Vertical line on Inspiron 9300

I have the same problem. Luckly, I called Dell Support within 3 years of my purchase date and Dell sent a prepaid shipping box at my house for my laptop.  I haven't gotten my laptop back yet.

You're "out-of-luck" if you don't call within the 3 year purchase period. 

Luckily for me I got this same problem only this week, and my 3 years would be up in December. Can you outline the course of action you took with Dell.

Any idea when you will be getting back your laptop.

I also saw a similar post with the same problem and they were told there was a recall.

Thanks

You need to call tech support, state your problem, and let them know it is within the 3 year timeframe for lines appearing on your screen.

Do as soon as you can. Also you may have to call more than once as not all tech support people know what you are talking about.

First thing, get tech supports name, try not to let them put you on hold as I got disconnected or hung up on twice. It really is a frustrating

process, so don't lose your cool. I think Dell tries to frustrate you enough so you give up. Just my opinion.

I don't know if anyone from Dell monitors this chat but I have been trying for months to get this problem resolved.

All I can find out is that Dell is recalling 9300 screens that are less than three years old but only if they had certain part numbers. 

Apparently the lines that I see on my screen are imaginary and do not exist because I have a screen that was manufactered by a supplier that did not have these vertical line problems.  HA HA

I can have my screen replaced at $465.00  my cost plus shipping.

Thanks Dell.

I've called and called.  And then the 3 year limit passed.   Now I'm really out of luck unless I pay the $465 quoted to me.  I was told that because I have Inspiron model 6000, there is no problem!  I have 10 lines on my screen.  I think that qualifies as being a problem.   I wouldn't be surprised if a class action suit is brought by a few thousand unhappy customers.

Given up

I don't really understand who and what laptops they decide to fix.

My laptop was past the three year time period, but the tech guy said that my laptop was recalled.

I had not gotten any recall notice so I wouldn't have known.

I got the run around from the first two tech people who kept putting me on hold or hanging up.

The third guy I asked for his name first thing, his call back number, and where he was located.

Then I told him not to put me on hold but to do whatever he needed to do while continuing to talk to me.

They sent me a box and repaired my laptop.

My Inspiron 9300 developed the yellow line 4 month after the three year warranty period.  After searching this forum I called Dell and was ready for the usual runaround.  However, when I mentioned this forum and the various posts about this issue, the agent said that Dell is aware of the issue.  I was put on hold for a couple of minutes and then was pleasantly surprised when they said they would replace the lcd without charge.  I was given a Purolator telephone number and that afternoon (a Friday)  my laptop was sent of to a repair centre.  Even more surprising was that it was back on the following Monday morning!  Maybe Dell is listening afterall. 

My Inspiron 9300 started of with one green line and gradually developed multiple lines on teh screen almost a like a patch of white. I cant even read the anything in that portion of the screen. I noticed on this forum that there was a recall fro Inspiron 9300 laptops due to this issue. I never received any updates on this. I will certainly give a call to Dell as it appears a lot mor epeopel are having this issue on their computer. I will give Dell a call and see if I can get similar service as you had managed to get. I hoping to be surprsied as well.

Happened to you yet? LCD, Vertical Lines

On Feb 24, 2009 – Discussions ONE through FOUR

System: Dell Inspiron 9200

Purchased: 2005

Location: Seattle, Washington, UNITED STATES

Problem: LCD, Multiple Vertical Lines, Single pixel lines, One Red (Center), One Green/Yellow (Right side on screen)

Computer is used for ArcGIS mapping, 17 inch screen comes in handy when working right

Telephoned Tech Support: 1(800) 624-9861 at 9:15AM Pacific Time on Tues, Feb 24, 2009

9:15AM, First Customer Service Agent requests for me to pay $49 for tech support. I indicated that the problem was noted in over 100 letters I had viewed in Dell Community Forums so I would not be paying for tech support. I was told that because my warranty expired one year after I purchased the computer, that I must pay. I indicated that people had gone over the warranty and still had their faulty LCD’s replaced. I was told that I would need to be transferred to somebody else. I am transferredfrom the customer service center in India and wait for the next person to respond.

