Very Frustrated with DELL concerning my M14x R2 order!

First and foremost, hello to everyone here in notebookreview.com's "M14x Forum"! I am a soon-to-be proud (yet frustrated) owner on a brand new "Alienware M14x R2" laptop. While I didn't want my very first post in this forums to be a rant, I find it necessary so that DELL's representatives (whom I was told lurk here) can help me out.

NOTICE: THIS IS VERY LONG BUT PLEASE TAKE THE TIME TO READ ALL OF IT PLEASE!
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I am from the Philippines and I am buying my M14x from a reputable local seller that order's the laptop from his business partner in the US. They are wonderful people who amazingly offered me great and satisfying customer service throughout my order despite me being a PAIN-IN-THE-@SS customer.

The M14x R2 would be my very first gaming laptop. I really wanted a gaming/ultra-portable laptop for a long time and after months of saving, I finally have enough money to buy one. My initial choices were an ASUS G55VW-DS71 or an ASUS N56VZ-DS71. But, ultimately, my seller convinced me into getting a M14x R2 instead. Everything should've been simple really. I order from my seller, he and his partner order from DELL in the US, his partner gets it and sends it to him in the Philippines, and he finally sends it to me. But hell no... things didn't turn out that way!

Here is the timeline of what had happened with my order:

October 01, 2012
- I made a 25% cash deposit to the seller and had them order an "Alienware M14x R2" laptop with the following configuration:
CPU: 3rd Generation Intel® Core™ i7-3610QM
RAM: 8GB (2 X 4GB) Dual Channel DDR3 at 1600MHz
GPU: 2 GB GDDR5 NVIDIA® GeForce® GT 650M with Optimus™
Storage: 750GB 7,200 RPM SATA + 32GB mSATA Caching SSD
Display: 14.0" High Def+ (900p/1600x900) with WLED backlight
ODD: Slot-Loading 8x SuperMulti Drive (DVD± R/RW) (Standard)
Audio: Creative Sound Blaster Recon3Di High-Definition 5.1 Audio (Standard)
Wireless: Intel® Centrino® Wireless-N 2230 With Bluetooth 4.0 (Standard)
OS: Windows® 7 Home Premium, 64bit
everything else are basic/standard components...

This was September's promo machine that cost $1349 ($1449 - $100 promo) that was still active for sale during October 01, 2012 on DELL's website.

- My seller had confirmed my deposit and confirmed to me that they have placed the order the same day.

October 02, 2012
- My seller contacted me saying that for some reason their order was cancelled by DELL and cannot find the configuration I liked in DELL's website anymore. This was due to DELL updating their website to October's bundle packages.

- My seller contacted DELL immediately after what happened and DELL gave a counteroffer machine worth $1425 which is basically the same as the one above but with undefined upgrades/software that doesn't justify the additional $75. He informed me immediately of this offer but I declined as I didn't want a machine with unknown upgrades. I told them to hold my order to give me time to think of my options as I was opting to order an ASUS G55VW-DS71 or an ASUS N56VZ-DS71 instead.

October 03, 2012
- Through my seller's persistence they were able to convince DELL to give me the exact machine I wanted with the original promo price of $1349. They informed me of this immediately and I was happy to accept.

*Everything looks alright now isn't it? But here is where things actually get complicated!*

October 08, 2012
- My seller suddenly informs me that the order was once again cancelled by DELL because they actually ran out of i7-3610qm CPUs! WTH! They shouldn't have made the offer in the first place if they knew stocks were low. I was told to wait on the status of my order until they have cleared things up with DELL on what will happen to my order as it was already paid for.

October 09, 2012
- My seller called me and said that DELL couldn't return the money they had already paid them and told me I was forced to choose a machine with my own configuration from DELL's website. They even went as far as to ask for a $100 off discount, like it was supposed to be in the promo, on the machine I was going to order but DELL declined. At this point, I had no other choice but to buy an Alienware machine even if I wanted something else.

