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Is Dell a good buy?

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Splatted
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Is Dell a good buy?

Post by Splatted » Fri, 27 Oct 2006 3:39 am

I've seen quite a few ads whenever I yahoo and some of the prices look very cheap.

I'm interested in opinions of those that have had experience with dell:

a) Quality of product - do they use namebrand parts? eg Seagate? or no-name brand HD?
b) upgradability of parts once I've purchased a box - do I have to exclusively buy from dell for the sake of
- compatibility of hardware
- maintaining warranty
c) Value for money - Are there comparable packages available , say SimLim that would be more advisable?

d) Customer Service - particularly if problems within warranty period?
- what is the turn around for repairs? few weeks? few months?

e) Any opinion whatsoever - good or bad. I want to know what I'm in for in advance if I go through with the purchase.

Ideally I want duel core, at least 1gb ram, 3ghz minimum speed. As much HD as feasable.. 19" flatscreen, or higher if not much more expensive. I'm not sure what's the standard these days for video cards - advice?

Oh, and i'm not a gamer .. in case that was one question you wanted to ask me, though I do sometimes play the odd game when I have time, namely diablo ii.

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Post by Plavt » Fri, 27 Oct 2006 6:18 am

Splatted,
I have had Dell computers for a number of years now but I would not recommend them. The quality? Most of the machines I have had seem to have a mind of their own and often don't seem very compatible with products or software from other vendors along with 'peculiarities' over the web. For example some of the moderating software on this forum doesn't work very well but on my apple mac laptop works fine. One might say that is to do with windows which is possible but remember windows on this as I think all Dell computers is OEM software which effectively gives Dell the right to modify it.*

Upgradeability? You would be confined largely to Dell since their motherboards are propriety which means other motherboards cannot be fitted.

As for repairs don't rely on their glossy adverts, I am supposed to be able to acquire a technician in 24 hours, when this was required it took threedays!

Value for money? A matter of opinion, I am using an expensive laptop to write this but have a cheap Celeron PC from the same company. In all honesty the PC is a much bet - keyboard stronger, machine less temperamental, can be left on much longer without risk of overheating.

Personally I would not buy from them again, the customer service is atrocious, the technical support a pain in the butt and it has been said machines of any quality are too expensive although I haven't looked for a long time.

All companies use other various suppliers; for example the CD-ROM drive on Dell is made by a Japanese company and Sony supply the batteries for Apple Mac laptops.


I all fairness all the computer companies I have considered buying from are in some respect badly run, look around the web and you can find forums with complaints about Acer, Hewlett Packard, Dell and many others.


Plavt

*The technical support seem to be, or were, oblivious to this and I had quite an argument about whose responsibility it was, only when I threatened adverse publicity did they go into action.

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Post by Vincent Mothballs » Fri, 27 Oct 2006 8:23 am

Probably best to go for a "generic" built one from Sim Lim, using branded parts. Just specify exactly what you want, and then ask them to build it for you.

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Post by sundaymorningstaple » Fri, 27 Oct 2006 9:42 am

Seems that Plavt and I have the opposite ends of the spectrum concerning Dell. I'm A great fan of Dell. I've always had good service and I've also done a considerable amount of parts swapping/upgrading without using Dell proprietory parts without any problems. Dell normally uses brand name parts in it's PC's.

I've purchased over 20 Dells in the Past 6 years and still purchasing them. I'm am at my office at the moment using a new Dell that only about 3 months old. (5150 with dualcore) dual 17" LCD's & extended desktop (came with the highend 19" LCD which I gave to my boss - it's a bloody good screen I have to admit!), 160 GB HDD & 1 GB Ram, and other good little bits. At home I use a Inspiron 9300 17" notebook with 80GB HDD, 1 GB Ram, dual layer combo DVD writer. My son had a low end Desktop and I also have a old Inspiron 4000 notebook that was originally 10GB HDD, 64MB Ram with Win ME. It's now using a fujitsu 20GB HDD (after reformating it from Unix), 512 MB Ram & XP Pro with wireless card (all after market upgrades done by myself I might add). It's still working fine (not bad for a 5 year old notebook). All work fine on a wireless network (netgear). The desktop has a wireless USB dongle, The old inspiron a wireless card and the 9300 is a centrino motherboard.

