Comments on: Judge: Dell deceived customers

By: AR, Boston, MA

AR, Boston, MA — Tue, 17 Jun 2008 19:20:45 +0000

I hate dell. I paid $2000 for a new laptop that breaks every other day. I was on hold for 20 minutes last night before I had to hang up because no one ever picked up. The laptop is completely useless and I will never buy another one. I also signed up for the “no interest” plan which never happened. Horrible customer service all around.

By: Madrid, Spain

Madrid, Spain — Thu, 29 May 2008 22:02:02 +0000

Five years ago Dell was a promising company. Now is heading to bigger problems or merge with a better established company.
Dell technical service is insulting. Dell products are getting worst and worst every year.

By: Ross, New York City

Ross, New York City — Thu, 29 May 2008 20:19:43 +0000

I’ll be short: don’t buy from Dell at all, or you’ll get a big headache later, one way or another.
I made that mistake once in 2000 and financed their crappy laptop for almost $3000.
Dell Financial put a blemish on my credit report even though I paid off the whole purchase within 2 weeks of contract. I called them many times and all I got was continuous finance charges on that already paid off loan!
I threw that laptop to the garbage in 2001. The blemish on my credit is still there.
Dell is pure evil. It is more agressive than ATT. Beware!

By: Patrick, Fitchburg Massachusetts

Patrick, Fitchburg Massachusetts — Thu, 29 May 2008 12:59:06 +0000

I do not understand why so many are so upset with Dell. I have had several issue with my Dell laptop. Nothing major just it operating slow and I fried the Video Card about 1 year after I Purchesd it. Whenever I had issues with my laptop operating slow I would call up Dell Tech Support talk to an American who proceded to direct link to my Laptop and check things out. Their techs were respetful, kind, and I found had a wealth of knowledge in computers.

When my video crad died I called tch support, they ran my trhough a diagnostic reboot to pin point the problem. Were still very kind and courtous and sent a Tech (took two days instead of the usual next day because the vidoe card did not arrive on time)to my house to replace my vidoe card. The on site tech was great, he was nice and seemed to enjoy working for Dell.

Maybe I am some wierd demention where Dell is super great and super crap everwhere else. But I think this is nothing more then a bunch of exaggerated crap and will always go back to Dell because they have the best products and support I have ever seen in a Computer company. I have purcased from HP ,Gateway, and Pro-Star in the past and it was a horrible experience, all three companies had indians that did nothing but read my their websites tech page. To get sevice done you had to spend says arguing with the techs and in the end they sent you a box so you could get your PC repaired in 6 to 8 weeks.

Dell has had superior support and a great product from my expience with them. All of you the trash talk them should be ashamed.

By: Jesus Sanchez, El Paso, TX

Jesus Sanchez, El Paso, TX — Thu, 29 May 2008 12:23:32 +0000

Dell canceled for no reason at all a laptop order when it was ready to be delivered to my house.

Guess what? The laptop was sent back from UPS to Dell but my money was never credited back to my account.

Call after call I was given the same story, my money was going to be credited back in 10 to 15 days… but it never happened.

After too many email and calls and wasting countless hours explaining on the phone my issue I decided to give up on my money and naturally on Dell.

Lesson learned the hard (and expensive) way: never buy from Dell.

By: info_tech_guy, Dayton, OH

info_tech_guy, Dayton, OH — Thu, 29 May 2008 03:27:05 +0000

I’m an IT pro — software engineer, database administrator and systems administrator. I’ll offer a few comments having used many different computers over the years. If you buy computer hardware purely on “selling price” and don’t do any research on the “Total Cost of Ownership”, you’re likely to be disappointed. The inconsistent quality of hardware and technical support along with poor contractual performance at Dell are reasons to look elsewhere. If you buy “on the cheap” anticipate a higher likelihood of problems. The internet offers many means to research purchases. And, should consumers face non-performance of contract issues, the state attorney general’s office is a good starting point but you must carefully document everything. As a final note, I highly recommend Apple laptops over all others. Laptops more than desktops are far more difficult and costly to service or replace. Apple has a decidedly superior product with a superb integration of hardware and software. Quality of Apple hardware and software is excellent and Apple is determined to maintain their reputation for high quality products. I note that some companies are indifferent to quality and customer satisfaction. They seem to imagine that their price and market share make them immune to competitors who offer products at higher initial cost but greater quality and better support. Ironically, most people posting refer to “big name” companies such as Dell, HP and Lenovo. Yet, many consumers will find that local computer stores can build excellent quality desktop computers at a very reasonable cost and they will support their products.