- I decided on an "Alienware M14x R2" laptop with the following configuration:
CPU: 3rd Generation Intel Core i7-3630QM
RAM: 8GB (2 X 4GB) Dual Channel DDR3 at 1600MHz
GPU: 2 GB GDDR5 NVIDIA GeForce GT 650M with Optimus
Storage: 750GB 7,200 RPM SATA + 32GB mSATA Caching SSD
Display: 14.0" High Def+ (900p/1600x900) with WLED backlight
ODD: Slot-Loading 8x SuperMulti Drive (DVD R/RW) (Standard)
Audio: Creative Sound Blaster Recon3Di High-Definition 5.1 Audio (Standard)
Wireless: Intel Centrino Wireless-N 2230 With Bluetooth 4.0 (Standard)
OS: Windows 7 Home Premium, 64bit
everything else are basic/standard components...

This machine costs $1454! $105 more expensive than my initial order and the only upgrade it has is a measly 100mhz faster i7-3630qm cpu. WTH! $105 may be a small amount in the US, but here in the Philippines it's at least PhP4,000 and that is enough to feed a man here for a month!

Anyway, seeing as I had no other choice in the matter, the order was placed and all I had to do was just wait for it arrive in my doorstep.

October 13, 2012
- I was browsing the web and for some reason (I can only think of it as heavenly intervention) I browsed DELL's Alienware website and to my f*ing surprise, DELL was offering another $100 off promo on $1400+ systems! Seriously!? WTH is wrong with you DELL? You can't give a man who had to go through all that trouble a $100 discount and after 4 days you f*ing bring back the $100 off promo after my order was already placed! Are you f*ing kidding me?

- I immediately contacted my seller and informed him of this $100 off promo. I told them to ask DELL if they could give me $100 discount on an order that was placed just 4 days ago or at the very least give me $100 worth of upgrades. My choice being: 16GB (2 X 4GB) Dual Channel DDR3 at 1600MHz = $100 in DELL's customization page.

October 14, 2012 (today)
- My seller contacted me after reading my message and told me that he and his partner in the US will do everything they can to avail of the $100 off discount/$100 worth of upgrades. He told me to help them make a report about my order here in notebookreview.com because some of DELL's staff roam these forums like this guy:
http://forum.notebookreview.com/ali...my-m14x-screen-720p-900p-after-i-receive.html
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Basically what I'm asking from DELL is to give this poor guy a break and either give me a $100 discount or a $100 8gb>16gb RAM upgrade. Either one is fine, though I would be very much prefer the RAM upgrade so that I wouldn't have to bother my sellers in adjusting the price for me.

This whole process has really gave me a bad impression of DELL and if my very reasonable requests aren't entertained then I want DELL to know this: "Expect to lose a customer or three (or maybe even more) in the future because I will never recommend your systems and products to anyone if you ever ignore my requests after what I've been through with your services".
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If ever a DELL representative reads this. Please do not hesitate to send me a PM! Hopefully, we can work things out. This way I can have you directly contact my seller and he can provide you a tracking # of some sort to fix my order.
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To anyone out there willing to help me. Please inform a DELL representative in this forum about this thread! Thanks!

 

Dude,all this trouble your going through is unnecessary. I would never in 1 million years buy an alienware through some random company as it can only cause delays and problems. Rest assured Dell did not screw you, that company did. I understand dell may not ship directly to your house but you could have used eBay and got a much better deal. (People sell new and refurb on eBay). This is how Dells promotions work: dell will have a promotion then they will set a cut off date on say the 13th of October at 9AM CT. If you miss this cut off date then its too bad. Clearly, the company doesn't order the computer from dell at the exact moment you tell them to. Obviously there is going to be a delay because your adding that 3rd partys response time to your order. The thing with the CPU is unfortunate. But maybe you've noticed that they no longer offer the 3610, the new base CPU is 3630 now and of course there going to let their old CPU stock dry up. Same thing with 3720qm and 3820qm, they are being replaced by 2 very similar models. This happened with the sandy bridge CPUs (2630qm to 2670qm). also, what the hell is this about dell not returning your money? That certainly sends up a red flag because you either pay them in full or use DPA credit which also pays them in full just that you make monthly payments if your approved. Let me tell it to you straight, the company (3rd party) you are ordering through still has your 25% and lied to you so that you order the more expensive alienware and thus they make more profit. The only thing you could even begin to blame dell for is the CPU thing and even that is trivial as your just getting the updated base I7. Otherwise its the 3rd party's fault for being slow and receiving you about the fact that dell somehow has your money and won't let go of it. (Which is against the law I might add). If I were you I would be straightforward with the 3rd party about the BS 25% thing and make sure they get you what you want. Just understand it is not dell that has your 25% its the 3rd party and if you agreed to a non refundable deposit to the 3rd party then your going to have to grin and bear it.


