I ordered the Alienware computer easily, but after that things went south. This machine has not worked properly since I received it. I have loaded sound software, video software, FLASHED THE BIOS ( not for the weak stomached )uninstalled the sound card, reinstalled it.  
Uninstalled the video card and reinstalled it.  
And guess what...still wont work. Their tech support is laughable, and their so called customer service reps are even worse. I paid for a 2 year warranty (HOME) and they wont come out to the home! If you think Alienware is reputable think again. Years ago maybe, but after getting a NAME they just want one thing and thats a sale.  
Look at Puget Systems, MAINGEAR or Velocity Micro if you want RELIABLE HARDWARE and RELIABLE TECH SUPPORT. Stay away from this company if you value your money. I made a 4500.00 mistake.  
Oh, and I have sent it back to them and they also  
are charging me their infamous 15% RESTOCK FEE.  
600.00 for a machine that never worked from the beginning. Great people they are.

This review was modified by its author, robmc, on 1/28/07 2:22 AM.

I was very exited at the iea of purchasing an Alienware computer, as I am a gamer and had been seing their adds and hearing about them for years.  
However, the purchasing of my system was about the only part of the process that was hassle-free.  
First, they double-charged the price of the computer to my account, resulting in an overdraft and leaving me unable to pay bills for half a month (it took 12 days after I first contacted them to see this money returned to me). Second, the computer shipped 5 days later than I was told on 2 different occasions.  
When the computer finally arrived, I was thrilled. it was gorgeous. Too bad it didnt even turn on. It took hours on the phone to get it running, and even then the power button wouldnt function. I was told that it was a problem with the mother board and that to replace it, they would freeze $215 of my account untill the recieved my old motherboard back. Essentially, I was to pay the price for a machine that was deffective out of the box.  
 
It was not long before I decided to return the machine (to which the Customer Service rep's reply was simply "O.K., return it"), finalizing the impression that my business meant absolutely nothing to them  
 
I would tell everyone I know to avoid this company at all costs.

This review was modified by its author, AuraJin, on 1/29/07 4:17 PM.

Horrible!!! stay away, bought laptop, m550, arrived ontime, booted it up and it ran amazingly, a few days later i was playing a game and it randomly shut down after 10 minutes or so, i called tech support suspecting it was the video card over heating like many other customers have experienced, tech support was stupid, they knew absolutely little, it is pretty sad when they cant figure out how to burn a cd, i was three steps ahead of the guy throughout the entire phone call,after running many many tests and spending hours on the phone they suggested reinstalling windows, upon reboot it ran worse then ever before finally i had had enough and i canceled my order, i sent it back and had to wait weeks for them to process it and refund me my money, everytime i called i received a different story about the status of my return, eventually i got my money, minus the cost to ship and the 15% restocking fee (something i dont think i should have been charged), i would never ever recommend this company to anyone, it is impossible to get to anyone beyond the customer service reps and the tech help is unintellifent and useless, biggest waste of my time and money  
 
UPDATE 1/24/07:  
I recieved an email from Lisa of Alienware. She had read my review posted here and looked into my experience. I was refunded the shipping and restocking fee. I appreciate this very much. Finally Alienware has been helpful. Thank you Lisa.

This review was modified by its author, monomilkman, on 1/24/07 10:07 PM.