By: Ginger Ball-Bow,NH 03304

Ginger Ball-Bow,NH 03304 — Thu, 29 May 2008 02:05:34 +0000

I was one of the worse scams Dell ever pulled-The computer they sent me in 2002-did not have the DVD player that was to be built-in–got some junk 4 wks.later-didn’t work-returned to Dell with UPS receipt and tracked that they had received it-They kept charging me for 2 yrs. for a laptop I had returned & sent them the proof–I certainly was not going to pay for a computer I didn’t have-they then got to my younger daughter& threatened to put me in jail& if she didn’t pay in one wk. the judge would serve her & I’d be served with stealing the computer–never knowing she got so scared by the threats of Dell Financial She agreed to pay $850.–and I was beyond angry-She paid Dell over $800-due to threats at her place of work daily-and we had no computer-The final amount they got to was over $3000- AND I NEVER HAD A COMPUTER=$800.+THEY STOLE WITH NO PRODUCT IN OUR POSSESSION-WAS PAID IN 2004–THIS IS CRIMINAL–I TRIED TO GET THE MONEY RETURNED TO MY DAUGHTER-BUT ALL I GOT WAS MORE THREATS & THEN THEY TURNED IT OVER TO SOME COLLECTION AGENCY WHO CALLED MY YOUNG DAUGHTER EVERY DAY AT WORK-AND SHE WAS YOUNG & THREATENED TO PAY FOR NOTHING-hOW COULD THEY EVER COLLECT & CARRY IT ON FOR YRS. WHEN THEY HAD PROOF OF THE RETURN ALL ups RECEIPTS SENT TO THEM & ups WROTE TO THEM STATING THE DAY they rec’d it & who signed for it–This is beyond Gross actions for any company and they never would accept anymore letters & never returned my daughter’s money–HORRIBLE AND SICK-THE GREAT DELL!!!

By: Kandi Pedraza, Peoria, IL

Kandi Pedraza, Peoria, IL — Thu, 29 May 2008 00:48:34 +0000

I will never purchase another Dell computer again. I’ve had mine for 6 weeks and have had nothing but problems with it since I plugged it in! Don’t bother with calling Tech Support or Consumer Care because they will do nothing to help you except transfer you from dept to dept. I can’t get anywhere with Dell…but I know that I will never purchase another product from them!

By: Don, Chillicothe, OH

Don, Chillicothe, OH — Wed, 28 May 2008 23:33:11 +0000

I bought a Dell laptop back in early 1999. It needed a few things serviced like the keyboard and CD-ROM drive and they were quick to take care of it. The CDROM swap was done by me removing it from the front bay and replacing it with the one they sent me. The keyboard was replaced in one day (maybe two if you count the time it took to receive the prepaid overnight FedEx box). I sent the entire laptop in after I removed my hard drive, battery, and CDROM drive that time. They not only replaced the keyboard, they updated my BIOS, which wasn’t required.

But, that WAS a long time ago. And I bought mine through our corporate employee purchase program, which gets serviced differently and has American English speaking technicians ready to help you. Hold times weren’t extreme and they spent what time you needed to help you with any problems.

If I had bought a desktop with in-home service like some of these people did, I would have expected just that, with no work on my part to do any repairs on the PC. In-home doesn’t mean you will be doing the repairs yourself! But, doing simple repairs and replacements will probably speed up repair times and if it’s easy enough to do, I would be willing to do that. But not everyone feels comfortable doing this, and I once broke something in a laptop while trying to follow the directions of the technician on the phone (a different brand that no longer is in business). They weren’t happy about it but they had to replace what I broke.

