Alienware 17 R4, Dell is a mess

Hey Dell.... F*** YOU!

jk, kinda
In all seriousness here's my story as simple as I could explain it.
I received my 17 R4 back on 6/02. Within less than a week, the stuttering issue occurred and received a replacement laptop on 7/06. The second laptop was in even worse condition than the first. Loose track pad, the 4k IPS screen looked absolutely washed out when put side by side with the original laptop they sent me, the screws in the back were all stripped, and worst of all the stuttering issue was still there.

So I sent the 2nd laptop back kept the original one they sent me. I sent it in for repair, a week later the stuttering issue was still there.

So call tech support again, 3 hours later (after me telling him it's the same problem as before, we diagnosed this thing like 10 times already, still proceeded as if I had no idea what I was talking about) it was approved to be sent in to the depot again. Sent it in on 8/03, Big mistake.

After 2 service repair delays, and finally being told that an exchange process would be a quicker method (it wasn't) I had to wait a week for them to find a "match" (which they didn't) and was approved for a new laptop on Monday 8/28.

It is now 8/31, made a $150 dollar payment as they expect me to, for a laptop that had not been functioning properly since 6/02, and has not been on my desk since 8/03.

The problem here is that I keep hearing from the tech support and exchange what have you, that "there is nothing they can do", well Dell that's exactly why you have ****ty infrastructure, if there is nothing they can do, what use do all your employees have? It's not fair to them or us, that you have a ****ty operation. They get to deal with people who have been laptop-less for a month (no wonder why they are so pissed off) and there is literally very little they can do about it besides sending out an email.

I hope they fix this, there are a lot of holes in the business, get it sorted out Dell.
I ordered a laptop after my Spring semester had ended, we are now in my 2nd week into my fall semester and no laptop. This is a huge deal, I know I'm not the only one either

 

@Papusan @Mr. Fox

Yeah Dell's warranty is good in the sense, they have no problem sending you a spanking new laptop...but there's nothing they can do when the whole design of the laptop is flawed with a crappy heatsink that can't do the job, 2 RAM slots only and limited m.2 and SSD slots.... just get a refund and get something else man

 

Man, I am so sorry to hear this. Maybe if you push them hard enough and file a complaint with the Better Business Bureau you can get a refund and use the money to buy a EVOC P870KM1 from @Donald@HIDevolution instead.

 

Talking about the Sun Yeah, it's a damn Dell mess!! From crises to crises. And nothing seems to be any better. I wonder what will hit the buyers with the next revamped models

I think Alienware should go with the weaker Max-Q all over the line with the next models. Less powerful graphics can let the processor have more cooling headroom due the shared TRIPOD HS. Less heat from Graphics will allow the cpu can run cooler!!

A big win both for Dell and the buyers. Less repair aka cost money and less complaints from the angry buyers.

 

Yeah, I don't know. Still no update on my end was expecting it to at least be shipped out yesterday but nothing.

Guy seemed to be getting annoyed of me emailing him every day for the past two weeks and has literally been just telling to wait for him to email me.

I mean I could get something else, but lets face it, Alienware happens to have the best build quality by far out of all the gaming laptops. Razer might be a good option too, but for 3800 price tag to get a GTX 1080? They are crazy.
You have much less options when designing a laptop with them.


I'm just worried I wont even get my laptop after the estimated date range.
Absolutely ****ty.
Just wish there was something I can do, no one at Dell really seems to care

 

Build quality ain't the same as you have a fully working laptop who work and just work year after year. Of different brands laptops, only my AW had problems. For me wasn't Aw's good build quality worth a penny!! Hit up threads from past 3 years and I'm sure you will see Alienware's build quality can't help you if you want a fully working laptop. Design or build quality ain't the same as the laptop is a quality product!!

 

Yes I agree, but I'd assume there are a good amount of 17's out there that work perfectly fine. I feel I'm just one of the really unlucky guys that got not one, but two laptops that had the stuttering issue.
If I can get an Alienware with a 1080 with no issues then there really is no contest in terms of build quality and design in my opinion.

This is the last time though, if the laptop has the stuttering issue, I will be done with Dell.
This time I opted for the 120Hz QHD display that everyone has been raving about instead of the 4k IPS, so I'm a bit excited to try out Doom with the new panel.

I must say though, the first two R4's I received were literally built in two days and I received the laptops within less than a week of ordering them. This time that isn't the case, so I don't know what's taking so long or what to expect but hopefully that means I get a freshly built laptop.

 

Not a record or especially unlucky. I mean one received 4 of the flawed new Awbooks before he went for another brand. Probably not even the highest record. Regarding first Alienware Echo models launched 2015, I mean the record is 6 Motherboard swap(included 2 or 3 replacement laptops). Not 6 laptops.

