Are Dell XPS built to last?

Well, I'm just wondering how good the build quality is the XPS series is, particularly the M1530. Met up with my friend today and he was advising me to stay away from Dells because they're built to expire right after their warranty is up, based on his school's and friend's experience. My dad too is against me buying a Dell. He is VERY one-track minded about how Dell completely sucks and I'd be throwing my money away if I bought one.

My uncle on the other hand is quite alright with Dells. He said his office has been using Dells for 6 years and there are generally no problems with them. Then again it is a business laptop which has the higher-than-normal build quality.

I'm planning to use it for 3 years for schoolwork + gaming, and hence I'd probably bring it to school and back everyday which will definitely add to the wear-and-tear of the laptop. While I'm covered by 3 years warranty, CompleteCover + Guard, I'd be pretty disappointed if the laptop started falling apart (loose screen; broken hinges; etc.) after a year, and/or if it broke down right after my warranty expires.

 

If you take care of it and don't physically abuse your machine, then there's no reason why it shouldn't last physically. Components go bad, but that happens to any computer out there. But build wise, if you are nice to it it won't just break down on you.

And you're friend is on crack. Dells do not have a built in "timer" on them that makes them explode the day after your warranty runs out.

 

Mmm, I'd be nice and gentle with it.

Only problem is that I'd probably be bringing it out of the house for at least 180 out of 365 days a year, and...I don't know...I might get a little careless sometimes.

 

Got a couple Dells here
Dell XPS M170 brought from ebay last year
Dell Inspiron 9300 brought from ebay about 3 months ago

The XPS works fine apart from the A/C sometimes isn't reconized.
The 9300 has a fault with the keyboard(Certains keys only work sometimes)

There both pretty old as you can see from there brand and I also have no idea how they were treated by there last owners.

IMO Dell seem to be built to last!Just have to look after it ^^

 

Buy a case... then buy a bigger case..put the Computer in the case that comes with it .. then put that in your first case... then put that in your second case then wrap it with bubble wrap...

 

Brilliant idea. But it'd be too heavy for me then.

Really though, I'm looking for serious responses.

 

Hey

I dont know how long Dell has been doing the XPS name, but my mate in work has got an old one, about 4 years old or 5 and he has never had to call dell or use his warranty.

Its still got the 8800 gtx graphics i think (its gtx anyway) so has kept up with the times.

Its the 17" model.

I have had a desktop (iknow its not XPS but went through 3 moves and just sold and has been great, not one problem.

 

I know how you feel though...I told my friends I was getting a Dell and I got totally Flamed told how much they suck, bad build quality, etc... but im on a super cheap Dell desktop right now and they're Really good....Anyone that doesnt like Dell will tell you they suck and anyone that likes Dell will tell you the truth...Its like How I know Macbooks suck and Ive never used one... hate Apple..

 

I read this and initially laughed off the concept as you have in your comment rather satirically; however upon some additional thought, it is certainly not a stretch to think that a manufacturer who prides themselves on selling products at severely discounted prices would use plastics and alloys in their construction that lessened their outgoings, whilst providing a reliable rigidity and function for a proven period before deteriaration of the component materials began.

I'm in no way implying that it is some kind of conspiracy, that's entirely laughable, but it is within the scope of reason that Dells R&D on materials encompasses such considerations of 'shelf life' through thermal and physical exertion.

Put another way, why when they are only commited by default to honour a product for twelve months, would they invest so much of their own time and money making sure that it could infact last for eight years?

There's no money in it. Literally.

 

Further to my post.

You could go out right now and buy a top of the range 3000-4000 dollar or pounds or euro laptops and they could break the next day.

As all electronics they are fragile, and not used for playing rugby with.

Some people have had great experiances with dell and some have not.

Apples are great for photo and media

But for downloading and music and lots of storage PC all the way.

 

My inspiron 9300 survived 3 years of travelling to and from work with me daily, trips to the carribean and even me rolling a truck 3 times (it was in a backpack, not the most padded one either).