I typed this on my nexus 7 tablet so excuse any grammatical errors.

Best of luck

 

@juggar:
I am not ordering from some random company. He is a well-established and trusted member of our local buy and sell website (sulit.com.ph) with a stellar reputation and the highest feedback for selling gaming laptops. He also offers the cheapest prices for any gaming system (be it alienware, asus, msi, sager, clevo, etc...) compared to other sellers in our local market. Trust me on this, I searched for gaming laptops both locally in our shops and online, but include shipping, customs and taxes and he still offers the cheapest and most reliable services among all of them.

As for them being slow in placing my order, I don't know about that. But they immediately place my order once i give the "okay", and they keep me updated on the process of my order so I get a reply within the hour, meaning they must have done it as soon as they could, right? And with people being connected to the internet, I don't think the delay is that long. Come on, my seller himself could have "configured and checkout" the machine from DELL's website and have it sent to his partner's address.

I don't think they are lying to me about anything, because you clearly don't know how demandingly specific I was about my order. They even went as far as to try and get me September's promo machine and that, at the very least, accounts for something. As for my 25% deposit, they never forced me to buy the M14x, I still had a choice to buy another laptop. It was only after 5 days after "they paid" for my order that DELL contacted them and said I couldn't get the promo machine anymore and cannot refund their money, is when I couldn't change my order anymore. I don't really know how things go in the US, but here in the Philippines, once an order has been paid for, you cannot have it refunded. All I could really see was DELL being a d*** for not giving me the $100 discount in the first place, then suddenly offer it back after a few days my order was placed.

Thanks for the input though...

 

Then just enjoy the laptop. I know that in the US you can get a refund but they may charge a restock fee but if you "claim" something is wrong with the laptop then they will give a full refund. You could probably try that and reorder but it would be time consuming. Have you considered dell outlet? I just bought a m14X R2 on the 11th with 900p screen, 12 gig ram, i7-2720QM, 650m 2 gig and 750 gig + msata for 1072 total. Of course you get a refurb but its good as new. Maybe your seller/buyer can do dell outlet orders. With dell outlet they release 25% coupons every month or so and the savings can be substantial. At one point I had a base M14x R2 with i5 and all stock for $750 after coupon in my cart. I have ordered many refurb laptops from dell and I cant complain as they looked 100% new(even scretch and dent).

 

I would love to just sit back and enjoy the laptop I'm getting man but what DELL did was like spitting at my face (and paycheck). They turned down my reasonable request to have $100 off on the $1454 laptop I ordered on Oct 9, then after a few days they give a $100 off promo on the very same machine? Heck, they were the ones who put the "September $1349 promo machine" back on the table. It had $100 off, which is why I accepted their offer in the first place, and why my sellers already paid for it. They then have the nerve to say no refunds after they couldn't give me their offer because they ran out of i7-3610qm CPUs? Seriously? DELL didn't know they we're running out of i7-3610qm CPUs and had us pay for a machine that had it? Now that's BS!

The very reason I wanted to buy from "my seller" was because they gave me full authority to customize my laptop the way "I wanted" it. I could pick any upgrades from the DELL website and they'd order it for me. I wanted the assurance that I'll be getting my machine with my specifications, and their previous customers re-assured me of that. I don't want a refurbished machine when I'm seeking to get a new one.

Seriously, If I had known DELL would do this to me, I would've just had my sellers get me an ASUS G55VW-DS71 or an ASUS N56VZ-DS71 from xoticpc.com. That way, I'll be getting exactly what I wanted at the exact price it was advertised with no hassle whatsoever.

