ATTN* Dell recalling Inspiron 2650

[HESDog]

Originally posted by: ReiAyanami
the dell dude shows up at your house with a soldering iron and hot glue gun...

and a joint...

 

[Fallen Kell]

Originally posted by: isekii

Originally posted by: pxc

Originally posted by: JeffMD
on site for a laptop? highly doubt it. you need a workplace for the disection of a laptop.

That's what happens when you don't read the article:

Instead of requiring owners to send in their systems for repair, the PC maker will go to them.

"We are proactively contacting customers to schedule a service call at their convenience, at which time a Dell-authorized service representative will come out and replace the motherboard," said company spokeswoman Anne Camden.

that'll cost them a bundle...
just imagine how many laptops that'll need servicing..

About 20,000 I know, I know, I'm being a smart azz

 

[fraeone]

I called them to see if mine was affected, and she told me that it was only for notebooks ordered in that time span, because they pretty much manufacture them as they're ordered. I'm glad mine isn't affected, because for the price this laptop has been almost perfect.

fraeone

 

[alm4rr]

sunuva&!%*#
I JUST finished sorting out the MIR fiasco with my mum's, and now it has to be serviced!!

 

[PrinceXizor]

I wonder if this "part" has anything to do with this capacitor leakage problem that has yet to be fully disclosed. Very interesting.

P-X

 

[Tiggerbaby]

ahhh, yes, I see. Very astute observation...

I conclude that your, shall we say "hypothesis," could prove correct

 

[Gibson486]

Hmmmm...My g/f has a 2650, she wants to throw it against the wall.

 

[bobstudent]

I found this out last Thursday (May 1st) from a different website. Notice I did not find out from Dell. I called Dell tech support yesterday (May 5th) at 1-800-456-3355, waited the customary 20 minutes on hold, answered their standard onslaught of questions (service tag, name, address, phone number, e-mail), and finally got to ask if my computer was being recalled. The tech said he knew nothing about the recall and put me on hold to find out. This surprised me, but knowing Dell tech support (I've had nothing but horrible experiences with their inept and sometimes plainly stupid techs), I should've expected it. When he came back, he told me that there was definitely a recall but he couldn't help me with it. He said that his supervisor told him that I would get a letter from Dell if my computer was recalled and that I would have to send it in. I then asked him if he had a phone number for the recall department and he gave me 1-800-822-8965 ext 67405.

I called this number and it turned out to be Dell's mobile tech support. "Mobile" as in laptops and other non-desktop, non-server type products. This time the wait was only 10 minutes and before the tech could ask me the standard barrage of questions, I interrupted and asked about the recall. Guess what? She knew nothing about it! The recall wasn't even in her computer system. She put me on hold and asked her supervisor. After waiting another few minutes, she came back and told me that there really was a recall and that her supervisor had just received another call asking about it (probably my previous call). She said that there wasn't any way for her to find out if my specific computer was being recalled and that if I wanted to find out more about it, I should try calling Customer Support (I found out a while ago from another bad experience with Tech Support that Dell's Tech and Customer Support departments are completely separate from each other and that there is no "manager's manager" that oversees both departments). She also suggested checking Dell's online support page. She said that she couldn't access Dell's online tech support because customers have to log on to it with the service tag that comes with their computer.

In summary:

1. All of us reading this know about Dell's recall but Dell's Tech Support does not.
2. There's no way to actually find out if your specific 2650 (somewhere in the article, it is mentioned that only 2650's manufactured within a certain time period have this problem) is being recalled.
3. Dell's tech support can not access Dell's own online support page for some reason.
4. You may have to actually send in your computer for them to fix it.

I found out from a previous call to a Tech Support Manager that if something breaks and you need a replacement, the techs only have access to the Dell Part No.'s with no way of knowing what that part number actually refers to in real life. For example, they have no way of knowing whether Dell Part #XYZ is a Toshiba 50X CD-ROM drive or a Sony 24/12/24 CD-RW. There's also no online reference for Dell Part No.'s that I know of.

I tried to post all of my wonderful Dell Tech support experiences on Dell's Customer Forums once, but for some reason, they wouldn't let me register.

 

[AbsolutDealage]

Originally posted by: pxc

Originally posted by: JeffMD
on site for a laptop? highly doubt it. you need a workplace for the disection of a laptop.

That's what happens when you don't read the article:

Instead of requiring owners to send in their systems for repair, the PC maker will go to them.

"We are proactively contacting customers to schedule a service call at their convenience, at which time a Dell-authorized service representative will come out and replace the motherboard," said company spokeswoman Anne Camden.

Yea, we have all dells where I work. I'm in the IT dept so we do most of the laptop repairs in-house. Sometimes, if we have too much going on, we call in the dell tech to come replace something (especially motherboards, those things are such pains in the a$$). Anyways, you should see these guys gut these laptops. It takes them like 5 minutes... it's pretty cool to watch.

 

[jbwhite99]

To clarify a couple of points above:

- Dell's technical support is in India (or at least a lot of it is)
- Is it guaranteed your machine will fail? Not likely - they will call some, but not all 20,000 machines
- In general onsite support for laptops is bad (lots of parts), but to replace 1 component, as long as you have the right tools, is fast.
- The 2650 is really manufactured by some Korean company - Dell just buys from whomever has the best price today

Read PC World's report in their December issue to see why Dell isn't even close to #1 in service and support. My opinion is that companies like HP and IBM are out there to give you the lowest Total Cost of Ownership; while Dell is out there to give you the lowest purchase price, and to he!! with what happens afterwards. They are the Wal-Mart of the computer industry (no offense meant to Wal-Mart) - treat their employees, suppliers, and customers like dirt, but say "you got a great price".