Why hate Dell?

[raildogg]

My little brother uses a Dell Dimension 8300 which I got for him last year ... i coulda built him one but .... parents .... n/m

Its slightly noisy but very reliable ... it remains on almost all the time and is tremendously stable. I dont know why people bash Dell.

Out of the other major vendors, Dell is the rated the best in terms of customer satisfaction

 

[ponyo]

You have to know how to shop at Dell. Only buy Dell when they're running crazy end of the quarter deals. They do this so they can meet Wall St. revenue numbers. They don't care if they're losing some money on these "end of the quarter- pad the revenue" deals. It will cost them lot more if they miss Wall St sales number and their stock gets crushed on Wall St. Dell 400SC deals they run are great along with their discounted electronics and accessories deals they run. With instant 10-15% discount along with coupons and such, you can save quite a bit on stuff like monitors, cameras, etc. when you factor in free shipping and such.

I've no problem with Dell. Dell has saved me lot of money on electronics and accessories, and I made huge money off of Dell stock during the "go-go" days of the late '90s. I've never owned Dell complete system but wouldn't mind getting 400SC if I can catch a good sale. Be informed and be smart shopper and use Dell to your advantage and not the other way around.

 

[wjfawb0]

I own a Dell 8200 desktop, a 4600 desktop and an old P2 266MHz dimension xps desktop. I have been very happy with the computers. Had the latest one for over two years no problems...until now. I want to be able to play Doom3 and Half-Life2 with great graphics and sound. So, with the help of my more computer literate friends, I am going to build an AMD 64bit machine to satisfy my gaming needs.

All the dells I have owned (3) have been great. No technical problems at all. If you don't need blazing fast gaming, don't know much about computers, and don't plan on upgrading or expanding your system much, Dell is a good option.

I admit, I'll probably never buy another Dell, but that's because I have been looking at how easy it is to build a reliable machine on my own. Most people don't have the slightest clue about electronics in general, and that's where the Dell, Gateway and Compac market feeds.

In summary, I don't hate Dell. I've simply outgrown the mass produced PC market.

-wjfawb0

 

[Muse]

Originally posted by: Regs
No AMD options is a huge factor for me. Since im a giant AMD fan boi and all . And with good reason too, they make great CPU's.

You mean you can't get a PC from Dell with an AMD CPU in it? Weird. I'm pretty sure that some of the other big online PC folks do.

I get AMD CPU's because I think you get more for your money. Intel makes great CPU's too, but you don't get as much for your money, has been my experience. Of course, I haven't bought a CPU in almost 2 years, so I haven't been paying attention since about the time the 2200+ AMD was the top chip.

 

[Mik3y]

Originally posted by: Muse

Originally posted by: Regs
No AMD options is a huge factor for me. Since im a giant AMD fan boi and all . And with good reason too, they make great CPU's.

You mean you can't get a PC from Dell with an AMD CPU in it? Weird. I'm pretty sure that some of the other big online PC folks do.

I get AMD CPU's because I think you get more for your money. Intel makes great CPU's too, but you don't get as much for your money, has been my experience. Of course, I haven't bought a CPU in almost 2 years, so I haven't been paying attention since about the time the 2200+ AMD was the top chip.

dell does sell computers with amd chips in them, but their very hard to get. my mom's cousin has a dell with an xp3200+ in it.

 

[Vee]

Originally posted by: raildogg
Its slightly noisy but very reliable ... it remains on almost all the time and is tremendously stable. I dont know why people bash Dell.

Out of the other major vendors, Dell is the rated the best in terms of customer satisfaction

I find both those defenses somewhat empty.
First of all, "reliable" and "tremendously stable". On basis of one PC. What is that? Most non-OC computers run flawlessly, hardware wise, all the time, for years, even decades if you've got use for such old PC. That has been my experince at least. Since 1979. If they don't, then there is something wrong with them that can be fixed. Do Dell customer have the illusion other computers are flakey all the time? Like in the old Windows2, Windows3 days?

Do I respect the 'customer satisfaction' of someone who buys Dell? -Well, I'll leave that, and not answer it.
I'll say something else instead. I know some people who didn't knew what they were buying, who bought Dell, and eventually found out they didn't get, what they had got the impression they were buying.

As for why people bash Dell, I thought this thread gives some insight.

