I try reserving our articles, and time, on products and services that I can recommend. I like sharing things that are enjoyable and useful. However, there are times when you must, in good faith, share experiences that aren’t so great. Though I love being upbeat, I think that warning others of issues is a good idea. From there, they can make a more informed decision on how they’ll spend their time, energy, and money.
So, here’s why I can’t recommend Dell products.
If you’ve had a great experience with the company and with their products – I am happy for that. I won’t discount your good experience based on my negative experience. I would rather that you ran into no issues, unlike me.
The Story of My Dell Laptop
We purchased a Dell XPS 15 9560 last December. (Well, my husband purchased it for me when my Asus of several years had finally given me all that it had.) It is a beautiful laptop. Beautiful display, and it was supposed to be a power-horse. Which is what I need. I need a computer that can keep up with me, which means it needs to work – a lot. I loved my Asus, but was excited to try this laptop.
However, I noticed right away that something seemed to be off with the keyboard. Keys that I tapped wouldn’t register, or maybe they’d register too many times. I brushed it off as me just getting used to a new keyboard.
Then, a few times, it behaved as if it didn’t want to start. Maybe it didn’t want to power on – or perhaps it was having trouble coming out of sleep mode. It seemed weird – but I didn’t want to complain. Maybe it was just me trying to get used to a new ‘system’.
It Died
Last Friday, as I began my morning routine of answering emails and reviewing posts – I decided to make myself a cup of coffee. I stopped what work I was doing on my Dell XPS 15 9560 and went to the kitchen. Upon returning, the sleep-mode screen was on… though it shouldn’t have been in that short amount of time. I sat down and scooted the mouse. Nothing. I ran my finger over the touch pad. Nothing. I pressed a key. Nothing. I ran my fingertip over the touch screen. Nothing. The computer was frozen.
I powered the laptop off, and tried to restart it. That’s when the nightmare began. The screen repeatedly told me that the computer had no hard drive.
Excuse me? It had a hard drive five minutes ago. Where would it have gone?
I researched the issue and ran a few tests to see if this was a simple fix. I found out that it was not.
I contacted Dell support through their @DellCares Twitter. Bad idea. That takes forever, and they only ran me through every test I had already performed. Me stating that I knew what I was doing and that the hard drive was bad – was not good enough for them.
Tip: Don’t contact Dell through Twitter. It shouldn’t even be an option if they aren’t going to respond in real-time. Now, I know, it’s tough to keep up with the messaging on every single social media account. But I’m pretty sure that Dell can staff their customer service accounts. If they can’t, shut it down.
With that route taking so long, we called the customer service number listed on Dell’s site. They ran us through the same tests, even with us knowing that none of it would work and that the drive was bad. Keep in mind, this computer is two months old.
Their customer service department finally decided that the hard drive was bad and told us they would be out on Monday to replace it.
Monday comes. No one from Dell comes or calls.
We call. We’re told that no one is coming. We ask why that is seeing as we were told that someone would in fact be there on Monday to replace the two-month-old hard drive. They haven’t a clue what we’re talking about. They tell us that the part won’t be in for at least a day.
In the mean time, I have a lot of work piling up.
I had received messages from Dell’s Twitter as I had been asking them about another issue concerning the information on the hard drive. They state that they see the issue has been escalated and will keep an eye on everything. I inform them of the lies and miscommunication and that this in fact holding up my work process and potentially costing me business opportunities. I need something fixed. Very quickly. I can’t wait in limbo for it to be repaired. I continue to get the runaround – “They’re keeping an eye on it.” “It’s priority.” So on and so forth. But, we all know that it really isn’t a priority.
I’m extremely frustrated as the laptop was less than two months in my possession. I see that many others are having the same issue with this Dell laptop and others.
I’m also very worried that the replacement drive isn’t going to perform any better than the original. How are so many people having this very issue? Will I need to back up every hour to ensure nothing is lost? Can I really spend the next few years being so on edge about my work system?
Too many frustrating questions swirling about – and no real answers.
At this point, I have no answers on when they can or will repair their faulty hard drive. I know it’s only Monday – but I should have some real assistance and help. I have absolutely no idea when my laptop will be repaired – nor do I know if I truly trust the repair. I’m currently working on an eight-year-old laptop – which is a little frustrating but also sad that IT works and the brand new laptop does not.
My laptop is the heart and soul of my work-life. I rely on it, deeply. It is an expensive piece of equipment and I need to be able to trust in it. I just don’t feel that I can – and I caution you to see what other customers are saying before purchasing a Dell product.
I think I’d very much like to go back to an Asus at this point. If you love Dell, that is great! I’m so happy that you didn’t have this frustrating experience. And, really, I think that customer service was even worse than the new computer dying a few weeks into use. (It sat, wrapped and waiting for Christmas morning for the first month we had it.)