I should of canceled my order after reading all the negative reviews on http://www.resellerratings.com/store/Alienware. I didn't, which I really regret. Like all of you I had heard great things about Alienware. I filled out my order on the alienware internet checkout with the radio buttons and submitted my order. A couple of hours later I checked my email, no confirmation email. Checked the next day and the next and the next and still no confirmation order stating what I bought. I thought this was odd but I could check on the status of my order and then received an email that it was shipped out. I was very excited and didn't dwell on the confirmation email I never got. The computer was delivered by Fedex and it was beautiful but as I read the invoice I noticed they did not include the right parts I ordered which was the 250GB hard drive and the DVD writer I requested, instead I had received a 160GB hard drive and a lite-on CD-ROM drive. I was disappointed with this but I thought all would be resolved when I called customer service. Well I was in for a rude awakening, the first person I talked to seemed to know nothing about computers and told me sorry but that's what you ordered. So then I ask to speak to the supervisor, Kate, who then goes on to tell me that's what was on the internet order and "That's would you paid for". I said I never received a confirmation email. She says sorry nothing can be done. Then I said so let me get this right you are over charging me for the 250GB and DVD writer when you sent me 160 GB and a CD-Rom drive? She said again that's what you paid for. I said, no you are criminals!! I told them to use a calculator and add up all the parts for the Aurora 3500 subtracting the prices for the 160GB and DVD-writer. At least they could credit me the money they charged me for the parts I never received. They refused to do it. So yes Alienware you have outright criminals working for you. I am reporting Alienware to the Better Business Bureaus, FBI and every review site I can find. Hopefully I can start a myspace page as well. I am so disappointed in Alienware beleive me I use to be a fan but I can't tolerate criminals.  
 
 
UPDATE  
When I went to the Aurora 3500 page to create the PC with the parts they gave to just see how much money they stole from me and it turns out they changed the parts and apparently the prices. Sheesh next time I ever order anything from the internet I will get it in writing or cancel it within the first day!!

Typically in the past I've always bought Dell or Gateway computers. This was my first venture into the world of high end gaming rigs and I thought I was getting one of the best in Alienware.  
I opted for the Aurora 7500 with a price of $2800 - the system arrived on Saturday November 18.  
 
The first day I booted it up, something was amiss, the system could not run World of Warcraft without crashing. If I alt-tabbed to the desktop from the game, the screen would blur and freeze and I'd have to reboot. Everytime I exited or logged out of the game, the pc itself would emit a beep sound and lock up.  
 
I called tech support and was told that the issue was not with the pc but with Blizzard software, something I was highly sceptical of since my Dell PC (decidely low-end spec and 4 years old could run it fine).  
 
I decided to wait until the following Monday to call Blizzard and see if really was a software issue. Sometime on Sunday Nov 18 the pc suddenly would not boot up and was completely dead. I called tech support and they said the motherboard and power supply would need replacing. They said they'd send out replacements and that within 3 days of receiving them, an on-site tech support guy would call and make an appointment to come fix it.  
 
The new motherboard and power supply took 1 week to arrive. After 3 days, I had yet to receive a call from an on-site technician. From Nov 29-Dec 1 I made numerous calls to Alienware asking for an update on status only to be told that I should sit tight and wait to hear from tech support. Finally on Dec 4 after the 5th or 6th call I had made, I was told that there had been a mixup and for some reason the technicians thought my problem had been resolved and that they would need to issue a 'new' ticket and i'd have to wait another 3 days for a tech person to call me.  
I told them this was totally unacceptable and after an argument they said they'd VIP the request and have someone call me next day.  
 
The on-site tech called me the next day and made an appointment to come see me on the Wednesday Nov 29. He arrived on time, spent 2 hours changing everything, the computer still didn't work. He spent 1 hour on the phone with a tier 1 and tier 2 alienware tech support person, neither of whom had any idea what was wrong, except to say that they needed to send out another motherboard and I'd have to wait again.  
 
I told them this was unacceptable and that I wanted the computer fixed back at the depot or given a new one. After arguing with several customer service reps who initially said I was not qualified to get a RMA number since I had not finished 'phone tech support' - they finally said they would issue me a RMA number and get it fixed back at base.  
 
I told them that I was sceptical that they would fix it correctly, since there was now several issues - one which was the locking up when running software, one which was the power issue. I even told them, that I bet they'd fix the power issue but not the locking up issue. They said they'd take detailed notes about the software locking up and have their engineers test it thoroughly but this would require more time. I said fine, and they agreed to do it and VIP the service and send the system back to me on 2 day delivery.  
 
