Dell has given me the worst customer service experience ive ever received in my life.

I bought a alienware r4 gtx 1080 laptop during the black friday sale. Fast forward and since ive recieved it ive been having nothing but issues with it. My SSD randomly disappears/gets corrupted (when i boot windows needs to fix it 25% of the time). The bottom bezel arrived disconnected from the screen and refuses to stay attached. Every week since then ive had to push it back into place because the glue refuses to hold it. If i close the lid and awake the computer from sleep then play a game the fans refuse to rev up. They just get stuck at the low RPM's no matter what the temps are and last but not least it showed up with 25C+ core differentials. I launched a game for the first time played for a total of 5 minutes before it just completely shut off from overheating.

So i called to get a replacement unit since i was still in the 30 day exchange period and was accepted after confirming all my issues with technical support. That was on 12/26 with the estimated delivery of 1/15.

Fast forward to the 20th i called to see why it hasnt shipped. I was told it would be shipping out within 24-48 hours.

The 25th rolled around and i called again. My case was supposedly escalated. I was told they would look into it, and get back to me within 48 hours.

Never heard a word from them after 3 days so i called again. Was told there was a slight hold up, but i should be getting my replacement within a week.

A week later i called again and was told that there is a part shortage and my order was delayed until further notice. I was offered a replacement heatsink for my heat issues. Was told they would call to setup an appointment to send out a tech.

Three days later i heard nothing so i called again. Was then told there where no heatsinks in stock at the moment, but they should be getting them in within a week.

A week later i call back and was told "the alienware r4 is riddled with so many incompatibilities and defects that it can not be fixed". This was around mid February and i posted this on reddit about it: https://www.reddit.com/r/Alienware/...ding_to_alienware_is/?st=j0bnujov&sh=8d4806cc

Was told in that thread that "this is not okay at all" and to contact [email protected] with all of details, order numbers, and service case numbers.

Did that and never heard a word back about my case. Emailed them a second time 3 days later incase the first one never went though and never heard a word back again either.

So i call back again and was told that "someone was going to get to the bottom of this for me" I went though all my issues all over again with them since no one seemed to have a clue about anything involving my case. Was told it was going to take to long on the phone, and that they would need to call me back once its settled. Believe it or not someone actually did call me back for once on 3/2. I was told that they didnt have any replacement 6820hk available but since they were releasing a new 7820hk model on the 13th i could just be upgraded to that. I was then told that since it wasnt released yet they couldnt swap my exchange order for that model at this time. But to call back on the 13th when it shows up on dells site.

A few days later someone from dell calls me again. I explained the conservation i had with the other dell employee and he tells me the same thing. Just to call back when the model shows up.

4 days later my exchange is cancelled. I call again for one what feels like the 50th time and talked to a women who was nice as can be. I really felt like she cared about the nonsense ive gone though and she actually put some faith back into dell for me. I was put on hold like 10 times and while i spent a while on the phone with her, she actually seemed like she was getting to the bottom of it. She told me the manager from the exchange department would personally call me within 48 hours to send me out a laptop.

48 hours later a guy named marco called me to explain the process to me. I was then told i would be receiving the same exact model but he doesnt know when it will be sent out "could be a few days could be a few weeks". When i mentioned 2 reps told me i would be receiving the newer 7820hk model for my trouble i was told "that im past my exchange period and the only reason i am even still getting an exchange is because a manager approved it. That there not even required to give me one anymore. Also that im lucky im even getting a new model since i should be receiving a refurbished unit". I got off the phone with him a hour ago and i just cant get over how rude he was. The more i think about the way he talked to me the more i think how rude he was.

Ive talked to about 30 people at dell so far and he without a doubt was one of the rudest people ive spoken too. I honestly feel like he just didnt give a absolute **** about me. He acted like dell is doing me a massive favor by even still sending me a replacement even though he has no clue when its being sent out. It honestly felt like someone was forcing him to help me.

Ive had nothing but patience with them, stayed calm the whole time on the phone and let them drag me around for almost three months. Just to get off the phone with him and have the impression that "screw everything you have been though, we dont really care if you are happy or not, your lucky im even talking to you."

So thats where i am. I just needed to rant. Its not even the promised upgrade that aggrivating me. Its the being tossed around for 3 months, told 20 different things, not getting a single answer to any of my questions, no explanation on why its taken 3 months, no guarentee on when they will ship it, then on top of that being talked to like i should go hang up the phone and write a letter to dell thanking and praising them for even still bothering with me. No sorry for you trouble, no thanks for hanging in there while we sort it out, nothing. For all i know i could be at this for 3 more months.

I know this is long but i just needed to rant and tell someone. I managed to somewhat get my temps under control with a repaste, but i seriously think my heatsink is just warped beyond repair. I used double sided tape to get my bezel to stay on, and every time i go to play a game i now have to restart it in hopes my fans work. Its just stupid that i have to do this in a 3K laptop.

