Area-51m R1, 2080 GPU, no thermal solution sent

Question

I have an area 51m that came with a 2060 gpu. I ordered a 2080 upgrade from a dell sales person and asked if there was anything else I needed. I was not told anything else was needed. When my order arrived, it was the gpu alone. I figured the current thermal solution inside with the 2060 must be universal for the 2080. This was incorrect. Today I talked to an alienware technician who confirmed this, and a dell sales rep who also confirmed that I should have gotten the gpu, thermal solution, and additional power adapter.

I only paid for the gpu, but why would they have allowed that sale to happen when I asked for everything I needed? I asked the sales rep today if I could buy the 2080 thermal heatsink/solution, and he said Dell doesn't sell them separately. How is this my fault? My gpu is 6 days out of return period, and I can't get an official part from Dell, because they made an error selling me the gpu alone. I have the emails with the original rep that confirm that I specifically asked for the "2080 upgrade kit". The sales rep today said that original person made a mistake, and that they should have told me the 2070 is better suited for my machine, not the 2080. regardless due to heat issues with the 2080.

So my only options are to hope that Dell will take back this 2080, so I can buy the 2070 upgrade kit, the correct thing I should have been sold when I asked. Otherwise I have to keep this 2080, which is shutting the entire system down when it overheats, and hope to god I can find an aftermarket cooling solution that isn't bogus.

This is the most ridiculous thing, to not sell me the correct part in the first place when they have my full information (I bought the area 51m from dell), and then to not allow me to buy the correct part for what I purchased. I'm just, out of my mind with how crazy this situation is.

janzer · Accepted Answer

I just received word from Dell. They are taking the GPU back, thankfully. I had also contacted the original Sales Rep, and she was out of office, but she left note to contact another sales rep which I did and explained the issue. I asked if I could get the part number and cost for the 2080 gpu thermal solution. She said they were not showing to be in stock, and said, "So that part is not showing any stock. The Part # is XGRH0. I was able to find it here when searching elsewhere https://www.ebay.com/itm/FOR-DELL-Cooling-Module-Cooling-Fan-XGRH0-0XGRH0-/264600436983".

I don't understand why a sales rep, with my laptop service tag (which shows the components in the laptop) was not able to find this in the system. Yesterday the new Sales Rep was able to determine what was needed and was totally on page with the parts.

Seems like there's quite a big difference in knowledge or something between reps, but if they have a database to reference (which apparently they do), I can only put this up to incompetency or laziness.

At least I can return this 2080 gpu and keep the 2070 gpu UPGRADE KIT on order. Unfortunately it won't come until Nov. 25th.

What a ride. Sheesh.

mattyb3 · Answer

I would definitely try to escalate your issue though Dell Support. You have all the proof that they made the mistake. The sales rep must not have known what you were asking for or they are just very poorly trained

You can also try selling your card on eBay or maybe you can find the heatsink you need on there from someone parting out a 51M.

crimsom · Answer

Hi @janzer  sadly you are another unhappy Dell Customer. It is important to keep complaining about Dell poor quality control. Also remember to Report an Unresolved Issue as recommended in the DELL-Cares process. This online Unresolved Issue form will be sent to the Unresolved Issue Team to fix this poor Dell quality control.

janzer · Answer

I'll do so if I Dell doesn't want to handle this and retain my business.

Side story. I had some issues with Bose headphones a couple of years ago. I bought a model at Best Buy that was for an iphone (inline controls) and needed the android version. I emailed Bose asking if I could trade them out, if they had any in stock in a warehouse, and that I would pay for shipping etc. Bose sent me the correct version for no charge (no shipping), and also included a 2 year accidental coverage replacement warranty!

Bose is a large company. That is how you retain a customer for life. I don't want ridiculous treatment and wasn't asking for anything free. Bose went out of their way to assist me regardless.

janzer · Answer

Yes, when I spoke with the returns department, they immediately escalated. The problem I also have is they are going by the date of when it was sold to me, which was 9/17. I received it on 9/22. I believe that would put me 1 day outside of the return of 30 days. The way I see it is, a fault for a fault. I asked for and trusted the sales rep to pull up all the information I needed for my upgrade. I'm not sure why I need to be an expert in everything about the machine in order to make the upgrade happen.

My literal words were, "I'd like to purchase the RTX 2080 upgrade kit for the Area 51-M laptop I purchased through Dell. I'll call in later today. I want to make sure it's everything I need, and no other parts need to be ordered."

The literal response was, "I have your quote updated with just the 2080, you can click the quote to order link at the top to place the order. Give me a call if you run into any issues."

*Clarification. It says, "with just the 2080" because she had put both the 2070 and 2080 on the quote.

There was no information as to anything that I would miss, so I made the assumption the sales rep knew that the cooling system that came with my 2060 gpu was universal for the 2080 gpu.

The only problem with buying a cooling solution from ebay is I don't know the correct model number I should look for. It makes no sense why I should have to go through 3rd party questionable things in order to get this done!

Alienware

Area-51m R1, 2080 GPU, no thermal solution sent

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