I've read plenty.  But considering they ship out a ton of computers, and a happy customer has no reason to even know this forum exists, that alone doesn't kill the deal.  I own an alienware now, and never had any problems with the hardware.  If the problem is just dell red tape being added to alienware, but I still get an excellent machine then I'm okay with it.  I'm just impatient and want my machine NOW! lol..

Of course it would be nice if they offered something like a free memory upgrade for my trouble, or anything, but again that would require caring about what customers think not just the bottom line.  Still pondering.  I priced out another machine that is a little cheaper, but I can't find anyone glowing about this other brand either.

I just made a recommendation. Shows you how dell censors the negative posts.

wow, they deleted the comment between my first 2.  All it said was I should cancel my order.  No profanity, nothing horrible.  And they deleted that? Wow....

Hey man, I ordered my M15X and i still dont have it either. I Placed my order on DECEMBER 6th. And i still don't have it.

So do as you like. I find that the production is very slow.

WTV DELL!

Thanks.

I cannot find the moved post from kiris. Still looking.

This statement by C_ronic is false, "Shows you how dell censors the negative posts.". 

* If a thread or post was moved, it was not because of the subject matter. It was moved to a private board due to one of these violations;
- Profanity
- The use of character substitution to circumvent the profanity filter
- Legalistic, social, religious, or political beliefs
- A post that violates any person’s privacy (including the names and contact information for Dell employees and Site users)
- Is harassing, defamatory, abusive, pornographic, obscene or otherwise objectionable
- Contains false or deceptive language, unsubstantiated or comparative claims regarding our or others products, third party advertising, spam, chain letters, or any other solicitation

I wrote one post that was " Have you read the other forum posts? I recommend not buying Alienware." That was deleted. Why is that? Can people not express their opinions of Dells service? Makes the forum seem biased.

- Is harassing, defamatory, abusive ... - Contains false or deceptive language, unsubstantiated or comparative claims regarding our or others products ...

These are the ones some people seem to have the most problems with.

<< These are the ones some people have a problem with. >>

1. Let's not forget that the key reason people come here is because they have problems therefore throwing temper tantrums is the nature of the beast.
2. If they don't get the support they expect and have paid for, the situation will exacerbate. Man's natural reaction is to strike out when offended.
3. Product comparisons allow people to tell both sides of the story. Just look at all the reviews on sales sites such as Amazon for example, although granted they have no allegiance to any particular brand.
4. Generally, companies use customer complaints to track where they are going wrong and make improvements. Shutting up an unhappy customer neither helps to resolve the cause of his dissatisfaction nor instills trust from other users/customers.

In summary, it's all very well putting down rules of use for the forum but, IMHO whoever makes those rules might want to consider the knock-on effect because it may not always be in the company's interests.

And coming back to customer support, 3 months ago when I first took delivery of my M17x a couple of the symptoms it displayed screamed "faulty motherboard". I was working with 2 different Dell techs to identify the problem but both agreed that the MOBO was the most likely culprit. Dell's regulations don't allow for replacing components based on symptoms so I was obliged to reinstall Windows and the drivers twice, run several inconclusive diagnostic tests, and finally run the machine on 1 memory bar only then swap and do it with the other one. All this took 3 months with many of my mails going unanswered, promises to call me back not kept, being hung up on occasionally, and as much as a week between some mail replies. Finally, they tell me "we have concluded the mother board is faulty so we will replace it."

My question is this...
Is 3 months to diagnose a problem acceptable when the symptoms literally screamed what the cause was, and the customer had just spent $3500?

I realize I'm supposed to be grateful that at long last I have been granted a replacement MOBO but frankly, this experience has burned me as a long-time loyal Dell customer. I would much rather they had taken the machine back, given me a top of the range XPS and refunded the balance. At least that way I wouldn't be spitting any venom about them and I would continue recommending Dell.

<< These are the ones some people have a problem with. >>

Might have been a poor choice of words on my part ... To be clear, I meant "problem with" as in difficulty ... not disagreement.

I think Dell is just trying to keep the public discussions civil. Yes, those above parameters are broad and open to interpretation (some "fine lines").

I do wonder if some users comments might be better directed to Dell admin. in a more private manor. This might also help getting the message to a Dell employee that can actually help with the problem or enact change.

<< Might have been a poor choice of words on my part ... To be clear, I meant "problem with" as in difficulty ... not disagreement. >>

Don't worry Tesla, I fully grasped your intended meaning. I stand by what I said though.
Also, consider that youth and civility don't usually make good bed partners. Alienware is generally targeted at gamers. While there will of course be exceptions, most gamers are young, impatient, and have a low tolerance rate when things don't go their way. One achieves civility with young people by showing them you care and making every attempt to understand their problems (empathy). Civility changes to passivity once they are assured that you will do everything within your power to solve their problems.

By the way, I have read a few posts here that prove turning a dissatisfied customer into a satisfied customer reaps dividends in the positive word of mouth he spreads about you. That's an absolute fact! You can be furious with a company over their products and/or service but the day they turn that around so that you are 100% satisfied is the day you sing their praises from the highest tree tops. And, strangely enough, you tend to forget all the nastiness that led up to that point.