9:25AM, Second Customer Service Agent, IDENTITY EDIT asks for my Service Tag number. IDENTITY EDIT begins a repeated effort at securing a $49 tech support payment. I indicate that this is not a problem which I need to pay $49 for, the matter of a defective LCD which I need to have addressed. IDENTITY EDIT proceeded to swindle $49 in 5 different methods, to which I called her out and told her that she was attempting to take money for defects that had already been diagnosed. IDENTITY EDIT proceeded in battle for nearly 10 minutes before I finally asked to speak to a supervisor. I was instructed by IDENTITY EDIT that a supervisor could only repeat what she had discussed with me. I indicated that this would be fine, to please transfer me to a supervisor. IDENTITY EDIT placed me on hold as she attempted to locate a supervisor. At 9:40, I was told by IDENTITY EDIT that a supervisor was not available, but she would transfer me to a tech support manager to address the RECALL ISSUE.

9:50AM, Third attempt, A Tech Support service agent came on the line and asked for the Express Service Code, to which I also offered the Journal ID # 09055LY0NJ from Wizard ID 341382, from the pages at Dell which troubleshoot your problem. I was asked to hold so the agent could check his resources.   When the tech support person came back on the line, he was familiar with the Vertical Line issue and asked for me to bring another monitor to the laptop to see if the vertical lines appeared on another screen. They did not. The technical support service agent then asked me to power down the computer completely, then power up and press the F2 key 5 times. This brought up a grey screen. The technical support service agent then asked what was on the screen, which I indicated that a black and grey backdrop with white lettering was present. He asked if the lines were still there, and I indicated that they were. At that point, the technical support service agent indicated that the LCD would need to be replaced. He immediately went into suggesting that I purchase a $197.26 warranty, which I could be offered a deal for $149.00. I was told that the Warranty was normally $337. I responded by asking why he would perceive that I needed the Warranty. He indicated that it would be offered in case I had any future problems. I asked why he perceived that there may be future problems and how that might be applied to my LCD screen. He then indicated that the money would not at all be applied toward the current issue with the LCD. I then asked if the $149.00 amount was supposed to be the amount for replacing the LCD screen. He indicated that it was not the amount to replace the screen and that he would not be able to offer a price or a discount for the LCD. I then proceeded to say that if the $197.26 was not affecting the outcome of the LCD being fixed, then why was it suggested? As the technical support service agent was hesitant, offering that in the world, there are these problems and these things happen, I agreed with him, but asked if I could speak to his supervisor. The technical support service agent indicated that his supervisor was only going to reiterate what had already been talked about and probably could not do anything. I indicated that it was alright, that I still wanted to speak to a supervisor. At 10:20PM, I was transferred to a Tech support supervisor.

10:35AM, Fourth attempt, A tech support supervisor came on the line. It was a peculiar situation, as the person on the line sounded just like the person that had just talked to me. They repeated almost word for word the problems that had been discussed with the tech support service agent I had just spoken with. Upon repeating these problems, I was placed on hold for a moment. The next time somebody came on the phone, the accent of the person speaking was different than that of the person I was speaking with before I was placed on hold. This manager asked what I would like for them to do. I proceeded to say that like the 100 letters that I had in front of me indicating that this is an ongoing problem with the Inspiron 9200, 9300, and 9400 versions, I would like to have the problem with the lines in my LCD rectified, if that meant sending a container to send the product to them or having a technician look at the problem. I was asked by the manager where I got my information. I indicated that I found three sources:

http://www.engadget.com/2007/06/20/dell-fesses-to-more-vertical-line-issues-offers-free-replacem/

http://en.community.dell.com/blogs/direct2dell/archive/2007/04/09/potential-vertical-line-on-certain-17-quot-notebook-displays.aspx

http://en.community.dell.com/blogs/direct2dell/archive/2008/01/16/41379.aspx

Upon giving the manager these three sources, he proceeded to tell me that the information in these sources really is not accurate a great deal of the time. I proceeded to ask the manager that since I know four people on these sites that have indicated they have had problems, so are you then implying that my friends are lying to me. He said he was not saying that they were lying, to which I replied, “but then you are merely implying that they may be lying.” He then asked for the URL link, and then proceeded to say that it was not working for him. I asked for his e-mail address so that I could send it to him, but he was reluctant to provide one. I finally stated that what I believed that I was experiencing with Dell was a lot of finagling. I also indicated that as a seasoned journalist, I would be inclined to publish the conditions that I had experienced on Dell community forums as well as in other publications.  I indicated that with the number of computers and businesses that I have that use computers, while we use HP and Toshiba among others, it is unlikely that we would wish to purchase equipment from Dell again, based on the treatment from customer service that we had experienced. He then said that the request was really out of his hands, but that he could generate a case number for me, if I wished, where somebody would get back to me within 3 days. He placed me on hold again. When the manager returned, he indicated that I could use this case number he generated as a reference and anybody would be able to use that number to give me a response on the status of my request. I am now waiting to find out how Dell will proceed.

