I am writing you to express my disappointment with this Dell precision 5560 mobile workstation.

 

We have been buying Dell mobile workstations for about 21 years for use with 3D prototyping software from Autodesk.

 

This particular machine is the most powerful we have ever bought, and although the features are nice, it has been a disappointment from the start.

 

Here is an extensive list of problems we have experienced.

 

1. Bitlocker

We have never used Bitlocker, and have no intention of using it either. However, this 5560 came with Bitlocker turned on, unbeknownst to me. Didn’t find out until after the lock was triggered while moving the OS image to a larger SSD.

Wasted hours trying to correct that.

 

1. Onboard Bluetooth

Right from the start I have experienced lag on my Bluetooth mouse and Bluetooth keyboard. First I thought this was a result of the Dell dock I am using, but later realized the lag happens also without the dock.

This lag causes typing errors, and I am also constantly moving my mouse around to find it. As I move my hand but the mouse point does not until a few seconds later.

This same Bluetooth mouse and keyboard works perfectly fine on a Dell XPS 15, and on a Dell Precision M4800.

This was the reason for the first service call to replace the motherboard.

 

2A. Service Call I

A Dell technician came and replace the motherboard. After completing the swap and running the initial tests, which all passed, the computer started to a blank blue screen.

Technician called Dell Support and after half an hour on the phone concluded that they could not fix it.

I asked that the originally motherboard was swapped back in again, and after doing the work, the booted up fine.

Several hours of my time where I did not have a working computer.

 

2B. Service Call II

A different Dell technician came back a few days later to make another attempt to replace the motherboard.

Same thing happened, new motherboard did not do anything but show a blank blue screen.

He called Dell technical support, and again no resolution could be found.

At that time Dell said I should send in the computer for Dell to look at.  Promising a turnaround time of not more than 10 days.

Again I refused and said to put the original motherboard back in, because I am really busy right now and need a functioning computer.

 

1. Processor Fan not connected

Immediately following the departure of the second technician I started getting unexplained error messages (processor fan not responding) and other issues. Initially I thought there were intermittent issues, maybe even flukes. Unfortunately, this turned out to be the technician not connecting the processor fan plug into the socket on the motherboard. I was able to correct this myself, by again opening up the machine and inserting the plug.

 

1. Removeable bottom tray

This computer has been opened up so many times, that the bottom tray no longer closes completely, especially near the charging LED in front of the touch pad. That LED now appears to be partially broken.

This bottom tray is not designed to take this many removals. There is a slight gap near the LED that no longer closes completely.

 

1. Battery Not Connected

Since I have connected the processor fan I have occasional “battery not connected” messages. For days there are no such messages then all of a sudden this message shows.

 

1. Charger Not Connected / Charger of Insufficient Capacity

I get intermittent messages about the charger not being connected, or messages about slow charging because of charger not being the one that came with the computer.

The charger I am using is what came with the computer.

 

1. Hours of research as to why the Bluetooth is flaky on this machine

I was surprised to learn that there is a long history of Bluetooth lag being reported for precision model going back to at least 5520 / 7520, with the solution being offered to turn off Bluetooth power save mode in the settings.

The driver for Intel Bluetooth on this machine has no such feature.

 

Now I am left with the following questions?

 

1. Will Dell provide a driver that supports turning off the Bluetooth power saving feature any time soon?
2. Why can the motherboard not be replaced on this machine? Is the motherboard that I have an early version and will this present a problem in the future?
3. Why do I experience all these intermittent warnings and error messages about the battery / charger?
4. Again, I can not miss my computer for more than a few days, is there a different solution in a shorter amount of time that results in a computer that is reliable and functions as intended?

 

Please advise as soon as possible how these problems can be remediated.