Dell unable to repair Desktop under warranty. Offering new comp

Alanstrainor

Hey guys,

Need some advice, I have a Dell XPS 730, bought in early 09. Which was bought with an extended warranty. This machine ran into hardware issues which dell have been unable to fix. So they've offered a replacement.

The replacement they have offered is a joke compared to the machine that I have currently.

These are the specs:

Current machine:


Offered machine:


The offered machine when configured through their website comes to around 700 all in. Where as the XPS 730 was bought for over 4000 in Jan 09.

Can you guys offer any insight into the spec comparison and how these machines compare. I've already been speaking with dell and let them know that this was a joke. I expect a call back on Monday.


EDIT: The 4000 price is the price for the computer alone, minus the additions such as screen/office/speakers etc.

They're just trying it on to see if you'll fall for it.

You're entitled to an equivalent replacement. High-end quad core, high-end GPU, ATX case, ultimate edition OS etc.

You won't be entitled to a 4 grand machine because obviously nowadays a cheaper machine will match your performance. So you should have an idea of what current components are equivalent to yours and don't accept anything less. Have benchmarks etc to back it up if need be.

Alanstrainor

Deleted User wrote: »

They're just trying it on to see if you'll fall for it.

You're entitled to an equivalent replacement. High-end quad core, high-end GPU, ATX case, ultimate edition OS etc.

You won't be entitled to a 4 grand machine because obviously nowadays a cheaper machine will match your performance. So you should have an idea of what current components are equivalent to yours and don't accept anything less. Have benchmarks etc to back it up if need be.

Cheers man.

Don't worry, I wasn't expecting a 4 grand machine. But I was expecting a Core i7, Ultimate OS and mid/high graphics card. Also was expecting more than 4GB of RAM.

Tbh, that model XPS isn't great no matter what configuration it is. Slim case, generally poor config. It's the Aurura model(spelling?) that would look to be similar imo.

Jarren

NCA are on you side

If you opt for a replacement, it should be the same as the item you bought, or of similar quality and price.

http://www.nca.ie/nca/faulty-goods

If you paid 4 k for it, I would expect nothing less tbh.

deconduo

Alanstrainor wrote: »

Cheers man.

Don't worry, I wasn't expecting a 4 grand machine. But I was expecting a Core i7, Ultimate OS and mid/high graphics card. Also was expecting more than 4GB of RAM.

Tbh, that model XPS isn't great no matter what configuration it is. Slim case, generally poor config. It's the Aurura model(spelling?) that would look to be similar imo.

You'd be looking for an i5-2400, 4GB RAM and a 6870 to get a similar performing system. There's no real difference between Home and Ultimate Windows tbh.

zenno

Alanstrainor wrote: »

Cheers man.

Don't worry, I wasn't expecting a 4 grand machine. But I was expecting a Core i7, Ultimate OS and mid/high graphics card. Also was expecting more than 4GB of RAM.

Tbh, that model XPS isn't great no matter what configuration it is. Slim case, generally poor config. It's the Aurura model(spelling?) that would look to be similar imo.

I had the same problem a few years back with dell and i remember they e-mailed the new replacement computer specs to me of which i was damn happy with, I did notice in the e-mail that I was asked whether this new spec computer was satisfactory and if not to reply to the e-mail. Yeah they will chance their arm but just explain to them that you are not satisfied with the spec and would like that dealt with the same grade-spec or higher and they will sort it out.

zenno

Deleted User wrote: »

They're just trying it on to see if you'll fall for it.

You're entitled to an equivalent replacement. High-end quad core, high-end GPU, ATX case, ultimate edition OS etc.

You won't be entitled to a 4 grand machine because obviously nowadays a cheaper machine will match your performance. So you should have an idea of what current components are equivalent to yours and don't accept anything less. Have benchmarks etc to back it up if need be.

Exactly.

johndoe99

definitely trying it on, many buyers probably just accept a new PC and are none the wiser to the specs.

Don't give in, looking forward to reading what they say Monday.

kirving

Computers are a tough one, because of how quickly they lose value. If they replaced it with one of the exact same specs, you'd have to live with it, so looking for something that is as expensive as your machine was is a bit much.

You can't really expect a top of the line machine, but make sure you get a sound card like you had before, good quality case, PSU, and that kind of thing, and every single spec either matches of exceeds what you had previously.