February 25, 2009 FIFTH Encounter

Content 2nd Edit February 26:  Early Morning

RE: Dell Inspiron 9200 Laptop

Problem: LCD, Multiple Vertical Lines, Single Pixel

Purchased: 2005

Time: 12:00 Noon, Pacific Time

Date:  February 25, 2009

Today, I received a returned call from __Identity Edit__, answering my appeal to Dell in Case__Numeric Edit____. Less than one minute into the conversation, _ Identity Edit __ became rather aggressive, scolding me for phoning them yesterday. According to__ Identity Edit ___, it was wrong of me to phone when I did, indicating that I did not place my call to Dell at the appropriate time in regards to the LCD failure on my screen, and that based on upon blog information indicating people were having problems (the recall), that is the only reason why I was responding when I did. _ Identity Edit ____ indicated that there is now no warranty to cover the LCD. The tactics used by __ Identity Edit ___ were in a manner of business used by collection agencies or of a workman’s compensation claims adjuster attempting to deny a claim to a loyal employee. With __ Identity Edit ___, there was a significant amount of finagling, with a lack of resolution and an uncompromising approach to managing the problem at hand. __ Identity Edit ___ plowed through the conversation, not allowing me to finish sentences, not allowing me to speak. As a Dell customer, I became __ Identity Edit’s___ hostage.

While I realize this is business and a number of tactics are used in the workplace to make it a business, ___ Identity Edit __ was very unprofessional. When __ Identity Edit ___proceeded to hang up on me while I was speaking, I responded by not hanging up my telephone. I waited for nearly a minute until __ Identity Edit ___ returned to the phone. I continued the conversation with ___ Identity Edit __ while he refuted that he had hung up on me and was merely placing me on hold because he has a terrible cold. I told him I was sorry to hear that he had a cold. I reminded __ Identity Edit ___ that the approach that he and Dell were using were corrupt measures which finagle customers experiencing problems with their machines. __ Identity Edit ___ proceeded to ask me if I had anything else to say. I told him I did. I let

____ Identity Edit _ know that I would continue by publishing the measures Dell used in my circumstance (attempting to charge for customer service from a North American agent, charge for tech support, charge for a warranty, drop the price for a warranty, etc) to finagle me out of lots of money while not fixing my problem. _ Identity Edit ____informed me that it was certainly my choice to do so and asked if there was anything else I wished to discuss. It is painfully evident as a customer that the biggest part of this problem emerges from the outsourcing of consumer satisfaction and tech support agents. While I was initially offered, at a fixed cost, to speak to an agent in North America when I first called Dell, it is apparent that Dell realizes the problem customer’s face, and feels their customers can just pay for the problems if they really desire somebody to come on the line and have them fixed. Should Dell really put customers in the position of paying to have somebody in North America fix their problem over somebody offshore (though some offshore facilities far exceed others)? Thus, I do see that there is a “sweatshop” system at Dell that may not initially be apparent to the customer that is deciding between a Dell and an IBM, Toshiba, Sony, or a Macintosh. I could have paid all of the fees along the way, but it really would not have put me much closer to having the system fixed. The tactics used by Dell were “teasers.” Thus, dealing with Dell over the course of two days has been a system of tactical communication maneuvers with offshore agents. Having a computer LCD that displays a GIS accurately should not be so difficult to accommodate. I am going to investigate the computer purchases for business’ and home better in the future by evaluating more closely how the companies rate for customer service interaction. Still, when I hear that the nature of my problem stems from a recall on a computer part and I cannot get the company to fix my problem (even if I have to pay a small price for it) that is when business (Dell) is being managed badly. In that case, it is necessary to it is necessary to alert people of Dell’s actions. Dell has never offered to approach the part problem, recall, cost or no cost for part. They have merely finagled fiercely to secure funds for something else other than the problem at hand.

What do you think?

February 26, 2009 SIXTH Encounter

February 26, 2009, Response to SIXTH Encounter

Dear ____Identity Edit____,

Thanks for getting back to me regarding the LCD Vertical Line issues on my Inspiron 9200. I was not understanding why the posts were pulled, attempting to edit the content, and not realizing that the sources of the problem, (names of people spoken to, case number identifiers), needed to be pulled from the record. If you need to delete items posted today, February 26, I understand. I just need for there to be a record that it took 6 attempts to actually get the information I needed, which finally came today from you. The information from you today I found to be satisfactory. Yet, while I remain dissatisfied with Dell products and overall, the warranty, payment options for North American customer service, offshore customer service, and and offshore tech support processes, I am pleased that you made the effort to help me today. As I research articles on Dell, I continue to find support which highlights overall consumer dissatisfaction with Dell products and the decision of Dell to outsourse customer service resources. Certainly I am disgusted with the case of warranty expiration on my computer. Yet, the greater concern is that Dell is not adequately managed in addressing consumer service needs through methods of telephone communication.