If you max out a Dell, you can have one of the most powerful PC's on the market that is under a single warrenty. Most of the Road Tests give the big Dell's very high marks. Sim Lim will get you the same power for about $800-1000 less but good look when it breaks. If you are lucky the shop will still be in business. Plus they will have to send each component to the individual OEM to get a replacement. Time consuming, frustrating and agravating to say the least (and very little piece of mind). But you can save a lot of money to buy printers & scanners, etc....
SOME PEOPLE TRY TO TURN BACK THEIR ODOMETERS. NOT ME. I WANT PEOPLE TO KNOW WHY I LOOK THIS WAY. I'VE TRAVELED A LONG WAY, AND SOME OF THE ROADS WEREN'T PAVED. ~ Will Rogers

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Post by bigfilsing » Fri, 27 Oct 2006 2:28 pm

Dells have always doen the business for me too.

If you are set on trying something else take a look at the latest IBM desktops available at Funan. Good machines for reasonable moeny


Good luck

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Splatted
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Post by Splatted » Fri, 27 Oct 2006 3:27 pm

Plavt wrote:One might say that is to do with windows which is possible but remember windows on this as I think all Dell computers is OEM software which effectively gives Dell the right to modify it.*
Software shouldn't be an issue for me though, as I get it free from the inlaws.
Plavt wrote: Upgradeability? You would be confined largely to Dell since their motherboards are propriety which means other motherboards cannot be fitted.
ok, I can live with that. I usually buy an entirely new box before upgrading motherboards. I was more concerned about buying other things like HDTV digital tuners & other cards.. whether buying dell meant being limited to buying add-ons through dell or risk voiding warranty.
Plavt wrote: As for repairs don't rely on their glossy adverts, I am supposed to be able to acquire a technician in 24 hours, when this was required it took threedays!
I'd actually be pleased with 3 days. Had nightmares when dealing with e-Courts with our last LCD monitor.. over a month wait.. then died after an hour plugging it it, and had to send it back yet again for another month. So, 3 days is pretty good!

Thanks everyone for your advice!

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Post by jpatokal » Sun, 29 Oct 2006 12:33 am

Writing this on a Dell Latitude X300 now, and it's already proved far better than the HP piece-o-poop before it that was in and out of the repair shop every few months. Only issue so far is that the wireless adapter is a bit flaky, but that's probably more Windows's fault.
Vaguely heretical thoughts on travel technology at Gyrovague

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Post by ksl » Wed, 01 Nov 2006 3:59 am

Actually Dell Computers are all branded parts from the largest well known Companies of Taiwan. Most components are branded, although new contenders come into the market place, with their own brand name, the parts are noramlly made at a handfull of well established manufacturers.

Although price is important on a Computer, you only get for what you pay for, So deciding what you want to use the computer for is essential. low end will probably not be good for gaming, with the cheapest of everything slammed in.

It is damn easy to bang computers togther, however to get excellent bench marking is a much more specialised field of play, and will cost top $$$.
Laptops in my opinion are not as versatile as Desk tops and seem to never live up to my expectations of a computer. although I have had the pleasure of experimenting in building my own Computers at no cost to myself, it wasn't always the most expensive components that worked.

It is quite normal however for those with little knowledge, to be sold a computer, they have no need for, and this applies to the many sales sharks that are out there. they just want to empty your pocket.

I believe dell for the price is extremely good, although at the price, I wouldn't expect, the best customer service, unless I was purchasing the top of the range model, then i would expect something for my money.

One is better off, taking someone with you, that understands computers, when you purchase, at least they will have your best interest at heart, and they can help to minimise the bad experiences people have.

My older daughter is a prime example of a consumer with no computer knowledge, who pays top $ for a computer, she will never really get to enjoy. what a waste of 1500K sterling.

Personally my expectations of computers have yet to be realised, but i guess i want too much for my money.

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