Thomas Vecchione wrote:
FWIW, a friend of mine worked for Dell (in the customer support
service) to optimize there processes. We've talked about a few
times...
Dell works this way. The thing they are best at is fixing computer
hardware (I would like, as a professional, to get this kind of service
when I open a case at sun's CS with my golden whatsoever contract
number)
What's dell's secret to sell cheap computers ? They are so good (and
efficient in their processes) at fixing poor quality hardware that
it's more interesting for then to just replace 5 times the same
components than to build a computer with good quality ones. It makes
the computer cheaper, and as Sampo said, when there's a problem, it's
fixed fast. So it's just transparent to the user.
This honestly matches my experience with them. The ONLY reason I
reccomend Dell anymore, is if it is to someone that can't fix their own
machine, and then I tell them they MUST get the next-day onsite warranty.
My friend bought a high-end Dell latitude (at the time, that did
resolution of something like 1400 wide and ran a 3GHz Pentium 4). Within
the year that he put up with it - the processor fried itself twice (the
second time it fried, it also fried the motherboard). Before that, the
hard drive had died once. All covered under warranty, of course, but
their turnaround time for 4-6 weeks (3 months when the processor and
motherboard fried) didn't convince him of any good service from Dell. So
when the LCD started to go a month or so after getting the repaired unit
back, he got a desktop machine instead.
My opinion of making someone buy next-day onsite warranty is: I
shouldn't have to pay extra to compensate your company for poor-quality
hardware.
Note about laptops: while many people can fix desktop machines, thanks
to standardized parts and such, not many people can similarly fix laptops.
--
David
gnome@xxxxxxxxxxxxx
authenticity, honesty, community
