XPS 15 9560 - SD card reader - apparent hardware failure? any fix?

My XPS 15 9560 (purchased new) has been working great since I bought it last year.
I have never had a need to use the card reader so far. I used it yesterday only to test a newly corrupted Sandisk Ultra 64GB MicroSDXC card (about 2 years old) from my cell phone

Even after updating the BIOS and reinstalling card driver, the card reader is not detected in Device Manager or by Dell diagnostics tool (tested the card reader specifically).
I even force installed the card reader using 'add legacy hardware' option which got it to show up under Device Manager, albeit with Code 31 error. I then installed a different version of the Realtek PCI-E card reader driver which got rid of the code 31 error, but still no joy.

The XPS 15 is under warranty (mail-in service) till end of this year. However, I am a bit leery of sending it in (per a support call with Dell, they created a return request and are sending me a box).

Given I do not use the card reader often (to say the least), I am debating just getting a USB memory card reader (good ones available for $15 at Microcenter) and not sending my laptop in.
I am not sure I want Dell Tech opening it up, which includes needing to pry open the cover (on my XPS13, now wife's laptop, there are circuit cables near the front edge) after removing the screws to access and replace the card reader.
My concern is them potentially damaging or 'disturbing' something I do need, such as wifi card. I am concerned about the antenna leads, although I know they are secured as I replaced the card in my wife's XPS13 successfully.


tldr:
Anyway, anyone know of any fixes for the card reader not being detected?
Given the steps I already took (latest BIOS, reinstalled card reader drivers, as well as two other driver updates / reinstalls which Tech support had me perform and lastly the Dell diagnostic test not finding the card reader at all), I assume it is a hardware issue, but wanted to check here before giving up in case there are any known issues for this card reader along with a fix to resolve this, thanks!

If I still cannot get the card reader to work, would you feel comfortable in my place sending it in for repair (given where card reader is located inside the laptop) or just buy a USB card reader which would avoid the laptop from having to be opened up.
I know it is my decision ultimately, but always interested to hear of others' repair experiences with Dell, thanks!

 

Well now my wife's XPS 13 card reader is not reading cards either. Same Realtek PCIE memory card reader which was working last night.
Very puzzling. Tried three different cards this morning.

Wonder if another common driver (on both XPS13 9350 and XPS 15 9560), common application or a Windows 10 update causing conflicts / issues?

Going to buy a USB 3.0 card reader which supports SDXC and be done with it...

 

The card reader is part of the mainboard so they will swap it for a refurb.

 

Thanks, great info about it being part of the motherboard and getting a refurb back if I send it in for repair to address the built-in memory card reader issue.

Going to hold off in that case since I do not use the card reader much and I purchased a 4.5 star rated IOGear USB 3.0 memory card reader (GFR305SD) today for $8.99 + tax. The store price matched Amazon.

Everything is working fine:
The card reader itself is detected by Windows instantly.
To get one of the test SD cards (2 GB SanDisk card) to show up in Windows Explorer, I went into Disk Management in Win 10 and (re)formatted the SD card (as NTFS) in order for it to be visible.

Also the 128 GB card I bought yesterday is working fine with my mobile phone, so I am all set now. That is what actually caused me to notice that the built-in Realtek card reader on my XPS 15 was not working...