All that said, there is a good case for Dell, when it comes to people that have use for a simple cheap laptop or business server, and don't know much about computers and don't want to learn.
But for a basic office desktop, AMD's cheap cpus offer superiour work comfort.
I also think Dell could well do their clueless customers the favor of not bogging down their machines with so much preloaded software.

 

[Texun]

Dell's target market is not the DIY builder or AT reader. Their target market sector are the SOHO and large corporate offices. They don't make any serious money selling one or two here and there. If you want 100 or 10,000 computers with your own custom image and on site tech support, you go with somebody like Dell. Gamers and AT readers have little or no use for them since they aren't "tweakable." We have over a thousand at work and they are on 24/7. They also never fail to do the task they are designed for, such as Office, Power Point, etc.

I've used their tech support twice in 4 years for my laptop. We have an assigned tech support number and each time they had a guy out within 24 hours with a box of parts. As a private owner I doubt that I could get service like that if Michael was my cousin. Would I have one at home? Nope. I would build a mATX Celeron if all I wanted was email and Office.

 

[ponyo]

Originally posted by: Mik3y

dell does sell computers with amd chips in them, but their very hard to get. my mom's cousin has a dell with an xp3200+ in it.

bullsh*t...

 

[DGath]

While this isn't exactly Dell.... Gateway rather, they're the same damn company and I'm sure Dell would have done the same thing too.

So I work at this computer shop, and this guy comes in to have us install these upgrades into his machine, specifically processor and ram. I take a look and he's got a 3.2E and 512 megs 2100 ram. I immediately start thinking... something is not right here. I ask him where he got the stuff and he says "this is what Gateway told me to get." So I start telling him he should at least go with 2700, and probably 3200 just becuase of the small price difference if he can send the memory back. This guy is clueless as to what I'm talking about. Finally I ask him what he currently has in there.... a P4 1.5. At that point it all made sense why he got 2100 instead of 27 or 3200, cause that was all his motherboard could handle. Then I realize... wait a minute... if that FSB is that slow.... then how the hell is he going to work a 3.2E in there. So I tell him that the motherboard won't be able to handle it, but it will still work, and recomended him a new board, but he said he didn't want to spend any more money. So not going against the customers wishes, I take it in the back, install it for him and what a suprise... he now has a 3.2 running on an 845 @ ~1.5. You have to me a moron to employ someone who thinks 2100 is good ram for a 3.2E, and an even bigger moron if you think it will run on an 845 board correctly.

Like I said... not Dell, but it's Gateway, so close enough. Those companies employ morons and the only people who actually buy their computers have to be morons as well.

 

[ingenuiti]

Everyone is flaming Dell tech support, but where is the tech support if you DIY? So if the issue of not getting a Dell is due to their tech support then it should be a moot point if the alternative is to build your own.

 

[DGath]

It's not that we don't buy Dells because of the tech support, it's that we don't buy computers from people who think that those morons are qualified to tell you what is wrong with your computer. Granted we're all smarter than most of the tech support out there (hell, we almost get off on this ****, that's why we're in these forums). But Dell is run by some genuises becuase they've convinced an entire population that they're computers are some of the best out there when they're far from it. It's so insulting when I have people come into my store asking if we can build something better than Dell. It's the same thing as "Hi Mr. Mercedes dealer, do you have anything here better than a Ford."

 

[Mik3y]

Originally posted by: Naustica

Originally posted by: Mik3y

dell does sell computers with amd chips in them, but their very hard to get. my mom's cousin has a dell with an xp3200+ in it.

bullsh*t...

my mom's cousin bought the system in asia. we know taht dell sold some opterons for a fact, so why's it so hard to believe?

 

[TechnoPro]

Originally posted by: ingenuiti
Everyone is flaming Dell tech support, but where is the tech support if you DIY? So if the issue of not getting a Dell is due to their tech support then it should be a moot point if the alternative is to build your own.

I can't speak for everyone here, but I think much of the complaint against Dell tech support is quite simply communication dificulties in dealing with non-native English speakers. It is of paramount importance for tech support to be able to communicate clearly and effectively. This is a given.

To answer your first question, this is where DIYers get tech support: Link.

 

[grrl]

Proprietary parts.

Plus, they do seem rather slow. I used my dad's 2.2 P4 system last summer and found it no faster than my 1 gig Tbird rig.

