[impactX]

I bought a Dell XPS M1210 in Canada two years ago. It's a sturdy light-gaming machine and it was able to tolerate 2 years+ of heavy usage. Knowing that I would be out of the country, I also got the 3 years next-business-day interenational warranty (as the way-too-awesome replace-even-if-you-pour-water-on-it warranty is not transferrable internationally).

Last week, I went on a business trip to Singapore. The video chip on the laptop started giving in and gave me the Blue Screen of Death (or the "BSOD"). I was pissed because the computer wouldn't even post after the BSOD. Not sure how, but the issue resolved itself after several hours.

Fastforward to last night, the BSOD appeared again. This time, I noted down the error: "NMI: Parity Check / Memory Parity Error".

I decided to give Dell's Singapore technical support a call. They said they knew of the issue (having vertical lines displayed on the screen and the computer throws that error) and there's a new revision of video chip available that should fix the issue. They will arrange a technician to come to my office to replace the motherboard tomorrow.

[to avoid wall-of-text]
http://www.notebookreview.com/assets/12605.jpg

I can only imagine how much more pissed I would be if I got another brand of laptop because (i) the warranty would probably have expired already, (ii) the warranty may not be honored internationally, and (iii) it would probably take a few days to fix the issue if they have to return my laptop to the depot.

Anyway, I will definitely buy another DELL laptop if the one I have decides to die on me after the warranty expires. :thumbsup:

[Ulic Qel-Droma]

duh we all know dells are the best cuz of the warranties!!! first laptop was a dell, so will my next one!

[Presto]

Yeh... Dell rocks for their warranties

[impactX]

Also, it's how Dell actually honors the warranties without giving me any hassle.

[!MiKrofT]

CompleteCare is the bomb. Well worth it.

[John]

Is your GPU made by nVidia? If so, nVidia may be paying for the repair.
http://www.geek.com/articles/news/nvidia-sued-over-faulty-laptops-clas-action-status-requested-20090513/

[impactX]

Yeah Nvidia 7400m or something, they have to replace the whole motherboard since it's probably soldered-on.

[underscore]

^ haha that would explain why they instantly fixed it.

how much was the initial cost of the laptop and how much was this magical warranty?

[impactX]

haha I actually totally forgot what I paid for the laptop already... and the warranty wasn't too expensive.

As long as they will solve my problem, I will be happy.

I think NV has been dropping the ball all these years... Back then, my 7800GT (top of the line card at the time) got artifacts without OCing and the 7950GT card that they gave me as a replacement isn't that much better either.

[rageguy]

it was only a specific laptop with that chipset giving problem, other dell's dont have this issue. im surprised they decided to send a tech to your place to replace the mobo. thats A LOT of work. they have to rip open everything. surprised they did not exchange your laptop for another one (newer).

[underscore]

for an experienced tech, it shouldn't be that hard to take apart, especially if he has a guide or has done it before on that model.

when my HP's wireless card crapped out it was a known defect and so I sent it in (oddly enough it died the day after I dualbooted with Ubuntu 0.o). Next time, I'd make them send me the parts and let me do the repair as the techs were terrible. they snapped a pin off my HDD and replaced it with another one, which is fine as they just slide in, except the guy used one that was too big, so when the HDD was pushed in, the pin rotated on the HDD and didn't slide into the socket on the mobo. oddly enough everything worked fine but my HDD seemed a bit slow, I didn't notice til a few days later I saw the sticker on the HDD under the cover and I wanted to see what it said, lo and behold this pin is out. That and the fact that they didn't snag the speaker cover back in fully before screwing everything down, and they used the worst possible shipping setup. I love my HP as it runs like a champ and looks great doing so, but I'll be damned if their repair people touch my stuff again.

after what impactX has said I think my next laptop will be a Dell as I plan on travelling a lot. do they still try to rape you if you want to upgrade anything in house tho?

[!MiKrofT]

CompleteCare is usually around 2-300. I believe.

[Dragon-88]

it was only a specific laptop with that chipset giving problem, other dell's dont have this issue. im surprised they decided to send a tech to your place to replace the mobo. thats A LOT of work. they have to rip open everything. surprised they did not exchange your laptop for another one (newer).