I shipped the pc back to them that same day. On Dec 6 via Fedex (they paid for shipping) - the system arrived back to me on Dec 19 - they sent it via 5-day GROUND and not the 2-day they had promised.  
 
I opened the computer and was not surprised to find that while the power issue was fixed, the locking up issue was not. The computer still freezes anytime you alt tab from within any game to the desktop and it still crashes/locks up when you exit a game.  
 
I called them and said I wanted a refund of my money, they originally insisted that since I had exceeded the 30-day policy I was not entitled to a refund.  
 
After an extensive argument they said they'd make an allowance this one case, and refund me the money but would charge me for shipping and the 15% restocking fee.  
 
There is no way I will ever do business with this company ever again - it's the single worst company I have ever had the displeasure to deal with - even getting them to agree to do anything was like pulling teeth.  
 
I've shipped back the system and am now looking into purchasing an ABS or Gateway system.  

Simple order, so much drama...  
 
I'll be brief. We ordered a $100+ laptop bag from Alienware ten days ago. A stock item. my credit card was charged nine days ago. Alienware STILL hasn't shipped it and we're in this Phase 3 purgatory. WTF? Took 27 minutes on the phone JUST to change the shipping address and they still can't tell me the delivery date. Not to mention, the dozen very personal questions they asked to "verify my identity" - again, just to change the shipping address because we had to wait so long.  
 
Terrible customer service. Terrible order status system. I don't care how great the products seem, they don't deserve my money, especially if this is how handle a simple stock purchase - could not imagine wasting more money, especially on a custom order.

When I bought this computer, they gave me a date that it would be shipped by September 1st 2006. So I went ahead and purchased it, really excited about what I was going to get. Eventually i got couple emails saying that some parts were not in stock, so I gave that to them and said ok, I will take the other parts so I can get my order as fast as possible. I did not end up getting the computer until the middle of October. That is a whole 2.5 months.  
 
I have never in my life received something so late. Please wait, the story gets even better. The computer starting freezing the day I got it. I spent day after day with Alienware on the phone. At first I said, ok, this might be normal. I sent emails, over and over again. One answer from some guy on the phone was, oh you have to wait for the updates. That didn't make sense to me. They told me to move my ram, move it from one place to another, move my video cards, I have tried everything with this computer on the phone with them. The problem never resolved. It started getting worse, when i downloaded the updated they asked me to. The computer stopped functioning properly, it would flicker, no program will install itself anymore. I download anything, Windows says the file is corrupted. How can every file I download from the internet be corrupted.  
 
I asked for my money back or a refund, and they said they will not as it is past 30 days. This is a defective item, and no one is willing to help. I feel so helpless and so frustrated that I have been bezzled 4,000 dollars for a stinking machine that does not work. I am not a rich person, I can't just look the other way. Now I know never to buy anything from them every again.

I imagine that if your computer works when you get it and you never need customer service or technical support then you will more than likely be one of the satisfied people. But judging from the surveys from the last 30-45 days, most of these people have the same sort of problems. there is a consistent pattern. All of which I have experienced. The restocking fee is a joke. I oredered my computer on 10-6 received it on the 10-27 shipped it back on 10-30 it is now 11-16 and I don't have a computer nor do I have my 2600.00 for the 5750 that I absolutely loved but hated the experience relating to it.I feel as though this company is akin to shady company that is about to go under. But I know that they were purchased by dell. So I know that they are legit. Also when they build computers for review they always work. But there is trend here and it is disturbing. They have no answer as for when they will refund me my money. They honestly seem not too care. They absolutely suck. It is the worst consumer experience I have ever had.

Purchased a complete system, including "Alienware Approved" Acer monitor. Called for warranty support on monitor, and no luck - you have to go through Acer for that!  
 
Onsite Alienware warranty doesn't show any exception for non-aw monitors. Should be covered like any other product on the invoice.

I ordered an Alienware Area 51 m5550 notebook on 9/27/2006. Received it three weeks later on 10/18/2006, only to find the LCD screen was defective. There were horizontal lines moving down the screen.. especially visible on gray backgrounds. After calling tech support and walking through basic troubleshooting, they determined I needed to send it in for service. So much for "on site" warranty service.  
 