I honestly dont know what the hell to do any more. I like the r4 and just want a working one. I really only have two options, wait around even longer or just refund. I just got a good deal on the r4, and msi is just to flimsy to make the switch. I just cant believe how much of a headache this has become. Any advice would be appreciated.

 

wow sorry to hear your story, mine was complete opposite, first time ever buying from Dell, the first day I got my 15 R3 (03/07/17), I told them that there was some issues with it because the box came open and the keyboard had a key that "sticked out", I told him I just wanted a replacement and they told me to hold on for 10 days, I just called on 03/13/17 and explained the situation to an alienware specialist and without any hesitation he said he would process an order (03/13/17), after 3 hours, I received an email that the order was approved and today 03/15/17 received another email that the order was ready to be shipped, now I'm just waiting to get my new 15 R3 and hopefully its flawless if not its going back again lol,


anways, hopefully they resolve this, I would advice to talk to someone in alienware directly as dell is hard to deal with

 

Wow, sorry to hear about your experience. While I don't have much advice for you as you have already tried almost everything, I do want to say that the worst customer service experience I have ever had was also with Dell.

I bought some expensive computer parts from them (total was $1k+), and that was the beginning of my nightmare. The order was supposed to ship within a day or two, but 10 days later, I was still waiting. After a few aggravating calls, the order finally shipped via FedEx 2 day shipping. I though that would be the end of it, but it was only the beginning. The tracking information on FedEx's website mentioned that the label was printed, but the package wasn't received by them. This is normal the first day (and sometimes a couple of days), but in my case, it never moved past this even after a week and counting. Dell managed to either lose the package before handing it over to FedEx, or someone swiped it!

Trying to have Dell look into this issue (i.e. send me what I bought, or just refund the money) sent me down the most harrowing customer service exchanges I could have ever imagined. Countless calls, dozens of hours, getting bounced around departments, customer service agent almost crying and/or laughing at me and utter rudeness are just some of the highlights. I worked for a large company that also happened to be a big Dell customer, so I decided to go that route as I had ordered the parts for work. I was referred to the direct agent at Dell that worked with our IT department. I was elated and thought that I was close to a resolution thanks to this direct connection. I couldn't be more wrong. The account specialists I emailed were polite and seemingly helpful based on what they wrote, but they kept referring me to people in other departments. At one point, I was part of an email chain with 4 or 5 high level Dell corporate specialists! Long story short, I got NOWHERE even after this level of escalation. They kept repeating the same story: Something that amounted to "sorry you had to go through all this, but we're looking into it". It was quite possibly the most frustrating experience of my life, customer service or not.

After weeks of this utter horsecrap, and a couple of months after ordering the parts, I just gave up decided to dispute the charge with....wait for it....Dell Financial Services!! I have never regretted not using my credit card more. The thought of dealing with yet another Dell department sent shivers down my spine. I initiated the antiquated dispute process by having to write and mail an actual letter. Emailing a scanned copy wasn't an option, neither was talking to an agent about this. Since I didn't have any other options, I went ahead and penned a letter that explained the situation in detail. I also let them know just how miserable the customer service experience had been so far.

I wasn't expecting much since this was DFS, but after a couple of "we're looking into your dispute" notices, I received a response that I would have never expected from anything that has "Dell" in it: The dispute has been resolved in your favor!! I was refunded the entire amount by DFS even though Dell themselves wouldn't do it no matter what I did. Turns out, DFS is run by an independent bank, and not Dell. Maybe that is what ended up saving me and whatever sanity I still had left at that point.

The only reason I ended up buying my recently purchased AW 17 R4 was the price, price, price, and the amazing community/parts availability! I got a 6820HK / GTX1070 machine at an absolutely unbelievable price thanks to coupons, Amex offer, cash back and "cancel order" discount. A comparable spec from another manufacturer would have cost me at least $600 to $800 more. I could have bought something else on principle, but it would have ended up hurting my wallet, so I relented. I would never touch a Dell product that is priced similarly to it's competitors though, and I am still bitter about Dell's customer service after that experience.

I had another terrible service experience with my AW 17 R3 that I no longer have, but since I have already written a wall of text, I'll summarize that experience: Bought top of the line 17 R3 for work, arrived with something broken inside/loud rattle, customer service wouldn't send anyone on site even though I had on-site service as this is something they couldn't "diagnose" even though they could clearly hear the rattle over the phone. This is before they added "after remote diagnosis" to the on-site warranty description. After hours on the phone, I got nowhere. I couldn't afford to send this otherwise working laptop back for a week or two to get a rattle fixed. Thankfully, my touchpad buttons developed an "issue", so they had to send a tech to repair it. The tech couldn't believe what he saw when he opened up the laptop - Dell had left a large metal piece that didn't belong in the laptop right next to the motherboard! He replaced the touchpad, removed the loose metal piece and left. Thankfully, that was the end of that.

 

Man that sucks to hear stories like this. If it was Marco V. I have dealt with him a lot, and he has been extremely helpful with me and exchanged my 6820hk model to the 7820hk model. Honestly, I wonder if he might have been having a bad day. This is no excuse if that happened exactly how you said, but I have had more issues with Dell's QC than their customer service especially with Marco or Pam, both of them have been great.