 

Their refurbs really are top notch though, like I cant even tell it was a refurb. It seems like you were just in the wrong place at the wrong time. Now when I was ordering my m17x R4 I told them I was a student(college) and they gave me a 200 dollar gift card and 5% off in form of a gift card. So I ended up getting over 400 on a gift card. If you order a new laptop and have dell advantage(which is free) they give you 5% back on a gift card and free 2 day shipping. Your seller should know about this and its worth asking. This is why I would always just buy from dell direct because you can negotiate with them on the phone directly. They seem to negotiate more when your buying expensive computers like alien ware. I think they should give you 100 off as its not even 10% so maybe you could call dell and negotiate.

 

I don't know about the third party reseller bro, but if Dell cancels the original order, you are not required to choose a machine again and configure it the way you like. If the order was cancelled, the money will be credited back to the credit card used, and if you want to order again, you are free to configure it.

Even if you already ordered your notebook and let's say you changed your mine and want an upgrade with the harddrive with your order, the only way to do that is to cancel your order, and re-order again. So there's 2 charges on your credit card, the 1st order that was cancelled will be credited back in few days or weeks.

Did the 3rd party by chance gave you the purchase id or the order number so you can check the status of your order online? You can check from there the actual cost of the purchased item. (Also if the 3rd party's partner here in US talked to a sales rep before ordering, they might get discounts more than $100 + egift cards..)

I know your situation is very frustrating, and the waiting is longer is you have to wait for the notebook to be shipped to the third party, and then from third party to Philippines and then to you.

 

Anzen's problem is there's no official authorized Alienware dealer from Philippines. There's authorized dealers for DELL laptops/desktops but not Alienware stuff.. So if he calls Dell sales rep here in US, they won't accept his order because Dell US won't ship orders to Philippines (and will only accept credit cards with billing address to US).

 

It seems my seller's partner will be receiving their shipment of Alienware laptops in a few days. Seeing as they bought these laptops as a bundle, I don't want to inconvenience them into cancelling their whole order just for me. I do realize they have other customers too. Although it is very disappointing that I can never get my $100 back from those d!cks at DELL, I am very happy that I am getting my new laptop soon. :> (Do note I am bashing @DELL for their poor service, but not at Alienware laptops as a system!)

Anyway, I'll just leave my issue with DELL at that. Although, I do have to say that I wouldn't recommend buying from DELL's website to anyone. With that said, I hope you guys can still welcome me into the community despite my "little" rant. xD

 

Let us review the case for you. I understand the frustration that you are going through but I believe that the fact that you are getting a computer that is not fully supported on your country could be the root of the whole issue. I understand that $100 is not much to ask for but you paid the money to the re-seller there right? not straight to DELL?... So it will be a little difficult to get the money back on your account but let's see what we can do. Please send us an e-mail to [email protected] with your order number (from DELL) and a detailed description of the issue and we'll get back to you as soon as possible.

 

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@AW-L_Porras: I have informed my sellers of your message and I do hope there is enough time for my order to be corrected. I don't know about DELL, but my sellers takes every opportunity they can get to avail of discounts and promos so their customers can get their laptops at a cheaper price. Many of their buyers have been greatful for this dedication and customer service, unlike yours, I might add. I just want my money's worth at this point and want to get the $100 8gb>16gb RAM upgrade seeing as I already procured the money for the $1454 pricetag. But I'm not really expecting much at this point.

 

As I was trying to explain the problem is that the purchase was made through a 3rd party and we won't be able to offer the same things. However we can try checking on the case. Please send us the e-mail there and we'll be happy to help. BTW I do work for AW.

 

^^^ He is complaining about AW based on the info given to him by the company he is ordering from. If that company faces issues with the purchase / discount, they should be the one that bring the discussion up. And yes, $100 may be alot in Philip. but the situation of the discount is not for them. Even in Canada we have at the moment discount of $425 on the deal. That does not mean someone from Australia has to get angry with AW for selling it less in Canada. This is how marketing goes.

My point is that he is trying to put the entire blame of his issues on Dell / Alienware and I do not think it is entirely their fault. I dealth with Dell in many countries including Europe, Asia, North America and always got PREMIUM support.

Anyway, best of luck and hope you will get your machine soon enough to enjoy it!

 

Damn this situation sucks but you shouldn't be dealing with Dell, you should be dealing with Sulit who is the third person between you and Dell.

Welcome to the club .... Don't think that Asus would have been easier man, they are all the same. Actually Dell is better than Asus. I have dealt with both of them and they all suck but Dell is the lesser evil.

