In reference to the "DELL sucks" thread

[ARCHIVED THREAD] - In reference to the "DELL sucks" thread

Posted: 12/22/2003 7:19:40 AM EDT

What computer brand have you had good experiences with? I will most likely be buying a desktop in the next six months, so some recommendations would be appreciated.

I don't know enough about them to build one for myself, so let's hold off on that.

Posted: 12/22/2003 7:26:39 AM EDT

[#1]

I am on my third Dell (3rd because my employer purchases them and then pushes them down to admin etc) and have been VERY pleased. We have quite a few of them and usually receive them in batches of 3. We pull them out of the box, setup our Engineering software and run them for years. We run them pretty hard too. Laptops with docking stations and typcial Tower machines also.

Posted: 12/22/2003 7:27:19 AM EDT

[#2]

We have a dozen Dells where I work. I also just bought a Dell for my daughter. Never a problem.

Posted: 12/22/2003 7:30:28 AM EDT

[#3]

Okay, let me rephrase.

Assume the computer is going to be used mostly by my wife and that she will have to use the company's customer service. Those with Dells who have never had a problem can't recommend their customer service because they've never used it.

Posted: 12/22/2003 7:31:29 AM EDT

[#4]

Where I work, thet buy Dells by the truckload. They work great. Before the Dell contract they bought Compacs. They were good also.

Posted: 12/22/2003 7:34:39 AM EDT

[#5]

Dell is a great product. It is just that the company and the CEO is anti-gun.

Posted: 12/22/2003 7:40:40 AM EDT

[#6]

there is an enormous difference in Dell systems between commercial and home systems. Do not think for a minute that the same support level for a commercial systems applies to your home pc.

All of the major BOX KIT brands support suck. VERY seldom will you get any software support beyond "reload the system". Don't buy a system for the support. It's not there.

My reccomendation is find a reputable local shop and let them build it. Then you will have a local contact if the hardware fails. Refer software support to the maker of the application you a needing support on.

MONA got an HP last year that was surplused from an account . other than a cdrom failure it has been ROCK solid for 2 years. Saying that, HP home systems are not known as high quality machines.

Don't get caught up in the high speed latest and greatest crap. Spec what you need and buy it. By the time you are ready to upgrade in a few years you will be going for a new board, processor and memory anyway.

mike

Posted: 12/22/2003 7:42:26 AM EDT

[#7]

1-800-NOT-INDIA

Posted: 12/22/2003 7:54:12 AM EDT

[#8]

A good friend and fellow shooter, that works for a local computer parts manufacturer in Chandler, AZ (you're dense if you can't figure out the company) and is quite familiar with returns and repairs told me, when I needed a new computer, to steer clear of Dell. He said the best deal and bet for a home system is currently Gateway (they seem to have far fewer returns). He also said that if ya got the jack, there are other companies that do an even better job than Gateway.
That being said, I have an eMachines system and it's performed flawlessly (knock on wood, throw a little salt over the shoulder, keep the fingers crossed) for over a year now.

Posted: 12/22/2003 8:16:23 AM EDT

[#9]

If you need hand-holding support then you need a friend that knows computers. If you just want to be able to get parts if the hardware fails a Dell will work just fine. I've had several Dells and have replaced a monitor and a couple of harddrives. The last few problems were handled via email; Dell shipped a new part and I shipped the bad part back. No fuss and no cost to me.

Posted: 12/22/2003 8:41:00 AM EDT

[#10]

I build my own. You can get better support help buying a book then calling computer support.

SGtar15

Posted: 12/22/2003 8:47:29 AM EDT

[#11]

Extactly, there is a great amount of difference between the business and home PC divisions for DELL. Home support consists of Babu in India giving you the run around until your warranty expires. Then youre SOL. I have also heard the same thing about multiple returns. I wonder hw they did that! I have been trying to return my girlfriends comp for over a year and gave up.

I am looking at an Apple for the next one. Their operating system is signifcantly smoother then windows based versions. If the guy in Seattle wasnt the antichrist most of us would be using Apples instead of a windows based comp.

Posted: 12/22/2003 8:49:14 AM EDT

[#12]

Quoted:
I build my own. You can get better support help buying a book then calling computer support.

SGtar15

View Quote

What an interesting idea...

Quoted:
I don't know enough about them to build one for myself, so let's hold off on that.

View Quote

Posted: 12/22/2003 9:07:52 AM EDT

[#13]

let me clarify my dell statement. Midrange and low end dells pc's are junk. Like with gateway and the rest the high end systems are actually ok machines. But for the same price you could have twice the machine built for you.

