to upgrade to that was compatible. I could have gone to my local BEST BUY and done much better.
And you know what? The next time I will.
Currently, I am unable to get an answer from DELL about anything. Customer service just rings and rings and rings. No answer to my email. All I want it to know how I go about returning the part they sent me and getting the parts I needed. And I better hurry too.
Know why? Part of their small print I learned last time is that you only have so long to contact them to return something or you are stuck with it. Isn't it convenient that they make themselves unreachable and put it in the consumer’s lap the wait on hold or lose?
Here is the real kicker. The product isn't bad. It may be a bit pricey, a tad over inflated, but it seems to be working as advertised. The problem is bad customer service. Not being able to get a response to your email or a live person to correct an issue is to me as bad if not worse than dealing with someone who is rude. At least with a rude person you have a place to start from. You are talking to a person. Anyone who is thinking of buying from DELL may want to take a serious look at their "world class" customer service first. What a joke.
DELL COMPUTER CORPORATION- EASY AS DELL.... yeah. Like HELL!
Recommended:
No
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Epinions.com ID:
nomad40
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Reviews written: 8
Trusted by: 0 members
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