 

Unfortunately I have to agree with some of the others - if they're SO GOOD why can't they just get your order through? You're paying them and they're not delivering - which is not to say that Dell's CS doesn't suck but you're paying "sulit.com.ph" to get your order made and processed (and if they're such a good company, why aren't they aware of huge discount coupons like -$100.00? you shouldn't have to find them and bring them to their attention if they're doing their jobs). If you're still having problems 2 weeks later, my best advice is to try somewhere else (btw who is filtering the ratings? many businesses will inflate their ratings to look better). Anyways, GL! The m14x r2 is a wonderful machine.

 

Come to think of it, i remember this sulit store popping up online when i was looking to buy some stuff and it seemed like a pretty big departmental store in the Phillipines that sells pretty much everything.

To be honest, it is quite cheap of them for asking you to come here and convince a Dell rep into getting you a discount.

You should NOT have to speak to Dell, you should only be dealing with Sulit. Sulit is the one who sold you the laptop and they should take care of everything on your behalf. They run an intermediary business, they should represent you rather than get you to do their job.

I do know that i will not be buying anything from them online in the future

 

My seller's partner has received their shipment of laptops already and will be sending mine to the PH in a few days. Although I couldn't avail of the $100 discount, my seller did me justice by giving me a good deal on a "crucial m4 256gb msata ssd" and possibly a "corsair vengeance 16gb 1600mhz ddr3 ram" to make up for the complications my order had. With that, I am a very happy customer.
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@juliant:
I may be biased since I am bashing at DELL about this problem, but it is a fact that:
- they we're the ones who offered the $1349 configuration (which had $100 discount) that we accepted and paid for
- when they ran out of i7-3610qm's, told us to choose a different configuration instead of a refund
- they denied giving us a reasonable $100 discount on the new $1454 configuration
- after a few days after we placed the order they bring back the $100 promo

I understand what you're saying about how people from farther regions outside the US will definitely have to pay higher as compared to those closer in the US. But that is not the issue here because my sellers will adjust the price accordingly for me based on how much they bought them in the US. So if they got my laptop a $100 cheaper, this will also mean I will have to pay them PhP4,000 less.

Thanks for taking time to share your thoughts and I do hope I enjoy it when I get it.
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@babylonian: sulit.com.ph is not a department store. It is a buy & sell website, pretty much like craigslist.com. My seller's ARE the ones dealing with DELL concerning my order. They didn't tell me to come here at notebookreview.com and complain per se (did i use that right?). But they did tell me that DELL reps do wander here, so I took a chance in getting a DELL reps attention to have my order fixed before it's too late (which it already is).

On a sidenote, ASUS has pretty good customer service in SEA regions. Thanks for the reply.
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@headphones989:
My order did went through. I was just annoyed why DELL couldn't give us the $100 discount in the first place, then bring back the damn $100 off promo after a few days. It was just insulting really. I just hate the feeling you get like when your in a mega mall/department store and you bought something for, let's say, $350 from one shop. Then after a little strolling around, feeling happy with your purchase, you reach the other end of the mall/store... You glanced at a window pane to the left and to your f*ing surprise another shop was selling the exact same thing for a cheaper $300! Damn! xD

I don't know about anything about discount coupons, but if a website offers discounts and promos on certain machines, my sellers will appropriately adjust the prices for their customers to help them save some money. Many people are grateful to them because of this. sulit.com.ph reputation and feedback score are based directly on a customer review of a seller/buyer which (in my knowledge) is thoroughly reviewed by the site's admins based on the feedback giver's opinions and documentation. But heck, reputation and feedback aside, my seller has treated me with utmost respect and dedication, and that is a very rare quality you can find from sellers.

Thanks! I too think the M14x R2 is a great laptop.
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I would like to request to close this thread as my issues have been settled with. Once again, thank you to those that read/replied/shared opinions with me! I'll be eagerly awaiting my new Alienware M14x R2, and I'll keep you guys updated when it arrives.

 

Good that your issues were sorted man and also good that it was Sulit that made it up to you, it was their responsibility. Anyways, all ends well, very nice enjoy your laptop man, they are awesome