I have ordered twice from Dell, once a hard disk and recently a camera lens. Both times I was told that the items are on backorder. Apparently, DELL is trying to run a "superstore" type of venture, so except perhaps from computers, DELL does not seem to stock the rest of the stuff they show on their site. They probably have third party fulfillment. Nevertheless, in both cases they did come through ok. They shipped brand new equipment at competitive prices. In fact, on the latest order of the lens, I spoke to customer service and I was told that it was on backorder and that it was slated to arrive sometime around the 10th of January (order placed December 11th). Incidentally, I did not find the person at customer service rude or difficult to work with. On the contrary, he was kind and he really worked hard to get my business because I was sceptical about the long wait for the backorder. I decided to order since my previous research indicated the price was unbeatable. Guess what! The lens actually arrived in less than a week, and it would have made it sooner if the courier did not have unexpected delays at their sorting facility (I know this for sure because they did not deliver on the day their website indicated it would, so I called them).  
 
In conclusion, I will confirm others comments that you will probably have to wait with DELL, but in my case the customer service was ok and the stuff I bought were fine and at competitive pricing. I have not been pushed to buy stuff I did not want and I did not get price hacking in any way. I have got horrendous treatment and price hacking from other "cheap" websites, but not from DELL. Was I simply lucky? Well if I was then I was twice and perhaps I should run to the casino for new year's....

This is the first time ordering from Dell all in all the order went well. Was unsure with order at first with all the neg feed back from people and poor customer service Dell is known for.  
Purhased a 4700 with free 17 LCD and printer. I added some upgrades that included a better 17 LCD more memory and larger video card. Dell was also offering free 2 day shipping with order.  
Placing the order was easy, got email notifications and order shipped on time with no delays.  
Just keeping my fingers crossed that I never need customer support.

The delivery is a day earlier than expected. I'm not commenting on the quality of the good, it's just as advertised.

This review was modified by its author, cl458, on 12/12/04 10:36 PM.

Let me first say they built this computer in 4 days and shipped it out in 4 days once I had ordrered it.  
 
Loaded with 74mb raptors in raid and x800xt plus 3.64 EE this comp reboots instantly everything installs instantly, oh and I haven't felt a second of lag IN ANYTHING EVER no wonder this thing is called extreme it blows my other P4 oout of the water and AMD64 doesn't stand a chance vs this speed demon (I own both and friends fx-55 tried out my comp today and says its definetly faster in most area's then his fx-55.  
 
THE LCD has ZERO DEAD PIXELS THE THING LOOKS PERFECT DELL YOU ARE AWESOME SHIPPING OUT NOTHING BUT THE BEST STUFF EVERYTIME TO ME!  
 
THANK YOU.  
 
Those are the good things now here is some kinda negative stuff about it  
 
THe xps tower is HUGE I mean its twice the size of my old xps and its also on the very heavy side for us weaker folks :\  
 
It also does make some noise while its on but it doesn't heat up my room like a few others said, but the noise I can hear it and it kinda bugs me a bit.  
 
I wish it was a little bit more quiet cuz my other dell was almost completely silent so i was a little shocked at the humming noise it makes while on  
 
another semi complain is the monitor is OMG MASSIVE its hard for me to read or write on it right now since im not used to this humongously widescreen you have to kinda lay back so ur eyes can see the entire screen ^^  
 
Overall im loving it PERFECT screen SUPER fast computer just what I wanted thx dell you ROCK don't let other ppl put down dell because trust me this dell will annihalte any other comp retailer in the business for price/performance dell will always crush its competition I got all this with 30% coupon and no other retailer or build it yourself shop will ever beat u dell with price/performance you're the best, THX michael dell for making such an awesome gaming computer company with the XPS

Ordered a Belkin 1100 VA UPS late 11/24. Good experience. I especially like their email notifications. Received 2 emails the next day, Thanksgiving, one for Final Details of order and other for Order Currently Processing. No sales person called and tryed to push more products, a real plus. Received email of shipping on 11/28 stating; it had been shipped on 11/27 and should arrive 3-5 business days. If that was the case it really took 6 business days to arrive. I don’t know how to blame for the shipping delay, Dell or DHL or just the holiday rush.