 

[UPDATE]
Looks like my laptop has arrived in Los Angeles from Shangai today (just got the DHL tracking number).
It looks like they gave me standard overnight delivery, which means I probably wont have it until Monday. Which sucks because I was hoping I would be able to use it over the long labor day weekend.

Yeah, let's hope that isn't the same case for me.
It seems the GTX 1080 version of the laptop is really hit or miss; some people are lucky with the first laptop working the way it should, some guys you have eventually getting a laptop that works, and some guys like you said just end up going with a new brand after dealing with 3+ replacements never working as they should.

So lesson of the day, DO NOT get an Alienware equipped with a GTX 1080 UNLESS you are willing to accept the risk of waiting for a lengthy 2-3 month process to get one.

Fingers crossed, let's hope that updating the BIOS doesn't make my laptop crap out on me within 10 minutes of gameplay again. I have a good feeling about this one, and I'm glad they switched me from the 4k IPS to the 1440p screen.

Another piece of advice to people. If you are stuck between screens, do NOT get the IPS screen unless you have to do something that requires video editing. The screen is nice, but damn screen tearing was NASTY some times. I was able to notice even the smallest frame rate dips, and v-sync did not help much either.

 

Here's a perfect build quality brick.......



What are you gonna do with it? nothing coz it can't do anything other than being a good quality brick.....

What should you do.........here you go:

MSI GT73VR Titan Pro Owner's Impressions after 9 months

 

OR, get it from HIDevolution, they test it for you before they send it, they have their internal mods that improve cooling so it won't overheat, they have the best customer service to back it up.... that way, you at least get the Alienware that you want and the peace of mind that it will work.

If you email [email protected] , you get a small NBR Forum discount

 

Honestly I've wanted to start a small side business like this for a long time.
I know the benefits of repasting using liquid metal. Actually want to do this project myself though, I just want to make sure my laptop works before having to do a re-paste.
Some people are going as far as suggesting that Dell is sending laptops with FAULTY/FLAWED vrm's, which I believe is the REAL problem.

 

I went through something similar you have two options.

Fight and do an executive claim and get your money back.

Have someone fix it. I went with option two because I liked the system.


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OR he could get one that just works out of the box like I did. It's not all doom and gloom like some would have you think.

Believe it or not, but I had to exchange my first GT73VR because of fan issues and my second one still had the problem so MSI mailed me a new fan. Do you see me trolling every MSI thread trying to scare people away? Please show me on the doll where Alienware touched you. lol

Every laptop has its good and bad sides and every manufacturer can have issues. Certain brands sell a higher volume like Alienware, Dell, and ASUS so it's natural to have a higher proportion of issues with more units out there. Just look at the size of the Alienware sections on various forums or Reddit. The other companies are nowhere near as popular.

I completely agree with the idea of buying from a reputable reseller like @Donald@HIDevolution because of the QC checks and attention to detail they provide over a mass market retailer if you're worried about quality issues.

 

It's possible to get one with somewhat acceptable temps for normal usage. However there are options to get it fixed if you really like the system.


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Ok, here we go FYI. Alienware ain't big in the gaming computer industri. Approximately selling around 100.000 units a year.

Spoiler: Dellienware is not interested in creating the most powerful laptops anymore as they did before.

 

People tend to forget about the rest of the world.

Just out of curiosity, who sells the most gaming notebooks each year world wide?

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Everything posted in my previous post Not much have changed @hmscott

 

Haha. Sorry bro. I'm using Tapatalk and I didn't see it due to (click to load)

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Build quality means the entire system is both well built AND well designed. That's what BUILD means.
Having a firm, solid chassis means nothing when you have an uneven pressure, tripod heatsink that is also bent, and messed up thermal pads of the wrong thickness....and overheating PCH and SSDs...
MSI has had its moments...they've had some nice BGAbooks like the GT62VR with the three SSD M.2 slots, then they turn around and nerf them into one total M.2 slot on the GT72VR and cut down features. The Titan series is nice, and works very well especially if you repaste, but the hybrid power issues is completely utterly silly. There is absolutely no reason for hybrid battery power to exist on the GT73VR for ANY reason whatsoever--the Delta PSU's are fully capable of handling the max load without needing battery, and I proved that by drawing 240W sustained on the 230W PSU without battery usage. Yet people on the MSI official forums (not NBR) keep INSISTING that the PSU isn't capable of supplying both the CPU and GPU at max loads...yet I proved by hacking the EC that it fully CAN. I don't know about the Chicony units, but the Delta units are solid. Is that the same Delta that makes those Delta fans that make you think you're in a jumbo jet?

 

This made me laugh a bit. If the build quality is so good then why have you been having such problems with it and every replacement you received?



