Long time reader; first time submitter. Going for greenlight! ;D

We ordered a pair of keyboard covers 'condoms' for one of our CNC machine PCs. The CNC has a habit of throwing aluminum strips around and getting stuck in the keyboard at the workstation next to it.

While Dell made with fast shipping from Texas in 2 days, they made the glaring mistake of excessively overpackaging the 2 items that weigh less than a few grams.

It bothers me to think of how many other items could have been shipped via Plane/UPS truck. With gas and the economy the way it is now, this is really over the top and quite unnecessary.

Edit: Items were 14.99 per - The shipping cost $16.00?!

Bravo Dell

Sixxtwo

The stupid shipping gang triumphs once again! Is there no stopping this wasteful bunch? Will common sense ever catch up to the stupid shipping gang? Stay tuned for more exciting episodes.

Stupid Shipping Gang: New Dell Version 7-10-08 [Consumerist Forums]

Meet Dennis Hallet and his wife, Sandra. "In thirty years I've never crossed up bills. I managed to send Dell my AT&T check and I sent AT&T my Dell check," Sandra told CBS 13.

Dell cashed the check made out to AT&T and applied the $235.00 toward Sandra's balance. AT&T cashed the $1138.33 check made out to Dell and applied the entire thing to the Hallet's phone bill. This left them with a credit of $903.33.

Meanwhile, interest was piling up on her Dell account. When she called AT&T to see about getting her money back, they told her it was her fault they cashed a check made out to another company and told her they'd give her money back in two months.

CBS13 called and got AT&T to apologize and refund part of the money in 7 days— with July's bill deducted. When asked why they cashed a check made out to another company, AT&T had no answer, so if you're mailing a couple bills at the same time — make sure you put the checks in the correct envelopes and save yourself a huge headache.

Call Kurtis: Check Switcharoo [CBS13]
(Photo: jetsetpress )

Normally I avoid Walmart like the plague, but having just moved I am skint (broke, out of money, impoverished). My computer monitor was broken (cracked, actually) sometime in the process of moving residences, and I needed a replacement ASAP. So I was price comparing online, and the Dell SE198WFP seemed like a nice enough deal.

Walmart advertises the SE198WFP for $188.72 on their website, and the site also says it's in stock at my local store. **The website also specifically says "Not Sold Online."**

Well, we get to the Walmart in Okemos, Michigan and find the monitor. It is tagged as $198.00, $10 more than the price as listed online. I grab the girl at the electronics counter (as she sighs because I am interrupting her text messaging), and inform her I need a monitor. At this point I am assuming this is a non-issue, and they will happily give me the web advertised price. Not so.

As she is unlocking the monitor from its electronic alarm, I mention the price discrepancy. She now has a sour look on her face and says she can't sell it to me for that price. But I read The Consumerist every single day. I felt bad enough shopping at Walmart to begin with, I wasn't going to let them get away with this.

I point out that advertising one price to lure customers into the store and then trying to charge another higher price is tantamount to false advertising. She says there is nothing she can do (lies!), and I need to talk to a manager. I ask for a manager.

Well, she walks away and ostensibly calls a manager with the issue. We wait for around five minutes, and the girl comes back. I get some more information, but the manager never appears.

She proceeds to tell me that when a product is sold out online, the website says "Not Sold Online," but they can't "comp" themselves. She then informs me she dealt with this same issue earlier in the day; someone wanted to buy a computer advertised online for $50 less than the store had it listed for. She continued with this talk of not being able to "comp" themselves, and how even though the website says "not sold online," lists a price, and informs you of your local stores stock status, that the price isn't actually valid.

I wasn't having it. I asked point blank, "so you are unwavering on the issue?" She says yes.

My response is simple. I tell her that it was unacceptable for a corporately controlled chain to lure customers into their stores with no intent to honor prices advertised by that very same corporation. Furthermore I tell her to do so is illegal in the state of Michigan (it is). I go on to say that if they were insistent, I was left with a specific course of action. I would file with the state AG office, file with the BBB (even though it does nothing), call exec.. cu... tive... I am cut off mid-sentence. That's all she needed to hear.