I placed this order after canceling my order with Alienware due to poor customer service. I spec'd out a system with the same components I had ordered through alienware and Dell was able to build and ship the system faster than Alienware was able to just get the parts in. I have had no problems with the system.  
 
I would say though if they build a system for gaming, which this one is, there should be an option available on line for us to opt out of all the extra software loaded on the system hat hogs resources. After removing the extra software this system works as it should.  
 
Nice system, fast and recieved when they said it would be here (2 days earlier as a matter of fact). I have yet to have to deal with customer service so I cannot attest to their abilities.

I just bought a loaded Dimension 8400 desktop at a bargain price (30% off). The system arrived within a week of purchase and appears to be running perfectly, and everything I ordered was included all in the one shipment. I have not needed to call Dell for any reason regarding this pc.  
 
I am a long time Dell purchaser and have generally had good experiences with them, but this may be my cleanest and most satisfying purchase yet since the price I got was truly great for the equipment I received.

DELL product has the best quality/price ratio. I love it. I bought 2 laptops and one desktop. So far I never got any problem. Service is a little shabby. The phone line is usually busy. Maybe just because they sold too many systems.

I ordered a new Dell Dimension 8400. The computer was easily traceable during its build and was shipped in a reasonable amount of time with no damage. I'm happy so far (although I’ve yet to deal with tech support so we'll see). The only thing I did when I got it was a complete re-install of XP to get rid of the extra crap Dell installs on their machines. No problems since!

Ordered a Laptop from Dell, Got a fair price and fair preformance. I am statisfied with my laptop.  
 
The screen failed on it, and it was replaced under warranty without problems. Time to have my unit fixed was less than 3 days including ALL shipping from the time of first contact with DELL support.

The PDA was amazing and I really like it alot. It fulfilled all my needs.  
 
cs112

This review was modified by its author, Madhatta, on 10/5/04 10:17 PM.

I would never buy a computer from Dell, but as others said, when buying 3rd party peripherals from Dell there's nothing to worry about.  
 
Dell had an awesome deal on a Mitsubishi 930SB monitor, 10% off and free shipping. The best price I could find.  
 
I was told that I should expect to wait at least a week before it could be processed and shipped, and then wait 5 business days for the shipping itself. To my complete surprise and joy, Dell got me my monitor 4 business days after I ordered it.  
 
I won't hesitate to buy again from Dell if the I find another good deal.

I bought a Dell DJ and a Axim x3 400mhz from Dell.  
It went smoothly and I had both items within a week from the order dates.  
 

From reading these reviews I have to say I would think twice about buying a computer from Dell, but I would, in a heartbeat, buy peripherals, etc. after my FANTASTIC experience!!  
 
I ordered a brand-new Canon A95 yesterday at 10 AM, along with a CF card and a Canon i960 printer. Got 10% off everything plus another $40 with a code, plus free 3-5 ground shipping.  
 
I got home from work today and my packages awaited me!! They were delivered LESS than 24 hours after I ordered,unreal!! Now I am still waiting for hte CF card, but the camera comes with a 32 MB one, and the card will be delievered tomorrow (it came from a different distrib. center).  
 
Gotta love overnight free shipping and a hell of a deal on a hot camera!!

This review was modified by its author, nikkiw23, on 9/21/04 5:40 PM.

I purchased a Demension 8400. My choice of a Dell was based partly on my experience of helping a neighbor setup his new Dell and how easy it was. I ordered the X800 video card upgrade and had to wait an extra week. I received free shipping, an extra 512MB of RAM, and a 160GB hard drive. The free shipping saved me $99. The bottom line is that Dell did everything they said they would and so far I hav'nt had to deal with tech support. I am very satisfied with their product.