You would be supprised as to how well dell makes their products.. Their units are meant to be open easily for consumers because of parts replacements and all... I am certified to do Dell warranty replacements and I have never had a problem with a single customer on warranty... They bring me the computer, we order parts, which come 9am next day Air (ALWAYS). Parts replaced in under 48Hrs.. Instead of sending it back to sony or HP and having to pay for the shipping then having to wait 1-2 weeks for the notebook to come back... You just cant beat Dell's warranty....

Just to give you Dell Gearheads a heads up, if you are to order a dell, you should get them from your local dell authorized dealers, because they can get better deals than the Dell.ca website itself... Shipping is still the same though IE. 7-10 Business days since its comming from the states... But know you know where an authorized repair place would be aswell.

[Dragon-88]

after what impactX has said I think my next laptop will be a Dell as I plan on travelling a lot. do they still try to rape you if you want to upgrade anything in house tho?

What do you mean by upgrade anything in house??? IE Add 3rd party memory??? If you even do anything like that and need warranty products.. Let me know and I will help, since dell doesnt see the unit itself and only needs to know the problem to ship out parts, You shouldnt have any issues...

[!MiKrofT]

RAM is fine.. same with the HDD. Warranty is still valid if you upgrade either of those. No need to get them directly from Dell.

[Soundy]

Fak... I tried to get my kid a Dell before he went to UVic... Dell LOST the order and I didn't find out until four days before he was to leave. Was gonna go for the full next-business-day coverage and all that too. Ended up getting him a VAIO at BestBuy... well... he managed to drop it and kack the USB ports... then when I took it to Sony to get repaired, they said there was liquid damage and the warranty was void. They wanted almost $1000 to fix it - $50 for the USB/audio card (which wasn't even water-damaged), $620(!!!!!) for the hard drive that had liquid damage but still worked, and another $100+ each for the keyboard (also liquid-damaged, but only one ALT key was a little sticky) and the palmrest... and that wasn't liquid-damaged either, that's just because the power connector was broken loose from it.

And then when I asked about replacing JUST the USB/audio board, they said I could, but it wasn't recommended, because the liquid could still cause more damage that would be even more expensive... like, it could kack the motherboard too.

When I asked why they recommended a $1000 repair for the liquid damage that DIDN'T include the mobo, but advised against it for JUST the USB board "in case the mobo dies"... well, she just didn't have an answer for that.

Really pissed off Dell lost my order, woulda much preferred going that route.

Fucking Sony, I should have known better... every time I've ever dealt with their service department, it's been a shitshow like this.

[Hondaracer]

buy a Sony, then you dont even need a warantee :P

j/k

[impactX]

after what impactX has said I think my next laptop will be a Dell as I plan on travelling a lot. do they still try to rape you if you want to upgrade anything in house tho?

Definitely get on redflagdeal to see what's on sale on dell.ca before buying. They usually have free upgrades for RAM and HDD space during sale.

Keep in mind that the Complete Care warranty is only honored in Canada and the Next Business Day Advanced Exchange (I think that's what it's called) is honored internationally.

[willystyle]

You would be supprised as to how well dell makes their products.. Their units are meant to be open easily for consumers because of parts replacements and all... I am certified to do Dell warranty replacements and I have never had a problem with a single customer on warranty... They bring me the computer, we order parts, which come 9am next day Air (ALWAYS). Parts replaced in under 48Hrs.. Instead of sending it back to sony or HP and having to pay for the shipping then having to wait 1-2 weeks for the notebook to come back... You just cant beat Dell's warranty....

Just to give you Dell Gearheads a heads up, if you are to order a dell, you should get them from your local dell authorized dealers, because they can get better deals than the Dell.ca website itself... Shipping is still the same though IE. 7-10 Business days since its comming from the states... But know you know where an authorized repair place would be aswell.
Where can I find a list of authorized Dell dealers in Vancouver?

[impactX]

Just got the laptop back... it's running as good as new.

I think the "update" or "revision" is that they made the fan on the laptop run at a faster rate of speed. :lol

Frigging nvidia... they basically fooked a lot of manufacturers like HP, Dell, etc, in the arse.

[goo3]

Because of the title, I was waiting for the part where they give you a new laptop for free.

[impactX]

You could technically dip the laptop in water if you got the Complete Care warranty and you'd get a new laptop.

[Dragon-88]

Where can I find a list of authorized Dell dealers in Vancouver?