Thank you,

-D-

I also have a 9300 and it started to develop vertical lines at 3 years and 3 months. This is a known issue and Dell is at fault(in collusion with Nvidia). However, it is my problem. Because this started after their extended warranty expired, I am stuck with it. I refuse to replace the screen. That just makes more money for the perpetrators.

Mine started with one line and has progressed over a period of months. I Last week I had 23 lines of various colors on the left side of the screen. Now, the problem has jumped the center line and I have four additional lines on the right side. Although I would like to replace the laptop, (with a competitor's brand) I cannot afford to at this time, so I am left with looking at this screen daily and being more and more furious with Dell, who will not fix a known issue. Just check on Nvidia and see how they continued to sell this stuff after knowing there was a problem. I can only assume Dell knew also. I payed over $1700.00 for this equipment and am truly appalled by how consumers are constantly being ripped off.

I also have this problem. My vertical lines started to appear about 2 years ago (after the warranty) and at the time I could live with the lines, but now the lines are increasing, and it's becomming annoying. I've checked and it will cost approx. $500.00 to fix.  Like you I don't want to pay that, but I might have too. If I buy a new notebook, what do I do with the current notebook (Inspiron 9200)? Any suggestions? Have you found a new notebook yet to buy, and from whom?

I have the same problem (vertical lines on my Inspiron 9200) as you do. Did you do one of the suggested options, and if you did which one?  (1) You can purchase a replacement LCD from us either from our Spare Parts department and replace the screen yourself or have a 3rd party install it for you. (2) you can purchase a replacement service option from our Out of Warranty group who can arrange for the part to be installed by one of our contract technicians. (3) you can purchase the LCD from a 3rd party, such as ebay or a local computer supply company. I'm leaning toward option (3). I live in Austin, Texas and I've found a "local computer supply company" who can replace the LCD, but it will cost approx. $500.00 to $600.00. That is a lot of money for me, but I'm afraid I might have to "bite the bullet" and pay the price. I can't live without my notebook computer, because it is the only computer I have. I've been using it as a desk top. I'm also worried that once I have the LCD replaced what is the chance the replacement LCD will eventually develop vertical lines. Option (4) not mentioned by Dell is buy a new notebook from a different company. If I do that I'll have to transfer all my files from the Inspiron 9200 to the new notebook, but I'll have to see if the "local computer company" will do that for me. If I do buy my a new non-Dell notebook, what do I do with the "old" Insprion 9200? If I just toss it I'll be throwing away approx. $1,700, and that will just make my blood pressure go through the roof.

Any suggestions would be appreciated.

Thank you.

I own a 9300 in which dell replaced my screen that had a verticle line in 2007, its been fine ever since and has been a great computer. I also had an apple powerbook G4 17 inch in which they used the same screen as the dells and of course my apple got a verticle line also and they would not do anything. at least dell admitted to the problem and created a program to fix it where apple has not and will not acknoledge the problem and the people who bought the apples paid through the roof. Iam still very pleased with my 9300 and i feel that dell support isn't that bad.

 I have a 9300 that is over 4 years old and recently got the vertical lines. It started with one and with in a month or so I now have three. I called DELL when the first line appeared and they told me it would be 49.00 dollars to start the process to fix the problem since my warranty expired a long time ago. After finding this Forum and reading that I am not the only one with this problem I called DELL again today. I got the same answer from the tech support guy, telling me that it was going to cost me to fix the problem and he would transfer me to the repair center. Before he hung up I tried one last time to plead my case and told him that I found this Forum and that I know that a lot of people have experienced this same problem. He asked to put me on hold and after a few minuets he came back and said that they would replace the screen free of charge and I would be getting a box in the mail in the next couple of days to send my computer back to DELL in. He said that it normally takes around 6 working days from the time I mail my computer to get it back. So if you have this problem don't give up, it seems that if you get the right representative  and say the right things you can get them to fix this problem at no charge.

I have an Inspiron 9300 with the vertical lines. They appeared about 1.5 years ago, but I couldn't find any recall information then. Now my laptop is out of the 3 year wind so Dell wants to charge $500 for a replacement. Do you know who you talked to? I refered to this forum, but just got the standard "its out of the 3-year warranty, you have to pay, its our policy" answer.