They are fine machines. They might not be up to the build quality of a thinkpad, but I consider them above hp + toshiba.

 

Plus if your 1000.00 laptop broke just after a year would you spend another 1000.00 on the same laptop (i dont think so)

Dell would have been out of business by now if this was the case

 

Hmmm That makes some sense...They have to keep the customers happy so they will keep being customers... so that is what obligates them to keep things working..not money now..making sure they have money later..

 

It all depends on what you consider "made to last".

If "made to last" implies surviving a three foot fall, into a puddle in the rain, it's probably not made to last.
If "made to last" implies leaving it on a desk and leaving it on for four years, it might be made to last.

Honestly, with the correct care, any piece of electronic equipment should "last" so to speak. Electronics are fragile, but under the correct operating conditions they also undergo much less physical wear and tear. Unlike something like a car, the average computer doesn't have that many moving parts.

I mean, it's not a modern XPS so to speak, but I've got a Dimension XPS from 1998 that was under my dad's desk and in daily use up through last year. That still works, though you can't do too much with it.

The general idea is that it doesn't matter if it's built to last or not, a little bit of care goes a long way.

 

Have had a Inspiron 9600 laptop from dell prior to buying my new XPS, the laptop has never givin me an issue since ive owned it. (and I bought it refurb) Its been to dusty Iraq for my deployments and never brokedown on me once or given me any problems. The Inspiron is pretty much the reason I went back to Dell to get my new Laptop was very impressed with the quality of the product.

 

If you are worried about damaging it, dell offers a complete care warranty. You can throw it down your stairs, run it over with your car, whatever...and they will send you a new one. Most people get the 3 year warranty and complete care if they go this route.

 

Let me start by saying that I've used two different PowerBooks over the last 5 years, and they have withstood the rigors of being carried in a backpack 5+ days a week. I take care of them, don't drop them, and they have worked fine. In fact, they are still working just fine.

I've owned a Dell for less than a week, and compared to the PowerBooks I've had, this M1530 reeks of 'cheap'. The metal feels cheap, the plastic feels cheaper, and the bezel on the top of the screen is very lose, and popped off once by accident.

That being said, I've seen 'cheaper' computers, and I think that with proper care, the M1530 will hold up over time. If not, that's what my 4 year accidental damage warranty is for.

My brother still has his 5 or 6 year old Dell laptop, and while very little things have happened to it, it still works fine (although I don't believe he carries it around as much as I carry my laptops...)

Essentially, get a good bag, be gentle with the laptop, and don't drop it. It should last several years if you just stick to that.

 

Your friend is full of bull......

Out of the Dell's that I've personally owned, and the ones I support at work, none of them have stopped working coincidentally because they are out of warranty.

As others have mentioned, it all depends how you treat it as well. Any piece of electronics will die a premature death if you're rough with it and don't take proper care.

 

Alright, thanks so much for the feedback. Makes me feel more confident about buying a Dell.

Although...that statement about how the M1530 feels 'cheap' doesn't sound very comforting. I kinda liked the M1530 because it looked beautiful and stylish, compared to the F8Sn which looked so-so.

 

Anytime you see more than one Horror story Its probably fake..Lots of Trolls..I like to go on the Macbook and write fake bad reviews about it..boy do I hate Apple....

 

I think people need to really ask themselves, "what is a computer?" The answer is simple, "the sum of its parts." I bought a hollow square piece of plastic with the letters D-E-L-L on it along with an "X" a "P" and an "S". Before it was shipped to me they put in some nVidia parts, some Intel parts, SigmaTel parts, and a whole bunch of other parts. Dell themselves may have put them in there, but few of the pieces belong to them. The monitor says DELL on it, but its really a Samsung I believe.

So when trying to find out if a "computer" will last long, look at what makes it a computer to begin with. Chipsets, battery, monitor and so on.... Forget about who put it together so long as its a reputable company with standards on assembly.