 

[ponyo]

Originally posted by: Mik3y

Originally posted by: Naustica

Originally posted by: Mik3y

dell does sell computers with amd chips in them, but their very hard to get. my mom's cousin has a dell with an xp3200+ in it.

bullsh*t...

my mom's cousin bought the system in asia. we know taht dell sold some opterons for a fact, so why's it so hard to believe?

More Bullsh*t... Damn, the Bullsh*t meter is off the charts.

 

[mechBgon]

Originally posted by: TechnoPro

Originally posted by: ingenuiti
Everyone is flaming Dell tech support, but where is the tech support if you DIY? So if the issue of not getting a Dell is due to their tech support then it should be a moot point if the alternative is to build your own.

I can't speak for everyone here, but I think much of the complaint against Dell tech support is quite simply communication dificulties in dealing with non-native English speakers. It is of paramount importance for tech support to be able to communicate clearly and effectively. This is a given.

To answer your first question, this is where DIYers get tech support: Link.

Couldn't have said it better myself And I don't balk at first-timers either, although I sure wish they'd stop buying SATA drives!

 

[Mik3y]

Originally posted by: Naustica

Originally posted by: Mik3y

Originally posted by: Naustica

Originally posted by: Mik3y

dell does sell computers with amd chips in them, but their very hard to get. my mom's cousin has a dell with an xp3200+ in it.

bullsh*t...

my mom's cousin bought the system in asia. we know taht dell sold some opterons for a fact, so why's it so hard to believe?

More Bullsh*t... Damn, the Bullsh*t meter is off the charts.

yes, because you're posting so much.

j/k

and i'm not BSing you or anyone. do some research and you'll find that dell sold some opterons back early in the summer when intel's xeon blew c0ck. the only reason why they sold the xp's in asia were because amd was obviously the cheaper way to go. dell's largest market goes towards the US and even still, they prefer intel. even tom's hardware cant make a good positive comment on the new generation of intel vs amd. i guess the reason why dell decides to stay with intel is because they figure that intel will eventually win back against amd in the performance battle. as for the opteron thing, dell sold them because large corporations needed powerful workstations, and KNEW that the opterons were better hten anything intel had back in the early summer.

 

[ponyo]

Originally posted by: Mik3y

and i'm not BSing you or anyone. do some research and you'll find that dell sold some opterons back early in the summer when intel's xeon blew c0ck. the only reason why they sold the xp's in asia were because amd was obviously the cheaper way to go. dell's largest market goes towards the US and even still, they prefer intel. even tom's hardware cant make a good positive comment on the new generation of intel vs amd. i guess the reason why dell decides to stay with intel is because they figure that intel will eventually win back against amd in the performance battle. as for the opteron thing, dell sold them because large corporations needed powerful workstations, and KNEW that the opterons were better hten anything intel had back in the early summer.

I am fully aware of Dell Opteron rumors. Rumors were what they were and are. Was denied by Dell execs.

As for XP being sold in Asia, that's complete bogus lie. Dell sells Celerons as value computers worldwide. Ever look at Dell's website out of US? Have you looked at the selection offered? Pretty bare selection compared to the US and lot higher prices. Dell does not sell AMD XP computers in Asia. Even in China they don't. Dell doesn't sell AMD XP chips PERIOD. Maybe that will change in the future who knows but as of now and in the past, Dell has never sold any AMD XP computers.

Now if you had said you took Dell's case and modified it and put AMD motherboard and cpu in it, that I can believe. But let's not carry this charade any further.

 

[Gurck]

Originally posted by: yELLOthar

Originally posted by: Gurck

Originally posted by: yELLOthar
Didn't read anything but first page, but...

1. I'm Using a Dell right now.
2. Very Upgradeable, I just added 256 RAM and I put in a new DVD drive and CD/RW drive, and I am trying to get a new Vid card from my friend.
3. The case is EXTREMELY easy to open, and plenty of room to work inside.
4. Have room for another HD and nothing screws in. It uses special clips that make it incredibly easy to take out the drives.
5. 1.7GHz P4, runs jus fine for me, though I wouldn't mind upgrading...
6. I have had it for, I'd say close to 2 years now, maybe 3.

CONCLUSION:
Very upgradeable, easy to work inside, very well though out design, I have NEVER needed to call tech support. Also, it has NEVER crashed, or showed any signs of, "breaking".

Maybe I got lucky and got a good system, who knows. The only real problem which isn't that bad is the PSU is only 200W, but I could change it if I wanted to/felt like it/actually bought a new one...

