Dell Disappointed My Ten Year Old Niece

I understand and agree with your frustration with Dell. And I also
understand your preference for a Dell machine, as I own two and have
also worked on two at my office. All four of these machines have been
outstanding workhorses and none of them have ever failed on me,
including the one which is more than 13 years old.

One solution that might work for you is to check the Outlet section of
the Dell Web site. That's where they list laptops, desktops and
accessories for sale that are already built and ready for shipment.

This past summer there were many, many machines for sale. There are
three types of computers for sale: Refurbished, Scratch & Dent and
New-Previously Ordered. The "New-Previously Ordered" are computers
where the owners reneged on the purchase agreement. I just checked the
Web site and there were 276 "New-Previously Ordered" laptops listed.

Last summer, I found a laptop which had more features than I had been
seeking and it even was available in my preferred color! And it cost
substantially less than the laptops I had been looking at on the
"regular" side of the Web site.

I don't blame you for being mad at Dell your disappointment is fully
justified. But if you truly think that your niece would be best served
by a Dell computer, then I suggest you check out the Dell Outlet
store. If you find something that you wish to purchase, then I suggest
you call the Outlet Customer Service (it's different than the other
Customer Service) and explain your situation and ask for help.

When I ordered from the Outlet store, my new laptop arrived in 3 days
in perfect condition.

Is she "7" or "10" ?

Need another niece?

I have purchased 2 laptops from Dell and both times this has happened
to me.

I would get an email a day or two before the projected shipping date,
advising me that they were backed up and I would be notified of a new
ship date.

Then, a few days after the original ship date, I would get an email
letting me know that they had shipped it on the original ship date.

I think it's an "underpromise and overdeliver" psychology on their
part.

Hopefully your niece will have her gift by Christmas!

Unless your going to the store and buying stuff (and even then) you
need to plan in advance. Everyone is buying things in December, so
order either end of November/beginning of December at the latest. If
not so sad, to bad. Its just like going to the store and them being
sold out.

I'm not sure how you can hold a company personally responsible, but
Dell makes computers to order. This is the Christmas season. So,
they got backed up. This explains the hour on hold (lots of
customers) and the demand in conjunction with a possible supply glitch
explains the shipping delay. I bought my Dell in May, and it was
shipped the expected day or one day later. But this is December. You
might have considered a computer that didn't require manufacturing,
and was sitting in a box awaiting shipment.

I'm fairly sure we saw these complaints against Dell last year at this
time. And the complaints against shipping companies, etc Anyone
connected with supplying a popular item or shipping it is at risk for
delays, as a bottleneck can stress an overloaded chain.

As far as your 7 or 10 year old (her age changed in the letter), yes
this will be a disappointment, but the knowledge she'll have a new
computer a few days after Christmas should be exciting.

I see you are considering scrapping this order altogether. For that,
I say Boo-Ya! Dump this trash heap of a company overboard. You'll be
so much happier. The quality of my Dell stinks, as well as the
support I received.