Here's the thing I don't get - he ordered a "previously ordered new" computer. Which means that Dell had ONE computer, a specific computer, with the specs he wanted. So they don't need to find A computer with his specs, they need to find THE computer he ordered.

GOOD customer service would be admitting that they lost/sold the computer he ordered, and saying they'll upgrade him to a new computer with comparable specs.

Why does he have to wait?
Most likely because the compuiter he actually ordered has already been sold to another customer. The computers in the outlet go rather fast, and there are only a single one of each, so it's not like they just slap another one together. They are waiting for a similier outlet laptop, thats all, and it's pretty normal. I would suggest the OP stop putting up a fuss and keep quit on this one for awhile, because what they useally do is if thay cannot fulfill the original order in the time specified, they offer a better machine at the same price.

i actually ordered a new comppy from dell about three weeks ago. the day before it was supposed to ship i got an email saying my order would be delayed. the initial estimated delivery date was for 10/30. the 'delayed' arrival got to me on 10/31....

so, maybe there is hope? it seems to me they tend to err on the side of caution when giving ship dates...

Laura's "Nooo! Anything but that!" was my thought exactly when he mentioned getting a mac.

@ShiningSquirrel: Exactly. They need to stop pretending like they're going to get him that exact machine, do the right thing, and upgrade him, preferably to a new one.

Yes, get a Mac.

But if you don't join our fabulous group of very cool people (we have cookies!), I suggest you call someone higher up in the food chain or launch a EECB. There's no reason why Dell should have sent you a random desktop computer when there is precisely one Adamo laptop in their warehouse with the specifications you ordered.

And praytell, why did Dell not hook up with the people from Battlestar and launch a special edition Adama laptop with cut off corners? Is it because there are no computers on the Galactica? Pshaw.

OK, yeah, Dell messed up and the conflation of "within 18 days" and "overnight" makes my head asplode, I'm amused with his accounting: "I paid more than $18 (if you count the steak dinner I had somewhere else) for a double cheeseburger."

Seems to me that in betweeen his order and shipping, the one-of item got shipped to someone else.
This was a one of a kind, so if they sold the one, they have to make you another to order, which is their regular thing and does take some time.
It sucks, but it's the same with any one-of item.

what I wonder is: did they think after receiving a desktop he'd go "well.. this is just as portable.. it'll work"???

Yes, get a Mac. Or at least, don't get a Dell. There are plenty of companies that make Windows laptops, if that's what you want... Dell clearly doesn't want your business, so buy from someone else.

Keep the laptop, ship me that kitty!

I guess I just don't understand why a computer company (or anyone with a huge internets business in the 21st century) can't manage to have an integrated system that tracks stuff like orders and inventory and is linked in with customer and technical support.

of course I'm still waiting for my flying car.

Sure, pay the mac tax. I have to admit there machines are very pretty. I do not find there software useful however. Perhaps you should do what some people do now and get a mac and load windows on it without any mac software.

@ShiningSquirrel: Actually, knowing dell, they will probably give him a downgrade and insist that its the same.

This is standard from Dell; we have it happen all the time when a user destroys the system. Usually you receive it in 3 days.

@Spin359: What software comes automatically with a Windows machine that you do find useful?

Is consumerist that desperate for a story to post?

This is a simple mistake, and yes, mistakes do happen dammit. No company is perfect, they can only strive for perfection. They are trying to rectify the problem and this guy is demanding even more.

If you "needed" something quick, that's what brick-and-mortar stores are for.

Maybe Dell can take a page out of T-Mobile's book and give the OP some porn to keep him occupied for the next few weeks.

return the dell, purchase either a toshiba or asus laptop. *note i do not work for either company* in my experiance i have always had nothing but trouble with dells. toshiba's have been great for me and the wife. and i have two friends who swear by asus for laptops.

on the other hand if your going to spend that much money on one you might as well get a mac notebook,(i hope you do not plan to game on it).

@aznjoker: It's not a simple mistake. They shipped him a computer that was entirely different from what he ordered. They acknowledged their error, but then required 18 days to correct it!

@tonberry: I like Asus laptops for their innards, but the casing is often cheap and terrible. I had an Asus laptop that started splitting near the monitor. Customer support told me that I would have to ship it to them for repair, but that it was a $150 fee just to look at it without a guarantee that they could even do anything about it, even though it was clear that they still made the laptop so they should have been able to just swap the casing around the monitor.

@katstermonster:
As I said in my other post, "the" computer is probobly already sold to another customer. The OP is making a mountain out of a mole hill. They almost always say something like "within 14 days". Useally it ships much faster, but they have to cover themselves. If they said 5 days, and it took 10, you know it would be posted here.
We had a similier situation with a server. They told us they would "try" to send out a similier computer within 2 weeks. 3 days later we had a MUCH better machine then what we originally purchased. The OP does not even seem to want to give Dell a chance to make it right.

@larrymac - please put me on your do not call list:
I think "asplode" is, um, something else. Like what happens after eating that Taco Bell mess that was posted a few days ago.

@pecan 3.14159265: I've had a mac for 4 years and no one offered me cookies!