EDIT:
It was relatively cheap at time of purchase, under $1k, and I have a LCD with it, so at that time was like $350! That's pretty cheap if ya ask me (considering age). It also came w/ a GeForce MX 2, which is better than Intel Extreme crap...

Also, 5 PCI slots. Some may be AGP, it would help if I knew what an AGP slot was...

You don't even know what an agp slot is and you're talking about how great and upgradeable they are? Never seen such an intricate rationalization of the lack of knowledge. Dells, like all prebuilts, suck. What they used to have going for them was tech support, but that has changed for the worse. That yours hasn't crashed means simply that it has no faulty hardware and you haven't fubared the system with malware. DIYs are far more upgradeable, easier to work with, and less expensive. This is assuming you DIY with some basic knowledge, attainable easily from tech sites & forums, such as anandtech.

As I've already stated, they do have their place; namely as a recommendation for unknowledgeable friends / family you don't want to do tech support for (though Dell's support has taken a nosedive lately; might be better off with a smaller prebuilt company such as ABS or Monarch) and for businesses which get deals on bulk, a good upgrade policy, and which benefit from having a standard (ie. every pc has the same brand/model parts).

After a quick Google search, the AGP slot is for a graphics card. Dell equipped me with a GeForceMX2, which I am upgrading soon. Just because I didn't know EXACTLY what an AGP slot was, though I figured it was graphics card, doesn' mean what I said shouldn't matter though. You say it was "intricate rationalization of the lack of knowledge", I'll assume because I didn't know what one things name was I am stupid and completely computer illiterate. As far as I'm concerned, you can bite me and get off Dell, because they don't suck, they provide decent systems for average people. I'd say 85% of people who use computers, a Dell is fine for them. Most people don't need a AMD98 5GHz monster or super computer. They need a decent system for light, if any gaming and simple internet surfing.

While I wouldn't mind building my own computer, and I probably am soon, I am not a Dell fanboy or anything, but you people make me sick. It's like saying that PS2 >> XBOX or XBOX >> PS2, ot's stupid. Just because you don't like it, doesn't mean that they suck.

I didn't take up issue with you not knowing a certain thing about computers, but rather with you commenting on the subject as if you did. Further, AGP slots are a pretty basic thing to know about computers. It would be like someone purporting to be a mechanic not knowing engines need oil, and not just commenting on which brand/type was better, but really smooching one company's brown eye on the subject... Quite comical, actually

 

[Zebo]

I don't shop at places with around a 4 reseller rating.

 

[wasamicron]

I don't own a Dell computer, but have a couple of friends who recently purchased from Dell. Both told me that the Customer service was almost nonexistant. For this reason, I don't think that I would recommend Dell to anyone. Plus the fact that we have new Dell computers at work w/ 128mb of ram....running WinXP....stupid Dell!!

 

[TGHI]

Ditto with the poopy BIOS

 

[ZobarStyl]

I pick up the Dell ad out of the Sunday paper for a good start-the-morning laugh. "Intel EXTREME Graphics 2++" and "Lightning Fast PC2700 RAM!" or of course my personal favorite "Upgrade to a FX 5200 to make your PC a Doom3 Gaming Dream." Please, do continue marketing these 3 year old technologies, I sure do want my brand new Doom3 Monster to run 20 fps at the lowest possible settings right out the box!

If nothing else (and there is a LOT else), it's because a computer should be built using parts of the same performance so that you don't create an unnecessary bottleneck. A Dell system is by definition, a complete bottleneck. Taking a Pentium 4 which needs good dual channel RAM to function correctly and giving it single channel DDR333 means your 3.2 Ghz processor might as well be a 2.6. Tack on an aged hard drive, a crappy proprietary motherboard and either integrated graphics or a 'upgrade' to a Radeon 9200SE, and you get something that should've been smothered to death before it could come into this world.

But hey, Dell is responsible for helping me sell my boxes to people who have become so completely frustrated with Dell's tech support that'd they rather get a custom built box that doesn't break randomly than a 'reliable' Dell. I actually get thanked every time I see my girlfriend's dad, saying that while he's gone all week on business (with his Dell laptop that he hates) he no longer gets calls saying the computer has crashed randomly or locked up due to pre-loaded bloatware clogging the system. Plus that FX-51 based rig is almost a year old now and can still beat the crap out of any system you can buy from Dell.