By: dellrocks,san diego, CA

dellrocks,san diego, CA — Wed, 28 May 2008 22:51:47 +0000

dell support are the best tech support i ever had. if you get a dell tech from the philippines, your dell system is in good hand. anyway, the issue here if dell is cheating or not. i know dell works with integrity. may be those people who are too lazy to read and understand the thing they are dealing with. every company on the top 100 fortune companies, for sure, have flaws on their processes. but its the way the company respond to those irregularities, i think, what matters most. and for that i give DELL a 9 star out of 10.

By: Julie, Texas

Julie, Texas — Wed, 28 May 2008 22:45:44 +0000

Dell’s support is mainly for help technical issues because of defects in computer, not because you messed it up during usage and definitely not a TUTORIAL SCHOOL for computer usage. That judge is just a pucblicity hog, just sensationalizing an issue which is not really a big deal actually. Customers that are mislead and those people that are soooo LAZY to read the services contract and warranty details, terms and conditions and stuff. Actually, Dell is not hiding anything if services are concern since the contracts are available online and downloadable as well, you can just read it and check the coverage of the warranties that you’re getting. Problem is, they just buy without checking first what they’re getting, set their own expectations and gets disappointed once that they expectation was not met.

People that are whining like cry babies about the services in India are just unreasonable. They want a cheap computer so they got Dell. Dell can no longer afford to pay tech support reps in US because they are not earning that much from the hardware of the computers that they sell so they had to find tech support services that are cheaper so that they can still provide tech support for the computers. If you didn’t want tech support in India, then buy a more expensive computer with US techs that support the computer.

By: LJ Blue, LA, CA

LJ Blue, LA, CA — Wed, 28 May 2008 22:22:45 +0000

I just bought an Apple!

Dell deceived customers, judge says.
The lawsuit also accused Dell of depriving customers of technical support that they were entitled to, in some instances, by pressuring them into performing repairs on their own or subjecting them to long wait times on the phone.

It happened to us just last week (May 2008). We paid Dell for a contract extension that would have a real person to come out and fix our daughter’s computer. When we tried to have someone come out, the person in India wanted us to trouble shoot it by taking the computer apart, piece by piece, so they could have someone bring out the right part as they don’t have anyone who can come out and trouble shoot the problem in our home.

By: Alby Bakersfield, CA

Alby Bakersfield, CA — Wed, 28 May 2008 21:51:47 +0000

Hello all you Dell employees leaving the positive comments here!

I once had a Dell. You guys failed your most basic obligation:
making a device that actually worked. Then you failed your
second most basic obligation: supporting that piece of junk.

I saw those ads on TV and they convinced me: I switched.

By: Mos, San Diego, CA

Mos, San Diego, CA — Wed, 28 May 2008 21:06:28 +0000

I have owned so many Dell Desktops and Laptops. I seriously think that they are the best out there and always received next day parts delivery and next day on-site tech when requested/needed.
I guess it depends which branch of support customers connect to. I know I spoke to people in India, Canaca, and here in the US throughout the support issues I encountered. US Dell support team was the best in my opinion.

cheers.

By: BK Sinha, Rancho Cordova, CA

BK Sinha, Rancho Cordova, CA — Wed, 28 May 2008 21:02:46 +0000

I am the victim of Dell’s Bait and Switch policy. I request for justice.

