Hi, there. This is a warning to anyone out there that is even entertaining the idea of buying an Alienware machine. DONT!!!!! They are nothing but trouble with tech support that has no clue as to how to identify and fix problems. There customer support services runs you in circles to avoid you complaints, and they all have a habit of loosing track of case files and they lie when they can't figure out how to help anyone. Here is my experience with them to back up the previous claims.
In July of 2003 I placed an order on line for a desktop with Dual AMD Anthlon 2800's, 1 GB of RAM, Nivida Quadro FX 1000, 2 segate hard drives (1 for 120GB and 1 for 80), WIN XP, and much more. All this for the purpose of running a 3D program called Maya. I waited for about over a month and I finally got it. I was so happy to plug in the computer and start working. Well I plugged it in and guess what? It wouldn’t turn on. I made sure my monitor was plugged in correctly and tried again. Yet nothing on screen. I called Alienware tech support and they told me that my monitor was to blame and that it wrecked my system. How it had wrecked it they couldn’t say. They even had me try to reinstall windows to make sure that the OS was working. While in the process of reinstalling Windows the computer began to restart on its own. It became apparent after 5 hrs on the phone with tech support that I had to send the computer back to them for repairs THE DAY AFTER I RECIEVED IT!!!!!! Mind you I was very angry at this point but I said fine just fix it and please send it back to me quickly. So I mailed it back out and waited. And waited, until finally I decide to call after 3 weeks to see how things were going. When I called customer service they said that they didn’t know where the computer was. Then they said no we found it but its still being serviced waiting for parts and to call back in a week. So I did and a week later they still were waiting on parts. I asked to speak to a supervisor and he said that it would be completely done at the end of that week (week4). So I call back that Friday to see when it would be shipped out and they said sorry we are waiting on the fans on the case to be attached to the power supply. Now I know it takes all of 2 seconds to attach the fans to the power supply and it was taking them 2 days to do it. Then I called again to ask them what had exactly been wrong with the machine and they could not tell me anything. They kept giving me the run around and no one knew what parts where being replaced and what was wrong. After numerous calls with no answers I became fed up and asked for my money back. I asked again and again and they told me I would have to pay a 15% restocking fee for a computer I never used. Then after some yelling they convinced me that the problems with my pc would be resolved and it would be great when I got it. So I reluctantly agreed and waited another half a month for the computer to finally come.
When I received the computer the second time it was mid October. This time the computer did turn on. On the tech support invoice that I received it stated that the second hard drive and one CPU was replaced. That tells you right there that some thing was really wrong. Then I noticed every so often that the computer again would restart by itself in the middle of loading windows. I called tech support again and they said that this time my video card drive was to blame. So we tried to install an older version of the driver. At the moment that seemed to solve the problem, but then it began again a few weeks later. I noticed that whenever I ran a program that used both processors the computer would restart. I called tech support again and they said again that the pc would have to be sent back a second time for repair with no idea as to what the problem was. Now this infuriated me. I again asked for my money back stating I didn’t want the computer anymore and that I would immediately build one by myself. They again talked me into sending it back for repairs guaranteeing that everything would be fine. The problem with sending it back was that I was in the middle of school finals and all my work was on it and I could not send the computer in for repair until I had moved back home from college. Then I had asked for an onsite technician to fix my computer. They denied me saying that it was unnecessary. So after I moved I called them stating that i think my PC is orver heating. Tech support walked me through the process of reading the Cpu Temp and to my surpise they read both at 175 degree Feriheit. the tech support guy told me to check that the fans on the CPUs were running. They were but the fan on the side of the case was not. After discovering this I mailed the computer out at the beginning of February. It took them about 21 days the send it back to me.
Now I have just received the computer a 3rd time. Now it did turn on and seemed not to have any problems. And all they did to fix my provious over heating problem was to add more fans to the casing. after figuring out what was wrong and chalking it up to bad luck I decided to be safe to install Norton Antivirus so that anything else I install on the computer wouldn’t put a virus on it. So I finish the installation and did an auto update of the virus definitions. Then it asked to restart the computer in order for the changes to take effect. I clicked yes and the system went crazy! It started to restart on its own again!!!! The same problem was happening again and I sent it back 2 times already. I called tech support and they said that it was the Norton that messed up the OS so we had to install the OS again. Isn’t this sounding familiar I thought. So we go ahead and try to install the OS again and again it restarts in the middle of the process. The tech support guy then had me try to format the hard rive and then reinstall Windows. During the process of reformatting the pc restarted again. Through the course of 8hrs I spoke with 4 different tech support employees who all gave me different reasons as to why my pc wasn’t working. The second guy I spoke to said that the recovery CD that Alienware sent me was corrupt and that they need to send me a new one. I asked for it to be overnighted to me and they said they couldn’t do that and it will take a few days to come in the mail. The next tech guy I spoke with said no its not thier CD it was Norton and to try to install the OS on the second hard rive. Then the last guy I spoke to said that it could be either the memory on my video card, the RAM, the Motherboard or the hard rives... basically anything on the PC could be bad. So this guy had me changing jumpers and switching the RAM, and finally switching hard rives. And now because of all this the computer won’t even turn on!!!!!!!! Now I told them that I would not send it back again for repair if no one can seem to figure out what was wrong and I really want my money back. They said well we can send an on site technician to fix it for me. This made me really mad because I had asked for on previously and was denied. I asked them if it was their policy to deny customers then to offer them what they were just denied. The tech support guy just started to stutter and said that rule change a week ago. Yeah sure it did... They told me a tech guy could be there by the end of the week on either of two days. They really weren’t sure when though. I told them I cant do that I have to work I already missed two days of college before waiting for the PC last time and cant do it again. So then the other option was they mail me new parts and while on the phone I would replace the broken ones. The only problem with that is that they need a credit card number to make sure I wont steal there broken parts and I don’t have one. Frustrated I said I would have to call them back. So today I called them and asked for my money back saying I'm fed up, their service is lousy and they cant seem to figure out the problem. Their response was "Sorry miss we can’t do that the 30-day money back guarantee has expired. Its at the bottom of the sales slip when you first purchased the PC. " AFTER ALMOST 6MONTHS OF HAVEING A COMPUTER THAT I CANT USE AND SENDING IT BACK 2 TIMES AND HAVE A COMPUTER RIGHT NOW INFRONT OF ME THAT DOSENT EVEN TURN ON THEY TOLD ME THEY CANT GIVE ME MY MONEY BACK!!!! I then proceeded to tell them that I would bring legal action upon them. Their response was that they have many lawsuits already and that course of action will not help me....
So now I am in a fight to get my +$3000 back from this company who I have lost all faith in. I have a friend who I had warned about buy from Alienware but they did so anyway. They received a computer with a huge crack down the front of the case. The dual monitors he ordered had lines going across them like they had been smash with some blunt object. And when he ran any processor intensive games/programs the computer kept jamming up. I had another friend who had bought a laptop before me and the hard drive had to be replaced 2 times and it still doesn’t work right.
SO AGAIN TO ANYONE GOING TO BUY A MACHINE FROM ALIENWARE DONT!!!! YOU'LL HAVE NOTHING BUT HEART ACHE AND AN EMPTY WALLET!!!!!! THEY HAVE EARNED THE RECENT BAD REPUTATION THEY ARE GETTING.
IF ANYONE ELSE HAS HAD A PROBLEM WITH ALIENWARE PLEASE EMAIL ME AND I WILL TRY TO BRING IT TO SOMEONES ATTENTION AS I TRY TO SOLVE MY OWN PROBLEM!!!
EMAIL:
JBobe03@yahoo.com
Jasmine
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