Does anyone have a Dell Computer? Are they good? Should I buy one? I like the Dell 8250...Can't afford it.
I've had my Dimension 8000 (can't remember the exact #) for about a year and a half. I haven't had any problems with it yet. It's a 2.0.
I'm thinking of getting a Dell too, same model. I've already built one right under 1500 on their website. I'm planning on waiting til right before the fall semester though.
From my personal experience as an owner and professional experience as a senior level tech support agent with Apple, here is my scientific assessment of Dell. Dell computers suck. Dell customer service sucks. Dell technical support swallows. The commercials that say otherwise are lies. Dell was consistently close to the bottom in customer satisfaction. I know what you are thinking; "Fox worked for Apple so of course he would say that they suck." My advice would be buy an Apple because I believe that it is the best computer on the planet. However, you can seriously get a PC built that will be more upgradeable and definitely more reliable than a Dull.
My personal experience has been great. I have a 8100. The LCD went out after a few months and Dell sent someone to my house the next day and replaced it for free. After that, I haven't had any problems.
I think mine came by UPS ground service. There was a bit of a delay at the time because of the speaker system I ordered was back ordered. Look at the Dell forums on their site to see what the latest gripes are.
I'm pretty happy with mine, it's an 8250. The only problem was when they shipped it to me, they forgot to put any software on it. I talked to 4 different tech support people until about 4 am the night I got it. 2 people were awful and 2 people were great. Works great now.
I used to have a Dell -- a P200. It was GREAT! But Dell is now pretty overpriced for what it does. The quality of the computers is usually pretty good, although I would steer FAR FAR FAR away from the laptops. Dell's servers used to really suck, but they recently revamped their server division. We bought four or five and they have been AWESOME! I like them better than our Compaq server. Tech Support was great too. Personally, I think Dell for desktops is overrated. They don't suck, but they aren't the be all end all of computers. For the price of one of their high-end systems, one could almost build two better PCs. However, if you're just looking for a simple, no-hassle PC, Dell isn't too bad.
Although I prefer to build my own PCs, Dell is the only retail brand that I like. Their tech support is not good though.
Unless you know how to build PCs yourself, Dell seems pretty good to me. for under 1500, mine would come with 120 GB hardrive, Pentium 4 2.66 GHZ, 128 MB ATI RADEON 9800, and Altec Lansing surround sound spkrs. If I could build that myself, I'm sure it'd be cheaper. Gateways are more expensive and last time I checked HP, they dropped the Pavillion for the Presario.
I just recently looked at new PCs for a friend of mine. We looked at Gateway and Dell and to my suprise (and delight) I discovered that they were simply PC clones using off-the-shelf parts. Intel MBs with built in video and sound. I think that's good because they didn't seem to be full of proprietary components which means they are upgradeable. However, if there is a small PC store you trust you can get them to build you the exact same computer. I don't think a small shop will be cheaper necessarily (as Dell buys a lot of parts and gets them much cheaper then small shops do in addition to the fact that Dell, Gateway and such all have nice deals with MS for the OS) but the service should be much better from a small store (if you know one you like and trust). Also, Dell makes money from selling extended warrantees. Don't let "in house service" fool you. There is a procedure you have to go through so it's not like someone comes out right when you call. Also, most PC problems are not hardware related (at least as long as you get them setup proplerly) so check to see if any warrantee covers the OS as well. Plus, many times thing go wrong from user error and they probably won't help you there. Also, the Gateway we looked at came with 256 MG of ram and the guy at the store said it would cost something like $120 to upgrade to 512MG of ram. You can get 256MG of DDR ram for about $40 so that's one place they were trying to pad the bill, IMO. My friend ended up buying a clone from a small store because we could by the PC without an OS (you can't do that with a Dell) and I had a new, unopened copy of XP that I could give her. Plus I really trust the shop where she bought it and I know that if anything goes wrong they will work hard to make it right. She can talk with the owner as opposed to some faceless guy on the phone. As for Apples... they are really good computers but generally more expensive. Plus, it's a different OS so you may have issues with regards to software depending on what you want to do. You should look into an Apple but make sure the software you want and especially the games you want to play are available on the Mac. If so, it would make a good choice. Once again, if you want a PC to learn about PCs or to share things with your friends who have PCs (play on-line games and such) a PC is probably better.
I've had the Dell Dimension 8200 for over a year now with no problems whatsoever. Very dependable and it's awesome for gaming/music with the Harmon Kardon surround sound speakers. I did purchase the 3 year in house warranty, but thankfully I've never had to use it. Runs great, and I will purchase another one when the time comes.
contrary to what Mulder says.. in my experience as a PC Tech with the college district that has about 75% saturation with Dells... I have had no problems with Dells tech support or their customer service. and we really havent had any problems that are out of the ordinary for computers that are abused as much as these are.. If you are going to buy one...Dells are better than Compaqs, PB, HP or Gateway. I prefer to build my own...matter of fact, I just upgraded my machine to DDR..(new mobo with 512 DDR)...sweetness!
Anyone find it odd a guy who dropped out of UT gave the commencement speech tonight? "Congratulations you chumps. I'm living proof your diploma is worthless. You wasted 4 years when you could have started living in the real world!" edit - Dell didn't really say that, it would have been funny if he did