In a huff, she unlocks the monitor, takes it to the counter, and rings me up at the web advertised price without so much as a call to her manager. Apparently they can "comp" themselves.

What concerns me is not a measly $10. What concerns me is that, as she evidenced, this happens often. How many customers are going to brick and mortar stores to pick up items advertised online, only to find prices markedly higher than advertised? And how many of those customers cave in, not being aggressive about their rights as a consumer?

-F Scott

We hear about this sort of thing often. Some general advice: Some stores have mouse-print on their websites that specifically excuse themselves from having to price match their own websites. If you're going to try to get them to price match, make sure to bring a printout of the website with you, as some retailers have a habit of trying to skirt the issue by tricking you into thinking that the "sale ended while you were in the car."

As far as Walmart.com goes, "not sold online" is a very misleading way to say "out of stock." You were correct to demand the "not sold online" price. We're so proud!

• Shoebuy: 20% off with coupon code EMLJULYFOURTH08
• Rite Aid: Special Deals (Cheap, Free after Rebate, or Make $)
• Amazon: Deals on Vittles Vaults pet food containers, like the 30 lb pet food Vittles Vault II for $5.84 (down from $22.99)

• Dell Home: Buy one Dell XPS 420 desktop or M1530 notebook and another of either two systems for 50% off.
• Puma.com: Save an Extra 20% off All Shoes & Apparel Orders with Coupon
• Geeks.com: Motion M1300 12.1-inch Tablet PC $340 with Coupon

So my friend was complaining to me about how her Dell monitor finally died at the 2-year, 2-day mark (you know, right after the warranty runs out?) and so she called Dell to see if they would help her out. Of course, they are under no obligation to honor an expired warranty, but they did helpfully offer to perform an online service call. My friend (and I) questioned how they would be able to remotely repair a computer MONITOR, but the CSR assured her that they could just "boost the card." Since that meant nothing to my friend, and she didn't want to pay the $40 for them to attempt to repair what is essentially now a piece of office furniture and not a functioning computer, she declined. But not before checking to see if that $40 would be refunded of Dell wasn't able to actually reach through the phone lines or the broadband connection and fix the monitor. Of course not.

Have you ever heard of such a thing? What kind of wormhole does Dell have set up that they can repair a monitor over the phone or Internet? Can they also do a lobotomy? Is it even legal to offer this kind of service when it is clearly impossible?

Thanks,
Robin

We're going to toss this one out to the crowd because "boost the card" doesn't mean anything to us, either. Any explanations?

(Photo: Ben Popken )

Before we get to the typical bad-company shenanigans—in this case, Dell's $599 discount mysteriously shrank to $400 between when he placed it in his shopping cart and when he reached the confirmation screen—we want to share this bit of ridiculousness. Dell's CSR Vanessa gives us the scoop on Dell's sophisticated order fulfillment system:

Jack: Can you look at sales history today and verify whether you sold this system at $599 off today? This was to be my third dell purchase, now I will not purchase again!
ATG Vanessa: There isn't a cart history unfortunately.
Jack: Sales history! Actual people who purchased this system today!
ATG Vanessa: We don't keep record of that.
Jack: You're telling me dell does not know what it has sold today?
ATG Vanessa: Remember this is done online and there's some confidential information we usually erase to protect customers.
Jack: Like what computers you have to build?
ATG Vanessa: So no, there isn't a record where you can see how much have been sold.
Jack: How do you know what you have to ship?
ATG Vanessa: It depends on what we have available at the moment.

Aside from that nonsense, the problem here is that Dell enticed Jack with a weird bait-and-switch, and worse still, they snuck it in at the very last moment before he hit submit.