Torqay

An adequate replacement would be an entry level Core i5 and a GTX 550Ti. What they offered you as not even remotely a match for the performance of your old system.

GarIT

The spec of the processor is nearly the same (I used passmark) you would want to look for a better graphics card and sound card make sure you keep your bluray, maybe a slightly better processor too. How much ram was in the original machine?

ED E

GarIT wrote: »

The spec of the processor is nearly the same (I used passmark) the graphics card is an improvement, they only have to offer an equlivent which it seems to be roughly about the same.

I cant agree with that, the i3 may have HT but for pure gaming grunt a 3.67 Quad is is way ahead of a 3.3 Dual.

GarIT

GarIT wrote: »

The spec of the processor is nearly the same (I used passmark) the graphics card is an improvement, they only have to offer an equlivent which it seems to be roughly about the same.

i3-2120 is a dual-core and GT545 is much less powerful than a GTX280.

Daniel S

Remember, you need a processor with an unlocked multiplier like the one you currently have.

Torqay

GarIT wrote: »

The spec of the processor is nearly the same (I used passmark)

Passmark isn't exactly the best reference, but even there it shows a difference in score of over 650 points or more than 15%... certainly not "nearly" the same.

subway

Meh, push them for a refund tbh

Fysh

I've had a similar issue for a machine at work where they couldnt fix it, and they offered us a much better replacement in relative terms - on top of which they also gave us a new extended warranty on the replacement.

I'd push for something with a quad-core i5, uplifted to 8gb ram, with a decent discrete gpu and soundcard. Realistically a suitably improved replacement (to keep you sweet since they couldn't honour their warranty) would be around 1500 or so in today's terms. Push them and see what they say - you're not obliged to just accept whatever they offer.

Dempsey

Daniel S wrote: »

Remember, you need a processor with an unlocked multiplier like the one you currently have.

This!

GarIT

I had to change what I said because as soon as I went back to the thread I I realised I looked the the wrong gpu. I wouldn't expect more ram or an i7. An i5, the same ram, equal or better graphics, blu ray drive and sound card would seem fair enough.

15% is a big enough difference actually, I think passmark is more reliable than a lot of other benchmarks although none is perfect. Try to get everything you can from them but once the CPU and gpu are equal on passmark you should be happy at this stage.

If your bothered you could try to say that 2x500gb hdds would perform better than 1x1tb.

Fight for everything you can get.

GarIT

Just remember too that its Dells extended warranty and not consumer law that your working with now.

Red Alert

Personally I'd rather be given a suitably valued credit and do the full spec'ing myself.

Alanstrainor

GarIT wrote: »

Just remember too that its Dells extended warranty and not consumer law that your working with now.

I think this is the point most people are missing.

But none the less, I'll be pushing for a far better machine than what has been offered.

Fysh

Alanstrainor wrote: »

I think this is the point most people are missing.

But none the less, I'll be pushing for a far better machine than what has been offered.

Yeah, but they can't honour their warranty for whatever reason (eg someone decided it was less costly to dump the warehouse space where the spares were stored and just eat the cost of providing newer replacements for those customers who needed them), so it's up to Dell to convince the customer that they can offer a replacement which makes the inconvenience of doing without a working machine and then migrating to a new system worthwhile. The OP may be dealing with extended warranty cover, not consumer law - but it's still a service for which they paid which would have terms associated with it.

Trying to suggest that a quad-core processor can be adequately replaced with a low-end dual-core processor a couple of generations on is pretty bloody silly - it's not just 2 cores vs 4 cores, it's also 3MB cache instead of 12MB in the original. The new chip should be at least as good or better than the original, not sort of similar but inferior. (See here for Intel's comparison of the two chips).

Similarly, the GT 545 has fewer CUDA cores and a much lower texture fill rate than the GTX 280, so it shouldn't be their starting point as a replacement. (GTX 280 specs here, GT 545 specs here).

zenno

Daniel S wrote: »

Remember, you need a processor with an unlocked multiplier like the one you currently have.

I agree with this ^ and it is important, as most dell computers have the bios locked. I have the dell xps 630i and it allows me to over-clock cpu/memory/multiplier etc... Now if they give you a system with the bios locked down then you won't be able to tweak anything as the xps 630/630i and the one you have now has open bios configuration of the main components and multiplier for over-clocking/tweaking. This is definitely important. Tell them it is essential that you have full access to the bios for overclocking and they will have to give you an open system, i.e full access to all component tweaking in the system.

unkel

Alanstrainor wrote: »

I'll be pushing for a far better machine than what has been offered.