Talk to me.. Authorized dealer here.. I just dont advertise it... Let me know what you need.

[underscore]

What do you mean by upgrade anything in house??? IE Add 3rd party memory??? If you even do anything like that and need warranty products.. Let me know and I will help, since dell doesnt see the unit itself and only needs to know the problem to ship out parts, You shouldnt have any issues...

like if you want a bigger hdd or more ram from the "default" on a computer they used to charge a ridiculous amount for the upgrade. the dell laptop i was looking at before i got my hp was a little low on ram and hdd space but to upgrade through dell cost a lot. i know i could upgrade it myself but i thought it was dumb to do that as i'd have a spare hdd and 2 spare sticks of ram after + the extra stuff wouldnt be covered by my interest free laptop loan.


impact id definitely get the uber business a-gypsie-could-shit-on-it warranty. especially cause if you use certain cards to buy it you instantly get a doubles warranty :haha:

[ienhz]

Just to give you Dell Gearheads a heads up, if you are to order a dell, you should get them from your local dell authorized dealers, because they can get better deals than the Dell.ca website itself... Shipping is still the same though IE. 7-10 Business days since its comming from the states... But know you know where an authorized repair place would be aswell.

How much cheaper? I'm looking at the new Studio 14z but I'm waiting for the free Windows 7 upgrade program to come into effect first.

[goo3]

14z looks like a nice deal

[Dragon-88]

How much cheaper? I'm looking at the new Studio 14z but I'm waiting for the free Windows 7 upgrade program to come into effect first.

It really depends on the product.. If something you are looking for is already on sale, then I have smaller margins... If its not on sale or a more $$$ item then my margins are fairly good... IE. sometimes i can get $25 off sale items or $100 to $1000 but it really depends on the product....

[Eff-1]

I had a similar positive experience.

My right side speaker stopped working in my 700m. That was 3 years after I bought it (in 2004). Called Dell, they sent a guy to my house the next day. He showed up with a full replacement LCD screen (because the speakers were built into the panel), and replaced it in 5 minutes. Done and easy.

[RFlush]

Asus warranty > Dell warranty :)

[impactX]

Asus warranty > Dell warranty :)

Why? Do they come to your place and replace the parts?

[Dragon-88]

Why? Do they come to your place and replace the parts?

Or send out parts next day 9AM... I'm usually like 5 mins late for work.. We open @ 9 and the purolator driver is always there a 8:45am.. they always have to deliver befor 9am...

[kaitamasaki]

I have same error right now as well on my xps m1210... pissing me off. What's worse, now the video card completely died and displays nothing, not even the boot screen :(.

[Dragon-88]

I have same error right now as well on my xps m1210... pissing me off. What's worse, now the video card completely died and displays nothing, not even the boot screen :(.


Under Warranty??? Get it fixed asap... If you dont know gimme ur service tag and ill check for u...

[Osse]

I'm still using my XPS 1210..solid laptop. Only thing I got replaced was the battery because it didn't last that long. It arrived like 1.5 days after I phoned in.

My 3-year warranty ends in like another 2 months..hope nothing goes wrong..*knock on wood*

[impactX]

I'm still using my XPS 1210..solid laptop. Only thing I got replaced was the battery because it didn't last that long. It arrived like 1.5 days after I phoned in.

My 3-year warranty ends in like another 2 months..hope nothing goes wrong..*knock on wood*


Did you update your bios?

[impactX]

I have same error right now as well on my xps m1210... pissing me off. What's worse, now the video card completely died and displays nothing, not even the boot screen :(.

Yeah frigging nvidia... Even if the warranty has expired, it's worth a try to see if Dell will replace it for you. Afterall, they are most likely going to go after nvidia for the $.

[Osse]

Did you update your bios?

Actually I just updated my bios like 20 mins ago..from A02 to A08!

[RFlush]

Why? Do they come to your place and replace the parts?

They ship you a box on fedex express and you mail your laptop to them via prepaid express and get it back within 4-5 days. All prepaid express by Asus.

The warranty is 2 years and covers practically everything. Do not have to pay extra like Dell total care or whatever it is. Also, it is global as well and they have a 1 year accidental damage warranty meaning if you slam your laptop to the ground out of anger, throw it into the pool, spill coffee on it, kick it, or anything, warranty will fix or replace it.