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Their build quality is excellent. The heatsink design was a mistake.



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That's part of the build quality, correct?


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Yes that would be correct.

Then no machine has a good build quality because there is something wrong in every machine on the market today.

The OP is talking specifically about other aspects of the computer. The heat sink has a design flaw. The rest of the system is built to a level that competition is not at yet.

From a build quality perspective the Alienware is at the top even with its heatsink flaw which can be fixed.

Again these are opinions not facts.


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I can agree with what you stated but then again Dell needs to get off their arse and fix it instead of continuing to pump out flawed machines with a fooked up heatsink. That's all I'm getting at besides the conflicting statement I quoted earlier.


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The heat sink is the one big design flaw of the current generation. The rest of the machine is built like a tank. Metal case instead of cheap plastic, sturdy hinges, steel reinforcement under the keyboard to reduce flex. The laptop feels solid and quality which I can't say for the MSI and Clevo machines I've tried that use a lot of cheap looking plastic. Like I said before, all machines have their issues and nothing is perfect.

 

I mentioned ASUS in my message because I know they're huge. I've owned ASUS before and their quality isn't great and their warranty support is abysmal.

I don't see Clevo listed anywhere on that article so it appears that the majority of gaming notebooks are "BGA Turdbooks" OMG! ASUS doesn't sell socket CPU notebooks and I'm only aware of 1 or 2 MSI models, the rest are BGA...

It's almost like Frank's comments were on point. He would prefer socket hardware but the industry as a whole is moving away from socket CPUs for laptops because Intel doesn't officially design socket laptop hardware and it requires a thicker chassis which the majority of consumers don't want. He doesn't say they don't care about extreme performance anywhere - just that the realities of the marketplace have changed. The HK mobile CPUs are plenty for gaming IMO and for the few that "need" desktop CPUs they can get a Clevo.

And I wonder what the overall sales numbers would be when you factor in all PC sales, both laptop and desktop...

 

This sounds like a pretty sad solution XD

 

Nothing wrong with the heatsink design. This has been conclusively proven by many running these after a proper repaste. It's more than up to the task.

Also why are you complaining about the specs there, it's only an inch thick man, and two ram/full ssd slots is enough... You can spec that with 32GB RAM and 2TB of ultrafast data. Is that not enough for you?

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That's ridiculous and will never happen

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ughh, obviously not....look at my signature again

The minimum in today's standards is 64GB. Period. No excuse. NADA! Every performance laptop ranging from Clevo to ASUS can take up to 64GB. Even Alienware previously did, why go back? I don't know, ask Mr. Azor

And NO, 1 m.2 Slot and 1 2.5 inch is not enough. Every other laptop has either 2 m.2s or 2 2.5" slots...

I have 9.5TB worth of storage (all SSDs). 2x 2TB 960 Pro m.2 NVMe + 1TB 850 EVO m.2 SATA + 4TB 850 EVO SATA + 512GB SanDisk SD Card

Going back to what you said about the heatsink, Let me not start pulling up overheating issues and post them here...it's an inferior heatsink. Period. Even DELL stopped accepting repair/exchange requests if the CPU doesn't reach 105C so they are basically saying, fry your CPU first, then only we will send you a tech but complaining that 95-98C is a high temp is not an issue in their books.

If the heatsink was even adequate, system builders like HIDevolution wouldn't have had to start offering custom modifications to the cooling of Alienware laptops to tame the temps down.

Don't get me wrong, I was the no.1 Alienware Fanboy including @Mr. Fox and @Papusan but the ugly truth has to be told...

Sorry if I hurt your feelings, this wasn't my intention

 

You won't be disappointed. It's soo Damn smooth! Destiny 2 was just incredible!

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It's not a flaw with the heatsink! Tripod isn't a mess! It's just not being fitted and balanced correctly in the units, when it is, they work GREAT!

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Yeah absolutely right

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Lol you haven't hurt my feelings but thanks for the concern

Please answer me one thing though. Why the hell do you need 64GB instead of 32GB of RAM. That's completely overkill and alienware probably realised it, why should anyone care?

Also the R4 has 2 m.2 NVME drives and a 3rd one which is also half the size. These combined with the 2.5" slot will give you close or even identical storage (although why anyone would need more than 2TB in a portable gaming machine is beyond me)

Regarding the heatsink, it's not inferior! When correctly fitted it's the best in class (which include all Asus, MSI and Razer laptops). I don't deny there's a problem, just that the problem isn't the heatsink itself, just the way it's fitted. It can be solved and you don't need a new heatsink (just better thermal paste and balancing).


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That's just the thing. It's doesn't lookike it can be fitted properly on some people's machines.