I placed order for 1TB Network Hard Drive to Dell Website on 03/27/2008.
1. When I placed the order I got confirmation email.
2. After three days I got another email stating shipment has been delayed,
3. Till 16th April, I never got any notification that order has been
canceled . I came to know about it when I called Customer Support that my
order has been canceled due to pricing error of the itm ($179/=00)
4. However I was never notified for the same. If there is pricing error
Customer must be notified
5. This is clear case of Bait and Switch.The bait and switch is a
fraudulent sales tactic that is punishable by US law, as false advertising.
When a true bait and switch scam exists, the store can be sued for fraud
6. I used my Dell gift card, which I threw after using it, I can’t recover
it.
7. Due to delay in supply of the product I have incur the loss of more
$500K beacuse I lost my valuable data on other drive, which I could have
saved on the new drive.
8. Order can be canceled when the item is out of stock not for pricing
reason. Even if it is pricing there should be proper notification just
after transaction.
9. I called and wrote many times to DELL but they refused to ship the item
and compensate my losses. Also they are not ready send another gift card as
I threw the original one after the purchase.
Now I want to use this forum to resolve the issue.
Thanks for the help.
BK Sinha
Customer Information:
Customer Number = 67755868
Order Number = 219708991

By: Dustin, Dallas, TX

Dustin, Dallas, TX — Wed, 28 May 2008 20:33:05 +0000

I’m a business customer of Dell, and I always purchase the ProSupport option with our equipment. (It used to be called Gold support on business desktops and laptops.)

I have never had a problem with hold times, call transfers, or anything else discussed in the article/ruling. I think this only applies to their consumer division and their financial services division.

We have, however, had a long-standing problem with their financial services division. I would not recommend using them.

By: Brian R NJ

Brian R NJ — Wed, 28 May 2008 20:24:54 +0000

I too was a victim of there interest plan and also got hung up on many times.

I ordered a dell xps laptop right before the new xps came out. I had the laptop for a week and sent it back.

I was on a payment plan for that laptop. The guy said since I was ordering a new laptop ( for more $) I would not be charged anything and this payment plan would be dissolved.

Later I got some invoices that said I owed them like $60 for interest etc. I tried to dispute this and got no where. I got hung up on 2 times. Another call, I got a promise that this would be reversed and was told not to worry at all about paying the invoice. Another month later I got an invoice, I now owe $80. Another phone call and now the harrasment starts. I had a guy basically yell at me saying I had to make a payment that whatever I was saying didnt matter. He then hung up after I said I’m not making the payment. I called again. I was then told that I could not talk to a customer service agent without making a payment first since my account was overdue. I argued for about 30 minutes this time and finally was told a manager would call me back. I got a phone call the next day when I was at work. Sounded like a nice lady, she said the payments would be reversed. Ok I am happy thanks I thought. Next month, another invoice, I now owe about $100. I thought this would be resolved and got frustrated. I tried to call them and get this resolved again, but they would not listen to me at all. Eventually they started calling my house like 3 – 4 times a day, saying I need to make a payment. Everytime I would try to dispute this payment. Spending about 30 – 45 minutes each time. Remember, I had this laptop for a week! Eventually I gave up and paid them $125. I also told the guy he can kiss my future business goodbye.

I’m the kind of guy that buys about 3 computers a year for myself & family, and also recommends computers daily to hundreds of my customers.

By: "Peter" from Canada

"Peter" from Canada — Wed, 28 May 2008 20:14:53 +0000

Dell Financial is pure evil, its a negative on your credit the moment you sign up, cheaper/better to just use a credit card.

As for support woes: What did you expect when you bought a computer for a price just barely over the cost of the parts that went into it?

-Ex Dell XPS tech support agent, replaced by “Bob” from India.

By: Fran, Nelson, New Zealand

Fran, Nelson, New Zealand — Wed, 28 May 2008 20:09:52 +0000

I have had no problems/issues with Dell support at all.
They have been very helpful when needed and the “next business day onsite warranty” is just that.

Maybe Dell just dosn’t care about the US?

By: Anebt Tampa, Florida

Anebt Tampa, Florida — Wed, 28 May 2008 20:04:18 +0000

If you read the judge’s ruling–the matter was not the quality of Dell computers, but only about two areas where they failed.

1. Next-day onsite service was promised but not delivered; tech support was offered but at a price of hours on the phone if you got a decent tech at all.

2. The financing deals left customers not knowing until it was too late that they did not qualify for the no-interest option. If the interest rate was quoted up front–as it is when you finance a car purchase–then customers could have opted out of the purchase.

Whether you have had a great experience with Dell products or not is not what the judge was looking at.