It is all included and don't have to pay any extra.

Personally, I had dropped my laptop on the cd rom side and got it fixed under warranty. I told them that my keyboard had some fade marks and they replaced that as well. Took 3 days to get my laptop back after shipping it out, not too bad.

[Dragon-88]

They ship you a box on fedex express and you mail your laptop to them via prepaid express and get it back within 4-5 days. All prepaid express by Asus.

The warranty is 2 years and covers practically everything. Do not have to pay extra like Dell total care or whatever it is. Also, it is global as well and they have a 1 year accidental damage warranty meaning if you slam your laptop to the ground out of anger, throw it into the pool, spill coffee on it, kick it, or anything, warranty will fix or replace it.

It is all included and don't have to pay any extra.

Personally, I had dropped my laptop on the cd rom side and got it fixed under warranty. I told them that my keyboard had some fade marks and they replaced that as well. Took 3 days to get my laptop back after shipping it out, not too bad.

Not that I have anything against asus.. They have beautiful notebooks, but sounds like with your process you could be down for a week... Going back to dell your back in 2 days... I dont know about you, but how would it be going to school or work and needing a notebook that you dont have cause u had to send it in to warranty... Obviously asus isnt cheap.. their models are all pretty $$$ which is why they offer the great warranty... If you were to spend the same on a high quality dell you would get pretty much the same warranty for 3 years...

[simsimi1004]

1.You call asus and say you have a problem.
2. They give u two options:

ASUS warranty:
go to a store in Richmond and get it fixed same day/next day
or
Send it to Toronto

3. I send it to toronto, they arrange a pickup nextday.
4. Comes back 2 nights later,

Source: i have used asus warranty 2 times in two years. Once i had mobo problem so they gave me a new one. Came back after 2 nights.
2nd time is actually right now. im waiting for fedex to come to me today. i shipped it on thursday. (not including weekends, technically 2 nights)

Fedex is all free. you can check the repair status of ur notebook online, and receieve a tracking number by mail, once shipped.

So if you decidee to go richmond, its probbly 1 night.
If you send it its 3 nights from the day you called.

Also,
my friends looking into buy a MSI notebook. but wants to know more about how their warranty works? any experiences?

[impactX]

They ship you a box on fedex express and you mail your laptop to them via prepaid express and get it back within 4-5 days. All prepaid express by Asus.

The warranty is 2 years and covers practically everything. Do not have to pay extra like Dell total care or whatever it is. Also, it is global as well and they have a 1 year accidental damage warranty meaning if you slam your laptop to the ground out of anger, throw it into the pool, spill coffee on it, kick it, or anything, warranty will fix or replace it.

It is all included and don't have to pay any extra.

Personally, I had dropped my laptop on the cd rom side and got it fixed under warranty. I told them that my keyboard had some fade marks and they replaced that as well. Took 3 days to get my laptop back after shipping it out, not too bad.

But I am still on my business trip in Singapore and even 1 night without a laptop (as I don't have a desktop at the serviced apartment) is too much.

So I guess at the end, it really depends on how fast you want your laptop back. But having been living in a fast-pace city for a while, I've grown impatient and want things done right away usually...

[kaitamasaki]

Asus EEE: Had to pay for shipping of my netbook to get the dead hard drive replaced :( Perhaps its too low ended of a "laptop" for them to cover the shipping costs.
Dell XPS m1210: Sent me box before 9AM one day after I talked to tech support about my dead video card problem, all shipping costs paid by them (However, I had to e-mail customer care, as the regular tech support people were unwilling to cover it because I was one year over warranty period).

[q0192837465]

Will it be cheaper to build one from NCIX or get it from Dell?

[dn53]

Depends what you stick on it. If you want the equivalent I think building (then again, you need the skills to do so too).

[SaviorSelf_666]

I've been waiting for my Alienware M17x since june 16th. I got the complete care for 3 years sooo worth it.

[jnesss]

i had mine warrantied several times - i was just talking about it in another thread!
-battery
-cdrom
-motherboard and video

my warranty just expired after owning this latitude for 3 years and my motherboard went on me again. they just replaced it today. all in all, the product isn't fantastic, but their warranty's wicked.

[impactX]

How did they give you warranty on your battery?

[jnesss]

^ the battery was only a couple months old, yet it wasn't able to hold it's charge for even an hour.