 

[Avalon]

Originally posted by: magomago

Originally posted by: Avalon
I dislike dell because...well, two reasons.
The reasons have to do with their non budget systems ($1000+) and their budget systems ($400).

First and foremost, the more simpler of the two: The non budget sector. I don't like Dell in this area because you can build a great system for less than they can.

Now, for their budget sector...I dislike Dell because of HOW they make their budget systems cost less than what you could build on a budget. Most people think they are getting a steal when they get a $400 Dell system with a 15" monitor. Right. The system will advertize awesome specs in bold, such as a pentium 4 with hyperthreading, or a 7200 RPM HD. Even better still is when they say something like a free memory upgrade. Hyperthreading, 7200RPM, free upgrades. Sounds like you're getting some quality stuff, right? Not always. What a lot of people don't know is that your 7200RPM HD has 2mb of cache and is ATA100.

Lol is that wrong!!! ATA100 means nothing and ATA133 is marketing at best! On top of that, there isn't much of a preformance difference. Go to Anadtech's review on the Raptors and you'll see in the end its only the matter of seconds that can be counted on a single hand that seperate "old" 7200rpm drives and 10k raptors. You have no arguement right here

Well, that kind of hinders it. Alright, well, we're still getting a powerful processor. Naturally, this powerful processor is coupled with 128mb of PC2700 memory. Power! Oh, my mistake. We get a free upgrade to 256mb of PC2700 memory.

This is probably your only real valid complaint- they toss much slow ram thatn the P4 typically wants

How about the PSU? Typically quite weak.

LOL these are some of the most efficient PSUs out there! My friend has a SSF with a 240 watt psu and it has an A64 and a 9800pro! They have more efficient PSUs so they don't need to toss some 500 watt generic B.S. You are just playing the numbers game and are assuming a bigger psu is always better

Hey, they do include a monitor though...a monitor that is worth probably $50 at the most. Some of these budget systems won't even come with an AGP slot should you want to start some gaming. I could buy a quality budget system for the same price as a Dell's budget system. The only thing I would be missing is a cheap monitor and the lack of poor quality hardware. I suppose this is fine for most people though.

If you don't game what is the piont of an AGP slot? I kow a lot of people who buy Dells that do do a single ounce of gaming.


In the end I don't like Dell too much, but a lot of your reasons are PITA

Chill out, buddy. I think you need to re-read what I wrote. My complaint was HOW Dell shaves the price on their budget systems. Like I said, a $400 Dell is fine for most people. I was not wrong about the HD. They do typically only offer 2mb cache ATA100 HDs in their lowend systems. I wasn't making so much a point of minimal performance differences as I was how Dell skimps on hardware to shave costs. For example, go to newegg. Dell commonly offers 80gb HDs. Look at the price of an 80gb, 2mb cache, ATA 100 drive vs. an 80gb, 8mb cache, ATA 133 drive. There's an ~$10 difference between the first drive of each type you see, and when you're in the ~$60 price range, that's almost a 15% price increase. Now, I know Dell doesn't buy their drives from Newegg, but this is just an example. Then the common lack of an AGP slot. Or the common lack of memory. Or the common lack of memory bandwidth due to inadequate memory speeds (sub PC3200). And, how am I playing the numbers game with PSUs? I didn't even state anything about the size of Dell PSUs. You're the one assuming, not me. I know perfectly well quality > quantity. They are weak compared to what we buy, but do their intended job. Note the perspective I've been using. Now maybe you understand what I'm saying. Anyway, this is merely my opinion of perspective on budget dell machines, so I don't see why you're getting all antsy.

 

[comp101]

For the person who does not know much about computers, Dell is a great choice. My sister bought a Dell and lacked the patience to install it. They went through it on the phone and they fixed it. A friend had problems with his computer (It was viruses), but they walked him through the Windows reinstall.

For the person who knows little, this is convenient and much better than buying a PC from Best Buy/Future Shop. They have Dell Forums as well which is poorly organized (awful search function) but better than nothing. Their prices on their lower end machines are cheaper then what one could get pretty much anywhere else and they come with a legit copy of Windows pre-installed. For the person using email, web browsing, Word, a reading game for their 8 year old and online Hearts for themselves, Dell is a great choice.

For a serious gamer they are a generally a poor choice as they really markup certain items, notably video cards and RAM. However you can negotiate with them and they do have specials. For the moderate gamer who does not play much online and can't build his/her own system, it all depends on what games they play and the price/performance between Dell and independant shop.