I received a FedEx shipping label and found that it was only GROUND shipping. That isn't too speedy from Washington state. I shipped it off on 10/19/2006 and did not receive it back until 11/4/2006 (over two weeks later). They shipped it back using GROUND service as well.  
 
I opened the box and found a sheet that says they reproduced the problem and replaced the LCD panel. Good, I thought. But I turned on the laptop and found the SAME PROBLEM, albeit to a slightly lesser degree.  
 
At this point I decide to bag the whole thing and return the laptop during their "30 day" window for getting a refund. I couldn't call customer service since it was already closed, so I had to wait until the next week.  
 
I called customer service and explained the issue. They were OK with me returning it for a refund, but told me there would be a 15% restocking fee. I told them this was unacceptable on a piece of hardware that did not work from the start. Why should I be punished $300 (on a $2000 laptop) when it is obviously inferior quality? The CS rep would not budge so I asked to speak to a supervisor. I waited on the phone for an hour and a half until a supervisor finally came on. After about 10 minutes of arguing my case, she wouldn't budge either. I finally said that if I didn't receive a full refund I would tell my credit card company to do a chargeback. She responded "do whatever you like."  
 
In summary, I am extremely disappointed with the quality of their product. The warranty is a joke, and customer service is horrible. The 15% restocking fee is completely unacceptable in cases like this.  
 
In contrast IBM and Dell have excellent on-site warranty coverage. I can get a better equipped Dell or IBM laptop for less money, and one that has a three year truly on-site warranty instead of their one year off-site warranty.  
 
Avoid Alienware at all costs.

Despite a massive 3month wait (still ongoing) for an ALX system, I took a punt on ordering an Area-51 7500 on the promise of a 7 to 10 day turnaround and that all the parts were in stock. slowly heading for a month waiting for this second system and wondering why I bothered. All the Alienware staff are polite and helpful but despite this, you always feel that they are "pulling a fast on". Their tracking system, in y opinion , does their company customer services more harm than good and gives a totally false or useless guide to progress of the order. Also if a company is going to make excuses for delays it seems logical to make sure they all use the same excuses. The number of times we have been told by one employee its the power-supply holding up the order, by another the liquid cooling, by another the chassis, by another the cable between the HDD and the motherboard etc etc  
 
I am patient and am happy to wait long periods for a machine if necessary but what I can not stand are delays that you aren't informed about. There is no excuse for not keeping customers informed when most of us are spending between £2000 and £5000.

This was one of the the worst experiences I have ever had purchasing anything in my life. I advise people to not purchase Alienware, until at least they iron out the problems they seem to be having meeting the quality standards they apparently had before the Dell buyout last spring.  
 
First - I ordered a high end Area 51 7500 on 8/27/06 and it did not arrive till 10/25/06. Only after I complained about not being notified of why my machine was taking so long to arrive did I get told I was being given a "rush ticket" – which still did not get me my order for 2 months.  
 
When it arrived - it did not work properly. Their tech support made me take apart the computer, remove all cards, reseat them, and reset the BIOs. I am not technical, so this was time consuming and distressing. I did not anticipate that a $3800 machine would be a DIY project upon arrival. Could you imagine buying a new luxury car, not having it start, and then have the dealer tell you to rebuild the engine yourself with the help of a phone support guy? To their credit, the support staff was very pleasant.  
 
Be warned that "on-site repair", is a little misleading. You must do it yourself. They have a long checklist of all the steps you have to do (basically, take apart the machine, reformat the hard drive, reinstall windows, etc) before they deem that a part may be defective. Then they will send you a new part that you must install yourself - or you can send back the machine for repairs. Unfortunately, the turnaround time is unacceptable here again. Their support forums are loaded with people wondering where their repair went to. From the other posters on the boards I read – it appears that you should expect no less than 30 days before the repaired machine is turned around - if you're lucky - and there's no guarantee that the one they send you back will work any better than the new one that took months to arrive. Their tech support forums, available to only people who have purchased from them, is filled with angry customers who also have received machines that don't work. It appears that there is a serious quality control issue in their assembly process. They have lots of copy on their website about how they have strict QA and a multi-step process that produced quality merchandise - but there seems to be a real breakdown somewhere in the process.  
 