@vladthepaler: Who is the best laptop manufacturer for Windows? Dell used to be the go-to company. I bought a Compaq (groan) 3 years ago that died within 18 months. I can't afford Alienware (/Dell). What is the best other option?

@larrymac - please put me on your do not call list:

He said separate order, not "somewhere else."

@pecan 3.14159265: Its called AdamO. And there ARE computers on the Galactica. They just are not networked.

Which basically means that the wireless will not work on those babies.

@ShiningSquirrel: There's a rather notable difference between "within fourteen days" and "within eighteen business days," especially when they've already had your money for a week. I can't blame him for being unhappy with being out $2000 for a month before they ship what I actually ordered, especially when that wasn't what I signed on for and what I gave them the credit card for.

I'd be more tolerant if they said honestly, "We're sorry, it was just the one computer like the one you ordered and we mistakenly shipped it to somebody else. Right now we don't actually have one, but stuff comes in often enough that it's likely to come in by the end of the month." Followed by a query as to whether I preferred to leave the charge on there in the interim or if I'd rather get a credit, since it wasn't clear when the new one would be available.

@MostlyHarmless: I know it's the Adamo, I said so in the first paragraph. I played word association in my head though and thought a laptop with cut off corners was a good idea. Hmph.

@zentex: The cookies were a one-time 'switch to Mac' deal - if you switch from a Mac to a PC, you get an intervention. No cookies, only kleenex.

@pecan 3.14159265: Yeah, didnt read. Just caught the last sentence, which was clearly incorrect.

@ShiningSquirrel: Servers are from Dell Business. Adamos are from Dell Home (or Hell Dome, if you like spoonerisms). HUGE difference in overall customer service quality between the two.

But, you do make a good point. Businesses always get reamed when they overpromise and underdeliver. Don't you think that 18 business days (3 1/2 weeks) is slightly excessive, though, window-wise?

BTW, Nelling Spazi called. Useally should be "usually", and similier should be "similar".

@pecan 3.14159265: that is the one thing you need to be aware of, Asus' tech support sucks. I used to swear by their motherboards, but for the price they are no longer worth it to me. that sucks about your laptop, I hope everything eventually worked out with it.

@dorianh49: More than 3 1/2 weeks, because it'll include Thanksgiving.

@tonberry: Even though one small corner of the monitor has exposed parts, the computer still runs very well. It's been donated to some young family members though.

get a mac and if you must lay windows down on it.
but do use the mac os, you'll be glad you did.

@ShiningSquirrel: Yeah, what Pecan Pi said. It's not that they shipped his computer to someone else, it's that they seemingly haven't admitted that they shipped his computer to someone else. And yes, 18 days is a long time when they already took your money and promised a computer that they clearly can no longer delvier.

@Spin359: Compared to the Adamo, there really isn't a Mac Tax. A Macbook Pro that's comparable to a particular Adamo has a very comparable price, the Adamo isn't a $499 Inspiron.

@pecan 3.14159265: I didn't know people purchased computers for just the built in software.

@rdm: For a non-gaming machine, there's no reason to go Alienware. If you want a Dell, buy a Latitude. Between work and personal machines, since 1994 I've had 6 different Latitudes (including the one I'm using right now) and they've all been stable, reliable workhorses that lasted for years of daily use. My work machine (a Latitude D610) is about 3 years old and its only issue has been a rubber foot that needed to be glued back on. The D600 before it was still running without problems at 2+ years old when I upgraded to the newer machine because I was going to be working remotely about 200 miles from the office, it got passed down to someone else in the company.

Chances are, he'll have it much sooner than 18 days. Places ALWAYS overstate shipping times so that they're covered. Better to say you'll get it in two weeks and actually get it in three days than to say three days and you get it in two weeks.

That's why Amazon has a policy in which you have to wait around two weeks before you report something as lost in the mail.

@AirIntake: I was just kind of confused by Spin359's comments about Mac software not being useful. I guess if you need Word Processing, you still need Microsoft, but you don't need Windows to have Office. I just have never seen any case in which Windows had any built-in software that was actually useful in a way that OS X software could not be.

It's gonna be really funny if in 18 days only a box with a hard drive arrives.

@rdm: Mac, Windows CD + License, Boot Camp.

Install Windows, use Apple's driver CD, everything works.

@pecan 3.14159265: Hey, PCs have cookies, too! My antivirus program is constantly warning me about them.

I wish it would let me eat them instead of it deleting them...

@AirIntake: I have... iMovie HD, iPhoto, and GarageBand are tons better than what I could find for free for Windows. Windows Movie Maker doesn't even come close to iMovie, IMO.

@Dyscord: Typically yes, but it seems with Dell they almost always take the maximum amount of time, no matter what you buy it seems to be 3 weeks. Why the biggest computer vendor in the world still needs 3 weeks to ship an order is beyond me though. The rest of the internet doesn't seem to have this problem.

@katstermonster: They should also let him keep the XPS computer.

Dell had quick ship models. They should find one with equal or better specs and send to him today.

@larrymac - please put me on your do not call list: They'll ship it out within 18 business days, and when they do it will be shipped with overnight shipping.

@pecan 3.14159265: The anti-virus packages of course!