Not buying a DEll computer again

[jmjj215]

After spending 3 HOURS on hold with various tech support departments who couldn't help me, I finally managed to talk to someone in India - who I could barely understand b/c of the major static from talking across the Atlantic, or Pacific, it's about the same distance around probably, and the accent. My best friend's mom is from India, so I love the accent, but not when I have been on hold for 3 hours. Seriously, I'm not kidding, 3 hours. And when I did finally get the tech support person I needed, they put me on hold 3 separate times for at least 10 minutes at a time.

This was all to get a new charger because my old one would shut down and restart my computer whenever I used it (it was quite weird, kind of Twilight Zoneish).

Anyway. Next time I'm going with a Mac or IBM.

[MrsChambers]

I'm suprised!!

ALL i hear is great things about DELL and whatnot.

You should write them a letter on planetfeedback and see if you get any results!

[Lori63]

Sorry to hear of your troubles. I have a Dell and have been very pleased with it, and also the service.

[BillsGirl]

MrsChambers is right you should probably right them a letter, You know you have the chance of being treated like that by ANY company especially ones that outsource, Companies like hearing feedback negative or positive tell them about your experience they might actually try to make it up to you!?!

[Fern]

Unfortunately, Dell is not alone in using overseas tech support to help Americans with their computer problems. Many companies do it, and I don't think avoiding Dell products will prevent something like that from happening again.

[Snoopy2645]

YA I think lots are going over seas I used to work for Gateway computers & they are now overseas too. When I worked thier they had maybe a handful of plants overseas now thats all they have.

[BillsGirl]

it's sad that this non sense is happening but comming from a companies stand point I can see why they are doing it! That doesn't mean I agree with it!

[jmjj215]

I just posted a letter on planetfeedback. I'll keep you guys posted of any response.

It just ticked me off so bad. I understand they want to increase their bottom line... I guess that's one advantage of buying from the 'little guys' - you avoid a lot of this bureaucratic mess.

[BillsGirl]

well Thanks, i really would like to know what happens!!

[2moretrees]

Yes, please let us know if you get any response.

[jmjj215]

Here was the letter I posted to planetfeedback:

June 14, 2005


TO:
Michael Dell, CEO
Dell Computer Corporation
1 Dell Way
Round Rock, TX 78682-0001

FROM:
Jesse Mecham
343 Wymount Terrace
Provo, UT 84604
(801)378-5688
meec@byu.net

RE: PLANETFEEDBACK REFERENCE NUMBER 2274543

Dear Mr. Dell,

I am writing in the hope that you will be able to address my complaint
about the the customer service at Dell Computer Corporation. This has
caused me a great deal of frustration.

Here's why I'm writing. I called customer service b/c my Inspiron
laptop, purchased two years ago, shuts down randomly for no apparent
reason. The fan runs constantly and the computer is very hot (which is
probably why the fan is always running).

After trying to make my way through the maze of automated options, I
finally landed in what I thought was the right department. I was on
hold for 22 minutes. Once I actually was able to get a hold of a
person, they told me I was in the wrong department. They said they
would transfer me and I could put in my express code to be automatically
transferred to the correct location. So, the transfer happened and I
heard nothing but music - I was on hold again. After waiting 34
minutes, I hung up and tried again.

This time I put my express service code in at first and was transferred.
While on hold, I tried to do the online chat using both Firefox and IE.
They both produced errors.

After being on hold 41 minutes, I finally talked to someone. It was
hard for me to understand them because of the accent, but that wasn't
half as bad as the lousy connection. They were constantly breaking up.
I had to ask her to repeat herself literally dozens of times. You can
imagine how impatient I was after being on the phone almost 2 hours.

The tech put me on hold three separate times for an aggregate amount of
at least 25 minutes. I found that to be extremely slow service -
especially considering the wait I had already gone through. All of this
to have her get my address to send me a box for my computer and a new
power adapter. Unbelievable.

I'm seriously considering not buying a Dell computer again. I was under
the false impression that Dell had a handle on their customer service.
I've heard Apple and IBM have much better customer service - I'm looking
to them to purchase a family computer.

I've been dissatisfied with your company in the past, so this doesn't
surprise me. You should know that I don't plan to buy products from your
company again. Also, I plan to tell my friends about this negative
experience.

The automated dialing is way too complicated. It's a maze of options.
Simplify.

Improve the connections overseas so there's not so much breakup. It
made me so mad to know that, while you're saving money outsourcing, I'm
sitting there wasting my time trying to figure out what the heck the
person is telling me.

Fix your online chat. It's arachaic and buggy.

Thank you for taking the time to read this. I look forward to hearing
from you soon.

Sincerely,
Jesse Mecham

[jmjj215]

This was their response, which I received today:

Dear Mr or Ms. Mecham,

I am writing on behalf of Dell in response to your letter of June 14,
2005, regarding our automated system.
Thank you for voicing your concerns and observations. As customer
feedback remains our most important tool for evaluating the quality of
our products and service, please know that your suggestions and comments
have been forwarded to the appropriate management personnel for review.
Whether positive or negative, input such as yours plays a vital role in
determining how we can better meet our customers' needs.

We value you as our customer, and your satisfaction is very important to
us.

Thank you
-------------------------------------------

I was hoping for something a bit more personal

[34saving]

As my husband would say, "you've been lexmarked". I'm not sure delled.com has the same ring as www.lexmarked.com though.

Oh, just an update from a thread of long ago, a few days ago (from an incident that goes back months) Samsung sent my husband an e-mail with a service number . . .for whaat service? We're not sure . . . I still like samsnagged

[CRFSaver]

Sorry to hear about your service problems. I have been very lucky in that I have not had one problem with my dell. I have noticed that Dell goes through peaks and valleys with their customer service. in 2002 when i bought mine I couldnt have been happier. But my sister bought her bf a dell jukebox (new). It never worked, so do they send her a new one? No they send a refurbished one. That still ticks me off.

I will say though that for someone who is not technically proficient, dell and apple tend to be the best. Apple has great Customer Service (Elk Grove, its in northern cali by Sacramento) but you also pay a premium for apple products. I cant justify my parents paying almost double for a pc.

Unfortunately you can't get an IBM pc anymore. You can get a Lenovo PC as IBM sold it a few months ago to Lenovo, a Chinese firm. My next desktop I will most likely build myself. As for a laptop I still think Dell has the best value out there. I will say though my work laptop is HP (I cant believe I am even recommending HP), and I have been quite happy with it. Remember I said HP and not Compaq. The Compaq laptop I had was cr@p.

I thought Dell had some type of option where you could choose to talk to a US associate.

[BillsGirl]

my hubby just got a dell last week, hehehe

[jmjj215]

Now this is interesting.

I received a call two weeks ago from the dell rep I talked with (I recognized her voice). She asked if everything was working. I said, "Yep, the power cord seemed to be causing the computer to shut off randomly. The new one has appeared to solve that problem." She asked if it was okay to call back in a few days. I said she could call back in a week.

I was impressed with the follow up.

She called back two days later and asked me the same questions. I told her the same thing. She mentioned three times it was a curteousy call. I said thanks, and repeated myself per above. She asked if she could close the ticket. I said yes.

Two days later she called back again and left a message b/c I wasn't there. Just making sure everything was working.

Three days later she called again. I wasn't there. She left a message.

Two days later I was there and I told her to stop calling - it was working - and to close the ticket. I was VERY blunt with her. I think she got the message b/c it's been four days and I haven't heard anything.

It's kind of funny that I've now experienced the extreme ends of BOTH sides of the Dell customer service spectrum.