 

I mean lets not kid ourselves though. There is a reason they can keep their prices so low and offer huge discounts.

Most people who talk about brands as a whole talk out of their ass and have huge brand loyalty. (take the kid who hates apple a couple of posts back even though he's admittedly never used one). As long as you don't abuse any computer it will last a long time.

Having said that the case material, joints, and essentially the build quality isn't very impressive compared to others like lenovo. To an extent you get what you pay for.

 

I've owned six laptops myself and the only problem I've ever had was a dying hard drive which is impossible to prevent unless you don't use it at all. On the other hand, I've given laptops to my ex's and they didn't last very long because they didn't take care of them. Dropping them and mistreating them isn't a good way to make your laptop last.

 

Agreed!

I too have bought/owned/sold loads of laptops, if anything I use this as a yardstick...........

I'm from the UK, which generally has a mixed climate that has a damaging effect on cars over here i.e. all but the best end up in the scrapyard within 10 years!

German cars, such as BMW, Porsche, VW, Mercedes etc. are usually the longest lasting cars on british roads - I have owned Rover's/Ford's/Vauxhall's etc before owning BMW and I would never go back!

The same doctrine can be said about laptops - the one's that have been around the longest are generally regarded as the best 'build quality' wise.

The oldest laptop's I have come across which are still alive and kicking are IBM thinkpads running windows 98 - I accept that build quality of modern notebooks can deterioriate over the years, as companies try to make a fast buck, but the rule remains the same.

The only reason why I haven't bought IBM/Lenovo notebooks to keep for myself, is because they are more business orientated. I am a performance enthusiast - always have been and I don't see IBM/Lenovo offering a 8800SLi notebook do you?

Dell are usually regarded as the 2nd best when it comes to build quality - considering that the best lasts for a decade or more, being 2nd best ain't so bad! - I've seen and used Dell's that are nearly as old as IBM's and they are still in service.

I also agree that a notebook needs to be treated with respect - and barring a few 'lemons' that have been made by various manufacturers (including Dell) most notebooks should see 5 years of service (you may need to replace the HDD once or twice though depending on make/model)

As I said - there are a few 'lemons' out there that, no matter how you treat them will break:

Most Clevo's based on intel Pentium 4 (had 3 all broke)
Dell inspiron 5150 and its widescreen version.
Early Toshiba Qosmio's (incl. G30's apparently - but my G30 never gave one problem)

One final note: I now own a XPS M1730 and the build quality surpasses Dell's previous models that I have owned - so far I am very impressed with it.

 

I just had to comment. This is completely not true, Dell is far from being regarded as second. Why do you think that they have the negative stereotype that they do? They're just considered as having a good value/good warranty for the money. You may be seeing a lot of them since Dell produces a large number of consumer computers compared to other manufacturers (ie in the top 3rd of computer sales) not because they're built so well.

 

APPLES SUCK! They want all your moneyz Dell doesnt have an OS cause its not greedy..Apple had to make their own so they can have all your money!

 

The 2 M1530 I received so far seemed alright, not has good as my wife's Thinkpad X60 though.

All our computers in the house are Windows based except for one. Our media center is a mac mini which is a 6"x6"x3" computer completely quiet that came with a remote control and cost us less than $700 including the OS. Go find a comparable system in the PC world.

 

ANYTHING PC IS BETTER THAN MAC They just want your money and will do anything to get it......Anyway this forums getting boring Ima go listen to my Ipod

 

Do people watche the gadget show on 5.

Macs are awsome for stuff like photo stuff and media seperation ? but if you want to steal movies and song and just use it for downloading then pc is the way to go. They both have there advantages, I do not own a mac right now but I have owned a mac mini, had to return it caise the dvd kept getting stuck, so told them i wanted my money back.

I got props for both, but its PC for me from now on, as I just do normal things on the pc like download and watch movies.

 

What negative stereotype?

Would that be the same stereotype that is associated with DSGi (Curry's/Dixon's/PC World and their products, such as Packard Bell, Advent etc)?

