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I just wanted to talk with an American
I know our friends in India are doing their best, God bless them, but some times I really need to speak to someone who is not reading from a script. I spent 2 hours yesterday trying to get someone in Dell's 'Customer Care' department to understand why I would be upset that an order I didn't place was showing up in my account. I was basically treated like a thief. I finally got a manager to agree an error had been made but he said he still couldn't remove the order. All I wanted was to talk with someone in Texas, because I think they would have appreciated my position and would have helped me, but unfortunately it appears all calls are directed to India. It is sad when you can't speak to an American for an American company when calling from America. Maybe I'm just getting old, but this doesn't seem like an unreasonable request. Does it?
Mike28001980
27 Posts
0
November 24th, 2009 15:00
Hello:
I could not agree with you more! I would saved my money and buy a Mac computer myself.
:emotion-9:
Xav8tor
43 Posts
0
November 24th, 2009 16:00
"Name the PC companies that do have tech support in the USA other than Apple. Then maybe I can take you seriously. "
I can name three right off the top of my head in less than ten seconds: Velocity Micro, Alienware before Dell bought them/Origin PC now (ex Alienware founders just started Origin), and Game PC/Solid Electric (Great custom builders I've used in the past). Oh wait, Boxx is another one, and I am pretty sure Falcon Northwest is USA as well. Shall I continue?
I agree tech support from India and similar countries is absolutely useless and beyond infuriating. Language issues don't bother me too much, but incompetence does and a lack of appreciation of OUR culture and reasonable expectations as consumers does too, especially for those of us that buy tricked out XPS models.
I am VERY willing to pay for USA support, but not get robbed in the process. Dell now wants 349 bucks per YEAR for Your Tech Team (North American) support. You heard me right: Three times that amount (or, 3 years worth of support, the life expectancy of a computer on average) and you can buy a new XPS 8000 with decent options when on sale. Mr. Dell has lost his mind if he thinks that amount is reasonable. Dell has lost my future business too. Next time, I build it myself time permitting. If not, I go with one of the aforementioned manufacturers.
PS - If you purchase your XPS from Best Buy as I did (for over 300 bucks less than had I ordered direct from Dell), you can waltz into any store with Geek Squad for support, free of any additional charge during the first year. I've talked to those guys face to face getting a little help with additions to my 8000, and I am pretty sure the one munching on the KFC and swilling diet Coke was born around here somewhere.
PPS - Costco customers can purchase Dell computers and get an additional year of warranty and tech support service included. There too, the tech support is based in North America.
ieee488
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11.1K Posts
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November 24th, 2009 18:00
Interesting that the $ to pay an American decent wages you call "getting robbed". Enough said.
Go ahead and buy your next PC at Velocity Micro, Falcon Northwest, etc. No one is stopping you.
That's the point. No one is putting a gun to your head to buy Dell, yet you do. So, all of this just posturing. No one is willing to put their money where there mouth is. Hence, the Walmarts stay around. Same story.
I know what I am doing. I will continue to buy from Dell and pay the lower price and I accept what the reality of the business model. When it becomes unacceptable then I will go buy a PC from a niche maker.
Xav8tor
43 Posts
1
November 24th, 2009 19:00
If a high overhead B&M store like BBY can provide support in person, and a warehouse store like Costco with a known 15% max margin can double the warranty and provide NA based phone support, both selling the same computer for less than Dell does direct unless discounted, explain to me why Dell itself can't do the same. I have two graduate degrees, and all but dissertation for a second doctorate, but none are in business/econ/etc., so I have to plead ignorance on why this isn't possible for Dell. Can you enlighten me?
Also I fail to understand how 1,047 USD over a three year period is a reasonable amount to charge for American telephone technical support on a computer for which I paid 1,019 USD. What kind of business model dictates > 100% markup just to cover customer care? Aircraft manufacturers don't build in that kind of cushion to cover the damage awards/ins. prem. inc., etc. after a major crash. That, I know a lot about. Why is a computer crash more costly? I am not convinced that Dell's business model is all that sound. Even in the present economic environment, the S&P 500 has bounced back to within 6% of its value of five years ago, while DELL has lost more than ten times that much - over 64%! HPQ, in contrast, is up more than 150%.
It is my firm belief that, upper management greed aside (don't blame the average shareholder with zero say in the matter...I am one), it is the people who are willing to put up with such inferior products made "offshore," and lack of service after the sale, that are responsible for the loss of jobs here in the USA, now outsourced. If Dell would continue to build computers here in the USA instead of closing plants as they just did in W-S, NC, and provide USA tech support, I would pay significantly more for their product. Most recently, I did not have time even to order online. I needed a clean box off the shelf for an unexpected project. As I said, unless Dell brings it back home, I WILL take my business elsewhere, as have many others already. It is a shame too.
Fifteen years ago I temped in tech support at Microsoft. I lead a team of ten product support engineers, each of whom was trained on, and operated at their stations...Dell computers. There were literally thousands of them on the campus. They all got abused beyond belief and still ran like a BMW (older 3-series). We broke them on purpose just so the guy next door could try to fix it. We screwed up the BIOS, plugged things together wrong, you name it. I go way back with Dell. It doesn't resemble its former self in any manner, shape or form, except maybe the logo. I can't remember if that has changed too.
Mike28001980
27 Posts
0
November 24th, 2009 19:00
Hello:
Like the old saying is..you get what you pay for! I would not buy any electronics from walmart! I have a question how come my first dell had an standard 4 year warranty, and my second dell had a standard 2 year warranty, and my new dell laptop came standard with a 1 year warranty! What happen there?
It seems to me like Dell customers are not getting the quality like we used to get! Dell computers used to hold thier values but the recent study shown dell is falling behind in the major computer brands. The study shows HP sales risen making Dell 3rd place in laptop sales!
One other thing I like to bring up here is Dell computer cases are ugly! People want a nice looking computer, and also that perfoms well under any application without problems. When people buy something new you expect it to be running at it's peak, not heft to call tech support everyday, bottom line!
:emotion-10:
MIKE
hrova
2.2K Posts
1
April 20th, 2010 09:00
Linking Dell (or any US based computer maker, for that matter) to government bailout money is extremely misleading.... Unless, of course, you know a US computer maker that got money from some bailout... If that is the case, please share.
Otherwise, Dell and other makers survive on consumers making the choice of a lower price over better customer service. I, for one, appreciate having that choice, as the prices of machines with the alleged better service are much higher....
As has been stated several times in this thread, there are other choices for those who want the supposed better service... Seems like free enterprise at its best and the consumer is speaking through his choices.