ORIGINAL POST DELETED for containing "language that we believe to be harassing, unlawful, or otherwise objectionable"... I didn't realize this community was PG 6. Anyway here it is again sans spices.

Hey everybody, I have a problem and I was hoping I could get some info/advice from people who have experience with Dell.

I have an XPS M1330 which I bought new, sealed in box off eBay in December 2007, worked great until May 2008 when the motherboard shorted out and the thing just went dead. I tried transferring ownership from the original seller to my name but that took an eternity, I finally managed to transfer it to my name by the end of November last year (7 months!!!) and that's where the fun started.

30 Nov, 2008 - In-home repairs --> Laptop not switching on --> Tech changed motherboard (forgot to install heat-absorbing pads on graphics card and processor) --> Started noticing a slight flicker down the middle of the screen

27 Jan, 2009 - Sent for repairs --> Battery not charging, charger not recognized, laptop overheats and shuts down on it's own --> Changed MB and charger --> Came back with same screen flicker

04 Mar, 2009 - Sent for repairs --> Screen flicker got so bad until the whole screen just went completely dark --> Changed MB --> Screen went back to flickering within hours

23 Mar, 2009 - Sent for repairs --> Screen flicker turned into full-fledged multi-color strip running down the middle as seen in the pic --> Since it was only 2 weeks between receiving the laptop and sending it back (for the same problem) the good people at Dell were kind enough to change the screen.

The new screen worked fine for exactly 3 months and you can guess what happened next... As of June 29th, my screen has the exact same problem. This is the kind of screen I've been looking at for the past week:

As you can see, I need to resize everything and move it to one side of the almighty strip to be able to have a close to "normal" experience.

My question is this: Has anyone been in a similar situation where Dell Tech Service has done the same bad job over and over and over again? What did you do and how were you able to solve it? I don't want answers like: "Dude you should totally sue them"... I'm looking for people who have had similar experiences and who were able to get something useful out of Dell.

Best case scenario, I was hoping for a replacement or even an upgrade from Dell (I have no problems paying the difference so long as my original machine is fairly priced). Bear in mind however, that I've had this system since Christmas '07 but I've only effectively used it for 12 months (minus all the time it was broken down and in repair). I wanna know if the scenario above is possible or not and if so then who should I call? I don't wanna have to plead my case with some techie in India/Philippines who really has no authority to do anything because their favorite tactic seems to be passing you on to other service techs they don't like.

Any similar experiences / official statements from Dell employees with the authority to act would be greatly appreciated. I forgot to mention that I deal with Dell Canada. Thanks