Sent from my SM-G935T using Tapatalk

 

Im glad to hear dell financial helped you out because im going to have to deal with the same thing. Only reason i didnt put it on my credit card is because they offered me 18 months no interest. So maybe they can be my saving grace.

I also got a good deal on my r4 which is half the reason why ive gone though all this nonsense, but idk how much longer i can do it before i just demand a refund.

 

Dude I'm really sorry to hear this. Where are you located? I'm here in the US and my warranty service has been spectacular. They have taken care all my issues promptly with follow up phone calls. As matter of fact, my laptop exchange due to the bad screen has already finished in production after two days! Everyone has a different experience, most good ones here happened in the US and majority of the bad ones are elsewhere. Too bad they can't be more consistent across the board. Maybe you should get in contact with one of the Alienware members here for direct help.

 

I just thought I would post about my 11th Alienware laptop since 1997! I bought a Alienware 15 R3 on November 23/2016! The ordering went fine but when it was time to ship the laptop I did not receive a tracking number or even any info that it had been shipped! So on December 30/2016 at 6 p.m. there was a knock at the door! I opened it to find a Purolator guy with the laptop! That was a surprise since it was still listed as work in progress on Dell's order status page! On December 5/2016 I received 2 emails with a tracking number witch was odd since it was clearly already delivered! That same day the SSD drive was acting up so I called tech support to get help and was greeted with a guy who had no knowlage as to what he was doing witch resulted in me making another 6 calls back! The last person I spoke to was helpful witch resulted in sending a on site
tech to come buy! But to get him to come by I had to prove I was who I said I was and needed to show proof of purchase! I had to take pictures of the laptop with my ID and send the emails from ordering! Then she tells me that I have no warranty on it and would ad it to the laptop! The on site tech came 2 days later to do a SSD swap, not bothering to change the motherboard he brought with him! When he shows up he did not even know how to remove the bottom cover, so I had to show him! He then proceeds to
change the SSD and put the unit back together! Then he booted up the system no operating system could be found! He pulls out a usb stick and starts a Windows install! Half way through the windows install he decides it time for him to go leaving me to finish up with the usb drive! Fine! All is well for two months then I get this weird battery draining while plugged in! It only happens when the laptop is in heavy use ie: playing Battlefield 1, The Witcher 3, Watchdogs 2! So it is time for another round with tech support! This time it was only 4 calls to get an onsite tech to come! The same tech guy shows up with a motherboard and power supply! Again he does not change the motherboard, only exchanges the power brick then quickly leaves! Tech support follow up emails back and I stated the issue is still the same! He also sends another tech to come by and tells
me to make sure he changes the motherboard! A couple of days later he shows up (different guy) and gets to work! This guy not only has had no training with this laptop but manages to strip some screws so I had to lend him my screwdrivers to do the job! After a few days I get another follow up call and told them that the issue was still there but there is now a heating issue as well! He proceeds to tell me that he is going to do a system exchange! I said that I was fine with that course of action! The next day I get a phone call from the exchange department stating that they were going to send me a new laptop with a return label for the old one! He also stated that I would get an email with the specs for me to review but that never happened! 6 days later I emailed him back asking for the spec sheet for me to review but instead he gave me an order number with an EDD of March 15/2017! That was fine but now it has been stuck in "work in progress" for 8 days now with no other info! After a few phone calls I get an email from the exchange department stating the laptop was built and was waiting for a tracking number! It is now March 16/2017 and the status of the laptop is still "work in progress" so I guess I will not be getting it today! I called today to hopefully get some updated info only to be lied to stating that there is a part shortage! I told him that I have received an email stating the laptop was already built and was waiting for a tracking number 3 days ago! But according to him I was wrong and did not receive an email! Once again I have no info on what is happening with my exchange! With every new laptop I buy from Alienware the service gets worse!

 

Where are you located? My exchange system was confirmed 2 days after I called. Email with confirmed specs 1 day later. 2 days later in production and then 2 days after that it was finished. Now I'm expecting a few more days for it to be shipped because this seem to be the part where Dell takes a long time.

 

I am in Canada 30 minutes from the U.S. boarder!

 

Im from the US. I posted this over on reddit too https://www.reddit.com/r/pcgaming/c...rst_customer_service/?st=j0d12rgu&sh=d49dfed3

I tweeted that post to Frank Azar on twitter and he told me to send him my service tag. That was about 8 hours ago. Havent hear anything since. Umar told me he would look into if no one gets in touch with me today. Its 7:30pm here now, so if i dont hear anything by 9pm i will be reaching out to him too.

 

Just got an useless update via email from Alienware or dell exchange! Not very helpful if you ask me!

Hi
We are still getting the computer ready to ship, this is the link with your order number already in, https://www.dell.com/support/orders/ca/en/cadhs1/Order/Details?sbon=
you can check there when we have the tracking number, as soon as i have it I will send it to you too.
Thanks
Gustavo