MSI looks like they have the current best thermal system with Cooler Boost 5. It's destroying thermals in their new thin and light system (GE73vr)

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A simple re-paste should have been more than enough. Same as you can manage with all the other laptop models from most of the other OEMs. But it obviously does not work. Not for everyone. This is only one of very many examples the owner can't fix it with a simple re-paste. And you say Tripod is not a mess! Oh'well. I can tell yoo so much, I have seen a lot the last 10 months. And this ain't a pretty sight. Not all AW owners are agree with your conclusion, Sir.

If I remember correctly... It was I and bro @hmscott who was the first one to mention the TRIPOD mess with uneven core temp and overheating last fall. Now 10 months after, the Tripod mess still ain't fully fixed... Of course it's not fully fixed, Sir... Because a flawed heatsink design can't be fixed with a new firmware. Only with a new not flawed HS design!!

 

After proper rebalance pad and repaste there is not a comparable system in thickness and in spec... even the x7 dt v7 has its own issues...

Either way can we not turn this into another anti turdbook thread and address the issues to the OP? Otherwise this will be another useless continuation of 800 other threads.


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I never said anything about Turdbook. I have a BGA laptop myself. I praise and buy what's good and am no fanboy of any brand. Just keep me the heck away from Clevo and I'm a happy man.

 

Agreed this is a mess. After being properly unwarped, rebalanced and lapped it works great. More work then should have to be done. If you are determined and like the Alienware there are ways it can be fixed. If you are tired of dealing with it return it and get something else.


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My heatsink was flawed and warped by 2mm. It is normal/average to have a 1.4mm warp in about all of the machines coming to customers lately.

I would say that's a flaw in the QC and manufacturing process.


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As you read in the link I posted... <hi, im having an issue with my laptop. its suffering from serious thermal throttling while gaming, and there is a huge difference of temps between cores. i have already repasted, cleaned the heatsink, undervolted at -110v, everything. can you please help me? thanks>

How much more have to be done to make the cooling in Aw work as intended? A normal working heatsink, not Flawed heatsink design should easly be fixed with a simple re-paste. Not almost re-design the HS by yourself. But Some can't see this.

 

Not sure what your getting at I was agreeing with you....

I don't think anyone should buy this machine without the intention of fixing it.

You can do this with almost all heatsinks on the market to improve performance with this heatsink I would say it is not optional to ignore.


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Wasn't intended for yoo, bruh Only as info for others who perhaps will discover the thread.

 

Yeah, I feel the best analogy I can give is it's like comparing a Mustang GT to a BMW M4, obviously referring to the exterior design and the materials used.

The purpose of this thread is to warn others, I'm definitely not the only one.
The stats on this forum show that 50%+ of the consumers with a GTX 1080 equipped in their R4, experience the stuttering issue. I believe we have a large enough sample size to get an idea of the true amount of people dealing with this.
I have not read ONE article where Dell makes a comment on the situation. This is a problem, had Porsche made a significantly flawed 911 Turbo, it'd be all over the web. I'm surprised and shocked that Dell is not even acknowledging the situation. That could be our faults as the consumers though.

I agree, fook that.
There are Alienware laptops that work perfectly fine equipped with a GTX 1080, so it can be done, they just need to figure out what exactly their problem is.

Has anyone ever experienced the stuttering issue only occuring when you elevate the back portion of the laptop?
There have been a number of people suggesting that lifting the back of the laptop for better ventilation, oddly, causes the stuttering issue, or rather exacerbates the situation.

 

In this case it sounds like he's got defective or warped heatsink since the repaste and undervolt aren't helping. He would need to contact support and get them to replace it with one of the new sunon units with the correct size thermal pads. Bonus points if he puts proper paste on when they do the swap.

 

64 GB might be YOUR standard but that's unrealistic for 90% of people. Hell, most reputable gaming sites recommend 16 GB as the most you'll need for gaming. 32 is pretty much overkill for most applications.

The 17 R4 has 3 m.2 slots and a 2.5". I've got 2x 1 TB SSDs in mine. I could have more if I wanted to fill that stupid half size m.2 slot. lol

I don't know where the comment about not exchanging unless 105c came from because it's not true. I've exchanged/returned several skylake models for 90+ Temps and that was fine. In fact, Alienware has a support article that states in writing that if your CPU package temp exceeds 93c on OC level 3 then they will warranty the heatsink.

 

Well, that answer is simple.
It's a gaming laptop. Dell understood that, and they also understand the brand "Alienware"

Yeah, what are you doing that necessitates 64 GB of RAM?
I'm playing games, streaming online, and doing homework that's all I need my laptop for.

 

Bragging rights brah

 

I'm in my phone in a desert now. Wait till I get home and I'll pull it up for j00