I had found a link for an XPS system that had a $599 instant savings. I configured my system and added it to the cart and the $599 savings still was applied. I chose to then apply for financing beacuse there was no payments for 12 months. Once I was approved, i proceeded to checkout. Once I reached the confirmation page to submit my order I saw that the price had risen by $200.00 when I went back to check what happened the instant savings had dropped to $400. Confused I then initiated a live chat which led to nothing.

---

ATG Vanessa: Thanks for holding, I have checked and the instant savings changed. Please be aware that configuration, pricing, tax, shipping & handling and monthly payment information that appears in your cart is estimated and presented for your convenience only, and is subject to change without notice.

Not only was Vanessa less than helpful, but she was pretty apathetic at the end, too:

Jack: Well dell just lost a customer.
ATG Vanessa: Is there anything else I can help you with at this time?

Umm, no.

(Photo of computers: Extra Ketchup)

In addition, the judge also found that Dell Financial Services "has engaged in repeated misleading, deceptive and unlawful business conduct, including false and deceptive advertising of financing promotions, fraudulent, misleading and deceptive practices in credit financing and improper debt collection practices."

NY's Attorney General, Andrew Cuomo, sued Dell and Dell Financial Services for depriving consumers of the technical support they were entitled to under their warranty or service contract by:

• repeatedly failing to provide consumers who purchased service contracts promising “onsite” and expedited service with timely onsite repair;

• for pressuring consumers, including those who purchased service contracts promising “next day onsite” repair, to remove the external cover of their computer and remove, reinstall, and manipulate hardware components;
• discouraging consumers from seeking technical support; those who called Dell’s toll free number were subjected to long wait times, repeated transfers, and frequent disconnections;
• for using defective “refurbished” parts or computers to repair or replace consumers’ equipment.

The lawsuit also accused Dell's financing operation of luring customers into high interest rate financing deals by using a "bait-and-switch" tactic. Dell advertised "no interest" or "no payment" financing, but according to the lawsuit, "the vast majority of consumers, even those with very good credit scores, were denied these deals. "

In addition, the lawsuit also alleged that Dell incorrectly billed customers on canceled orders, returned merchandise or on accounts that were fraudulently opened. The AG's office says that "Although many consumers repeatedly contacted Dell and/or DFS to advise them of the errors, DFS did not suspend its collection activity and Dell failed to expeditiously credit consumers’ accounts, even after assuring consumers it would do so. As a result, many consumers have been subjected to harassing collection calls for months on end and have had their credit ratings harmed."

For more information about how this lawsuit affects Dell customers in New York state, please click here. According to the Wall Street Journal, Dell has no comment at this time.

Decision and Order in NY vs Dell (PDF)[NY AG]

PREVIOUSLY: Help New York Sue Dell By Filling This Complaint Trough
NY Sues Dell For So-Called "Award-Winning Service"

April 7th - Top-of-the-line XPS Computer dies. Last words - "Hard drive failure." Fortunately for me, I have the Dell Super Duper You-Should-Never-Have-to-Worry-or-Suffer-Needlessly extended warranty plan. I feel confident in the personal guaranty I get from Dell.

April 8th - Called Dell support and say that the computer fails to boot. "I think it is hard drive failure, because the computer gasped with its dying breath, 'Hard drive failure.'"

Dell's response: "We think it is a Windows issue. Reinstall Windows and it will work fine." It does not.

April 9th - Marathon SIX HOUR call with Dell support during which time we uninstall and reinstall Windows, erase and replace the BIOS, unpartition and repartition the hard drives (several times), and perform all manner of terrible remedies to the computer in hopes of reviving it. None work.

Before we begin applying the electronic version of leeches to the XPS, the Dell support person asks, "We will have to erase the hard drive, is that ok?"

"No problem," say I. "I have all my information backed up on this external hard drive. As long as no one touches the external hard drive*, everything will be fine."

"I think it is the motherboard," says Dell support eventually. "We will send a technician out. You should receive a call from the technician within 48 hours."

The technician never calls. *ominous foreshadowing

April 10th through April 17th - Wait for technician to call. Emailed Dell Support several times with issue number and nice little note asking about the technician call. None of the emails responded to.