After initially going through the first tech support marathon - my new machine worked for a day - then broke down again. I removed the cards and motherboard battery and it worked again - for a day - this cycle continued for the next few days. After a week and 15-18 hours of lost time and total frustration, I asked them to take it back and refund me my money as per their "30 day money back guarantee." First they told me that I didn't qualify for the money back guarantee because my order had been placed more than 30 days ago (never mind it took them 59 days to get it too me!) - then they conceded that I DID qualify and THEN told me that I would be charged a 15% restocking fee, minus the Windows OS. I had to pay the shipping fees myself.  
 
After I complained, I was contacted by someone from a different department who, again to the credit of Alienware, was extremely apologetic about the experience I had with the company and personally saw to it that I was refunded my money as promised by the 30 day guarantee.  
 
When all is said and done - I will have lost a weeks' worth of time, hours of hourly wage work, shipping fees and lost productivity spent fixing a new machine. I would not recommend their systems until whatever transition they are going through has been ironed out.  

This review was modified by its author, gadgetDiva, on 11/20/06 2:42 PM.

I purchased an Area-51 on 9/20/06.  
I was told that it will take 45 days to be delivered to me due to being a custom machine and Alienware has changed there cases.. There is 12 days left. When ordering the pc. I used there online page and had advice from one of there technicians as well as a manager on a couple questions I had. From the online order page and the technician to the manager, all was very helpful. I will be updating this review as it plays out.  
 
11/06/2006  
Today was the delivery date promised by (ALX Support Supervisor) As it stands now. I am still in phase 3. This is supposed to be a replacement from a pc I purchased with a defect in it. Due to the board. The memory can not be updated. That pc cost me 4,600.00. After giving Alienware more then enough time to fix the problem. Which it was found out that it could not be fixed. And I would like to ad. I had to call Alienware to find this out. I was also told it slipped there mind to call me. So after speaking with (ALX Support Supervisor) . We came to an agreement that Alienware would credit my defective pc towards a new one. I was willing to go with it. The machine was powerful. But had the memory defect. I ordered a machine more expensive then the first one. I also was told by (ALX Support Supervisor) he would handle it to ensure a trouble free purchase. Well. Here we go with a trouble free purchase. I have over 13,000.00 in Alienware machines. My patience's is about up. I will be getting refunded if they do not get things moving. But on a good note. Your first steps on purchasing a machine with the web page will go smooth. But thats as far as it goes from my experience. I am glad I own a corporation. I feel I will be needing the assets to solve this issue. I will update as it plays out.  

This review was modified by its author, AllTech, on 11/9/06 1:08 PM.

The order process from this company was horrendous. I ordered one video resolution and they substituted another in the order and wanted to charge me an additional $200 to get what I initially ordered. Even though I had the original order still in my shopping cart, the original salesperson as well as his supervisors refused to even look saying that "their configuration" is what was ordered. It took me 2 hours to cancel my order and as of today, 4 days later, I do not have my credit back from them. Avoid like the plague.

This review was modified by its author, artebears, on 10/23/06 1:22 PM.

Placed order 08/16/06, promised delivery date 08/28/06.  
Finally cancelled order 10/06/06.  
Alienware managed to be out the following basic PC components during this 7 week ordeal:  
Case  
Motherboard  
Dvd Drive  
Powersupply  
If it takes them 2 to 3 months to actually build a machine they need to just say so up front instead of taking your money and stringing you along. They failed to offer us a refund after they passed the 30 day mark without delivering our merchandise so we filed a complaint with the Florida Better Business Bureau. It will be interesting to see how long it thakes them to remove the + $3400 charge from our credit card.