Most of the people I know who have had Dell PC's are very satisfied - including myself, who has owned and shifted more than a few!

I have business clients who wouldn't buy a custom-built PC from the likes of myself, but they would and do buy Dell.

I'm not saying Dell are the best, but I am sticking to my assertion that they are 2nd best............put it this way, they are hell of a lot better than HP/Compaq, who are the no.1 PC manufacturer in the world!

I don't know any other manufacturers who's products last as long as the top 3.

 

Read up for my response.

 

Just as an anecdote, the Dell Dimension laptops that our company uses as loaners look cheap, but tend to stick around and withstand a lot of abuse. Out of hundreds of laptops, service calls to Dell for parts replacement are fairly rare. Service calls for user support/software are handled by the site team and are much more common.

Also, I wouldn't say Dells are much cheaper than other brands or point to that as an indication of low quality. Compare the Sony SZ to the m1330. If you get a good promotion the m1330 is a good deal cheaper, but they're priced similarly otherwise (aside from the fact that Sony forces more upgrades on you so the base prices are higher). Also Sony has to deal with things like higher corporate tax rates in Japan and import fees. Also, I was dead set on getting the SZ until I compared them in the store. Even the 'elite' brands can put out products that look cheap. Hey, plastic is pretty resilient and a good shock absorber, after all.

 

I have a 2002 Dimension 4300 still humming along happily under my desk after 6 years. I actually don't remember If i bought an extended warranty for it or not; if i did it was a waste of money because I have had exactly 0 problems with it.

I know it probably isn't smart to compare 6 year old desktop quality to new laptop quality, but nonetheless, I decided to show some brand loyalty with my m1330. So far so good,I am satisfied.

 

I just want to say the fact that something still works doesn't mean it has a good build quality. Quality refers to the workmanship and quality of parts, which is essentially the casing, since the rest of the stuff that is important isn't made by Dell at all.
Something to keep in mind: I have a 6 and 8 year old desktop that I threw together from spare parts which run fine. I even use them a light servers. Just because they run it doesn't mean that they have good quality parts or are built well.

 

My dad got a dell laptop from his job before he retired. The thing is running great 8 years after the build date except for the battery.

My Dell Axim x5 and x51v are still working great after much use and abuse.

I have an Inspiron 6000 which was customized to the higher range of specs for the time, and it withstood commuting and regular use for three years. The only problem I had with it was the DVD-writer a couple years into its use. However, that was quickly fixed for free by Dell because of my warranty.

I just ordered a m1330 from Dell, so I hope it holds up like the others. Keep your laptop in a safe case for traveling, clean it up periodically, and do regular system maintenance and it will last a while.

Here's a little advice for all of you, though. Buy your m1330 directly from Dell rather than dealing with Best Buy. Their customer service is horrible. They had such a bad reputation for computer customer service that they created the "Geek Squad" as an effort to try to convince people that things have changed. Best Buy will keep your laptop for a month or so for repair and return it to you with cosmetic damage half of the time. They will go out of their way to keep you from cashing in on the no-lemon policy. I know this from experiences with them from 1994-2005 or so. I wouldn't have purchased from them again, except the no-lemon policy requires you to get your new computer from them.

 

I'll have to disagree, to a point. My definition of quality is longetivty of use coupled with minimal problems and or/service. I could care less about cosmetics or the 'cheapness' of the parts if they are still working after several years of daily use with no failures.

My 6 year old 4300 fits this definition. I'll have to wait and see about my m1330

 

I got the Dell XPS M1730. Feels really solid, so far all good! But I've only had it for 2 weeks, so can't really comment yet!

My brother and Dad both got the exact same laptop 8 years ago. Both the laptops lasted 3 - 4 years with no issues, Dad then sold his, I think my bro's motherboard eventually died. But 4 years is pretty good with no problems IMO.