Used Dell Support Chat a couple of times from work and get runaround about how much they want to help, but unless I am sitting by the broken computer, pulling my hair our in frustration when they ask me to reinstall Windows one more time, there really isn't anything they can do.

April 18th - Talk to Dell support chat on my laptop while sitting in front of my broken computer. Dell says, "Oh, you are using the wrong Windows installation disc, the wrong Dell support disc, and the wrong Dell diagnostic disc. We will send you the right ones." They send me the wrong ones.

Specifically, they send me the Dell diagnostic discs for their bottom-tier laptops instead of their top-tier XPS desk tops so none of the drivers on the disc work. AND Dell sends a French-language Windows installer disc, apparently because they want to reward me by giving me the opportunity to learn a new language.

May 9th - Long, involved, multi-hour chat session with Dell support. Dell support person says that yes indeed , they sent the wrong discs and they can try to send the right discs again to me.

Logic dictates that if they just try enough times, eventually they might correctly address my problem once, right? Sadly, I am past the point of logic.

I express a level of frustration and contempt that gets me transferred to a supervisor. Dell supervisor tells me that I might have been right after all and that it probably isn't a software issue. They agree to send out a technician.

May 13th - Dell technician comes out to the house. (I was at work and my wife was supervising the technician. He assured her several times, "I know what I'm doing.") Doesn't replace hard dives properly. Somehow, my 300GB hard drives gets magically replaced with a 150GB hard drive.

Also, the technician decides to plug in the external hard drive, the one I use as a backup into the computer and format it.

Apparently Dell technicians are NOT trained on the fact that FORMATTING A BACKUP DRIVE DESTROYS ALL OF THE BACKUP DATA ON IT.

May 16th - Dell support tells me that, yes, a Dell technician came into my house and effectively deleted about three years' worth of data. All the personal data. All the professional data. All of those iTunes files I paid for and backed up so that money wouldn't be wasted.

Everything. Now gone.

But somehow, thanks to the power of corporate magic Dell is not really responsible for this. They owe me nothing for my time and my grief and while they are very sorry for the fact I am effectively up the creek without a paddle, AND while they pretty much admit that they pointed me to this particular creek and then stole my paddle, I'm really on my own here.

So... um... that's my customer experience with Dell. I drop a large chunk of change and buy their top-tier computer and then pay extra for their top-tier customer and technical support and am rewarded by having my external back up hard drive erased.

Thank you Dell for taking all my money and then repeatedly kicking me in the virtual nutsack because it amuses you so. Thank you Dell for making me angry enough to blog about what a craptacular waste of time and money your entire support network is.

But mostly Dell, thank you for giving me a story to share with each and every person I know who comes to me and asks what kind of computer they should buy. Because I plan on sharing this story with as many people as possible for years to come.

Wow. As if we needed another reason to hate Dell, we can't imagine why the tech would mount an external hard drive and format it with blatant disregard to its contents. We're not sure what all of your lost time and data is worth, Robert, but we would really like to see Dell try to make this right.

Two Fridays ago I filed a Better Business Bureau complaint against Dell because they ignored my repeated cries to please remove me from their catalog mailing list, and today I got this following message from Dell's corporate office (listen here). The nice lady says she located my address and is removing it from their system. This is redundant as some other Dell execs say they've finally got my address removed but it does show that filing a BBB complaint does work for getting Dell to promise to stop sending you junk mail (we'll have to see what the mail man brings, or rather, doesn't bring, to know whether it worked completely). Here's where you can go to easily file one online.

(Photo: What Rhymes With Nicole)

Bad
Service
Crap
Boring
Annoying
Broken
Cheap
Dull
Hell
India
Junk
Lame
Old and
Shit

...and then of course Comcast:
Bad Service
Assholes
Bastards
Big
Boring
Broken Bullshit
Cable
Comcastic
Craptastic
Crap
Evil
Overpriced
Monopoly
Ripoff
Slow
Sucks
TV and
Ugh

What's the first thing that pops into your head when you think of Sprint?