+1

It was probably just a low level customer service representative doing up the specs of the replacement laptop, not realising some of the far superior features of your current laptop

Play it cool and don't budge and they'll move you up the ladder of the customer services hierarchy

Did you have a good read through the T&Cs of the additional warranty just for the craic?

Alanstrainor

unkel wrote: »

+1

It was probably just a low level customer service representative doing up the specs of the replacement laptop, not realising some of the far superior features of your current laptop

Play it cool and don't budge and they'll move you up the ladder of the customer services hierarchy

Did you have a good read through the T&Cs of the additional warranty just for the craic?

I honestly haven't bothered, I'll go that route if I'm not happy with what they offer on Monday:p I'm pretty sure it's just a case of "similar", but I'm not sure.

It'll be interesting! I'll keep yee informed!

Torqay

Alanstrainor wrote: »

It'll be interesting! I'll keep yee informed!

It will be interesting indeed.

Since you bought that XPS, a lot has happened at Dell. Usually, under extended warranty, Dell will send refurbs (equal or better) if a model is no longer in the program.

Unfortunately, since then the XPS brand has been scaled down badly and even the "latest and greatest" XPS don't have the graphics power of your model, so they'll have to resort to Alienware (where there isn't a great chopice of refurbe available to them, if any) and trying to get away with offering the cheapest model on the shelve, which cannot be upgraded. The next better model ships with am Ivy Core i5-3450 and the GPU can be upgraded to a GTX 555, but the difference is €270.

Now this would be more than adequate... good luck with getting it.

Alanstrainor

Right, now they're offering me an XPS system. I've got them to forward me on the specs, as I didn't want to have to take them all down.

It seems they have just assigned a value to the 730 and are working off that, rather than configuring a similar spec. They were also unable to tell me the value they have assigned for this machine. I assume this is going to turn into a battle...

The spec was as follows for the new machine, all very rough as I wasn't taking down the specifics:

gen 3 core i5
4GB Ram
Nvidia GT620 (HA)
Bluray drive
1TB single non RAID disk.

And that was about all I could remember. As I said, I'm just waiting for this email.

The guy on the phone kept going on and on about depreciation and saying 4 and a half years is a long time for a machine. I had to remind him twice that the machine was only 3.5 years old on more than one occasion. Ugh...this is going to get tedious. Need to read the terms and conditions of this warranty.

Alanstrainor

Just another update.

The way they calculate the value of the machine is bizarre.

This is the logic, they say the life of this machine is 5 years, or 60 months, so they divide the 4000 unit cost for the machine only by 60. And then multiply that figure by 13, which is the number of months left on the warranty.

Which gives us a figure of 866.66.

I really can't understand why my 3 and a half year old machine is subject to 60 months worth of depreciation. It's quite ridiculous.

kirving

So after 5 years is worth nothing, no matter how much you spent on it?! And that doens't take into account that the rate of depreciation changes constantly based on what comes out, is announced, and how much you spent on it (among other things).

A friend of mine got all his money back from Dell after about 3 years when the repeatedly coulndn't fix a problem with an XPS laptop. Remember that you have 6 or 7 years under consumer law, and I think that everyone(and any judge) would agree that a 4k machine should last longer than 5 years.

How much would is cost to match every spec of your old PC?

Alanstrainor

Kevin Irving wrote: »

So after 5 years is worth nothing, no matter how much you spent on it?! And that doens't take into account that the rate of depreciation changes constantly based on what comes out, is announced, and how much you spent on it (among other things).

A friend of mine got all his money back from Dell after about 3 years when the repeatedly coulndn't fix a problem with an XPS laptop. Remember that you have 6 or 7 years under consumer law, and I think that everyone(and any judge) would agree that a 4k machine should last longer than 5 years.

How much would is cost to match every spec of your old PC?

I would say the spec they gave minus the graphics card is about right being honest.

But all they are doing is, finding out roughly how much the machine is worth according to their estimates, and going into the dell site and configuring a machine. They are also charging 150 for collection of the old machine and delivery of the new one. Which is a joke. I have to wait for this email before I can escalate this issue. The email should have the exact price they put on the machine.

It's supposed to be like for like, but that graphics card is a joke. I asked about upgrading and he said he has to upgrade the CPU to get better cards...which incurs a cost. Will be talking with them again tomorrow.