 

I'm not talking about cosmetics or apparent cheapness. I'm talking about if the materials used aren't of good quality and how they construct the unit. For example, if the joints are held together using a quick method which doesn't hold as well as another just because it is cheaper to produce. All these issues are places where potential problems can occur because of either a design flaw or because a company chooses a quicker-cheaper method over another one which would last longer.

The fact that something still running has to do with the quality of the parts that the manufacturer (dell) doesn't make!!!! The HD, CPU, RAMM, CD/DVD Drives, etc. they are all not built by Dell or most other manufacturers and are the reason people often quote that something failed.

For example, when you buy a nice dress shirt the stitches are all aligned, the cut of each sleeve is the exact same, the overlap of the hem is equal all the way along the edge, etc. When you buy a cheap shirt the pattern on the back doesn't line up exactly, the sleeves or buttons might be just slightly off, or the color might not stay throughout many washes, etc. Both shirts will last you till 20 years if you treat them right. Build quality is how well the product is constructed.

 

I have to agree with smd58tx. After five years of PowerBooks and MacBooks I switched back to Windows with an M1330, and although I have a lot of very positive things to say about it it really does feel rather cheap and plasticky compared with an Apple.

 

I have used my dell inspiron 700m for over 3 years and it was so good. Sold it to another guy 3 months ago and i think it's still fine....

 

On a side note... Ford's logo is "quality is job one" but why so many recalls? Car makers emphasizes quality cars but one part can bring the whole thing to a standstill. Nothing is absolute. The car might look good and quality shows but it does me no good if it's just waiting for a replacement part. I have an Averatec that's low on ratings when it came out but it's still working after 7 years without problems! Looks can be deceiving.

 

Speaking as a PC technician - I see many manufacturers of notebooks, and I believe I did mention IBM in my last paragraph - Sorry........err, Lenovo.

I own a Clevo for example, which some would say is a very well built notebook. Well, build quality and longevity go hand in hand, if something is built well, then it is built to last - so why is it that all the Clevo's I have ever come across have been ones that I have had to repair through hardware failure?

And I'm not talking about the simple things such as RAM/HDD's etc - I'm talking about burn't out Schottky diodes on D900 serios and D470's - White screen (internal Video adapter failure on D40ES), there's just a few examples.

Yes, it is true, the Dell's I've owned have given me no trouble whatsoever - and neither has the Toshiba Qosmio, but that doesn't imply that it is just 'my' notebooks that seem to last - I have bought and sold many Dell notebooks - so many in fact, that Dell is one of the few companies that I can rely on for providing me with a product that I can sell on with piece of mind, knowing that it's not going to come back to me like a boomerang every 10 mins (figurativelly)

You did seem to jump on the bandwagen a bit when you questioned my knowledge/dealings with various notebooks - you mentioned 3 makes that you call obvious, and quoted that they are all better build quality - well, that maybe true for 2 out of the 3 - I doubt LG fit into that equation, as just like Samsung, they are renown for doing things 'on the cheap'

 

Congratulations on cherry picking unimportant points from my comments and not understanding the fundamentals of my post.

I would just like to point out that you're a PC technician so I can reiterate it one more time on your behalf. I'm sure you feel that it lends a giant source of credibility to you because clearly reading comprehension isn't your forte. I'm happy you love Dell and are very fond of their products. It's always nice to feel that there is a company worth standing behind.

btw, I don't know what bandwagon you're talking about since no one has questioned either of our posts.

I don't feel that this debate between you and I is going anywhere since you haven't made any points beyond the fact that you're computer still works and that you're a PC Technician, so I'm going to let it be.

Thank you for responding though, it is always a good idea to evaluate the companies we decide to purchase from so that it can help others make their own decision.

 

I've had my dell e1705 for 3 years. It works perfectly and i've never had a problem with it. The xps line is even better i'm sure. =] You can't go wrong.

 

I have sorta fiddled with my friend's XPS M1530 - I think it feels fine. Although he did accidentally drop the phone on the palmrest, and there's a dent there. But that's because it is aluminum and aluminum dents pretty easily .