I have not worked with gateway in about 3 years. When i did i found gateway generally was more prone to getting parts right the first time. They used to be GREAT on the customer sat side but that was begining to dissapear about the time i left the PC service group.

You can pretty well figure any PC in the under 1000.00 range that comes with a display and printer and software is complete crap. lifespan and stability come at a price. The average PC is built with a life expectancy of around 18 months. They are almost considered disposable today.

mike

Posted: 12/22/2003 9:15:10 AM EDT

[#14]

HP service/ phone tech. for my notebook was excellent.

Posted: 12/22/2003 9:34:46 AM EDT

[#15]

get dell have 2000 of them here very few problems. friend just got a gateway this weekend- deod right out of the box- took it back to the store and they look at us like we dont have a clue- funny but the new one the gave us (with the caved in mangled box) wors fine. friend also mentioned their first gateway they bougtht 5 years ago did the SAME THING and had to be replaced.
Also, he said he did not like dell cause of their indat tech support- well when we called gateway-guess who i got- Apu himself. oh-sorry he must be american...he said his name was "robert"....yeah...ok there...

Posted: 12/22/2003 9:50:44 AM EDT

[#16]

The_Beer_Slayer:

All of the major BOX KIT brands support suck. VERY seldom will you get any software support beyond "reload the system". Don't buy a system for the support. It's not there.

My reccomendation is find a reputable local shop and let them build it.

View Quote

You can say that again! Oh-wait... I did it for you. [:P]

I don't worry about whose sticker is on the machine anymore (I do make sure the HD is WD).

Posted: 12/23/2003 9:23:11 AM EDT

[#17]

Quoted:

Quoted:
I build my own. You can get better support help buying a book then calling computer support.

SGtar15

View Quote

What an interesting idea...

Quoted:
I don't know enough about them to build one for myself, so let's hold off on that.

View Quote

Trust me...it's cake! Go to [url]www.PCMech.com[/url] and read their tutorials on building your own computer. Or spend $20 buying a book that tells you how to do it. All it involves is putting cards and chips into the moyjer board.

Simple! And you get a much better system.

SGtar15

Posted: 12/23/2003 9:40:08 AM EDT

[#18]

I bought mine through [url]www.ibuypower.com[/url] and it has been great. My brother bought one from them a year earlier and has had no problems. They have a high reseller rating too. Their prices are about what it would cost to build yourself. They have a pretty good selection of stuff so you can pretty much set up the computer how you want. You don't get any documentation other than what comes from the parts installed, no cute little set-up guide, but I didn't really need any of that stuff. Don't know about tech support but I haven't needed it. I recommend them highly.

Posted: 12/23/2003 9:49:04 AM EDT

[#19]

Dell has told the industry press that he's bringing the customer support back to the US. So now you'll get an idito who doesn't know shit but can speak english as opposed to an MCSE college graduate who speaks english with an accent.

I would bet than most service calls are software related anyway.

Posted: 12/23/2003 10:00:05 AM EDT

[#20]

Btt

just because i like to see DELL SUCKS at the top of page one [:D]

mike

Posted: 12/23/2003 10:24:16 AM EDT

[#21]

Get whichever gives you the best deal at the time you buy it. Tech support sucks everywhere, and parts break on everything. Hell, once you pry off the hooptie ground effects and other garbage, you'd be hard pressed to know one machine from another. Get a machine with a good processor, as much RAM as possible, a good video card, and lots of ports on the back (and front!) for addins. USB is good. A setup with a CD burner AND a CD/DVD drive is nice for disk copying, but an aftermarket burner shouldn't run more than $100. Oh yea, and as soon as you get it, run a good crud uninstaller on it like Spybot: Search and Destroy. Fully 25% of the horsies in this Compaq were eaten up by factory installed JUNK. Good luck with it, and dont believe the hype!

Posted: 12/23/2003 10:42:01 AM EDT

[#22]

Quoted:
let me clarify my dell statement. Midrange and low end dells pc's are junk.
mike

View Quote

We've purchased Dell 4550 series at work and they have been problem free. I bought one for home and it's been absolutely great. I recommend skipping the home pc portion of their page and going to the small business page and picking out a model. You get better hardware and better software for the money. I've used Dell Tech support, with a business PC purchase, you get different level of support, different phone numbers to call. They have been good to me.

[ARCHIVED THREAD] - In reference to the "DELL sucks" thread

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