BrandTags [via BuzzFeed ]

UPDATE: After drafting this post, I re-emailed the Dell execs who said they would help me. One of them wrote back to say that these May catalogs are the last I will get. He says that I spoke with him back in March, they had already missed the May cuttoff because they process the files far in advance. We'll see what the mailman brings next month.

I am a faithful - *religiously* devoted - reader of your blog (but not in a creepy way), and a huge supporter of your customer-focused stance. I've emailed your articles to friends, family members and strangers.

Unfortunately, I'm writing you today with my own customer service nightmare. I'd like to call it: (cue ominous music)

DELL MAKES PROMISES IT CAN'T KEEP, CHEATS CUSTOMER OUT OF $70, CHASES SAID CUSTOMER INTO THE ARMS OF STEVE JOBS

(Okay, that's not very punchy... but Dell cheated me out of 70 bucks, and I'm too mad to make a snappy title)

So here's the SHORT VERSION:

I'm a Mac and PC user, and recently had to buy a new computer. Solely based on price, I decided to buy a Dell on 01/31/08 - it was on sale, and they had a nifty promotion for a $70 gift card to be mailed to you with your purchase. (I think you can guess what the problem is going to be...)

It's been 3 and a half months, and I NEVER GOT that $70 gift card. I called their customer service three times:

#1 03/30/08: Spoke to a supervisor, who asked me to PROVE THAT I QUALIFIED for the gift card. I forwarded him my confirmation email (with the gift card listed in the order), and he said he'd have a supervisor call me back, no one called me back

#2 around 04/15/08: Spoke to "Anne" who said she'd have a supervisor call me back, hung up on me, no one called me back

#3 05/05/08: Spoke to nameless CSR who said that all the $70 gift cards were all sent out and if I hadn't received one - TOO BAD - they were all out. Nothing she could do. I asked to speak to a supervisor, she refused to connect me, said he'd call me back, no one called me back

During the three calls, the CSRs were rude, obstinate, uninformed and, of course, unhelpful. Can I mention again that each time a CSR promised that someone would call me back, and I have yet to receive a phone call from anyone at Dell?

So... Now I'm at the point where I am being a good Consumerist reader and sending Dell an EECB. And I want to share my story with you - considering, also, that I must not be the only one Dell cheated out of the promotion. I mean, we all know how horrible their customer service is - but I didn't know that they blatantly lied to their customers to boot. BUY A MAC!

Julia wrote back today to tell us that her EECB has been ignored and she's heard nothing back from Dell. Is she the only one who is having this problem?

Any advice for Julia? She could report Dell to her state's attorney general for not living up to their advertised agreement. What do you think?

(Photo: Ben Popken )

UPDATE:

I have an update on my case - Dell will be issuing me a credit of $70 back to my credit card. (!)

I actually had two interactions with Dell, seemingly unrelated:

Geoff [Ed.— He's a helpful Dell guy who reads the blog.] got back to me, and told me he would be taking care of my issue

Before he could do that, a woman named Anne called me me from their "Customer Resolutions Center". She was the one who promised me that she would be crediting my acct., and that she will follow up Mon. or Tues. It seems that she was following up on my EECB, as she and Geoff did not know anything about each other.

Anyway... Yay for Consumerist and the mighty EECB!

The EECB is magical, is it not?

PREVIOUSLY: Dell Won't Stop Sending Me Catalogs So I'm Burning Them

Would you like to contact the same "dedicated" team of customer service reps every time you call? Would you like those reps to be "empowered to address a comprehensive range of issues?" Would you like those reps to be "based in North America?" All this can be yours, if you're willing to pay extra for it.

From Dell's press release (emphasis ours):

Dell's new premium support service is to provide a dedicated team of technical professionals which customers can contact directly for support of any Dell-branded product. This new fee-based offering is designed specifically for those customers who want to engage with the same dedicated team each time they have an issue with any of their in-warranty Dell-branded products.

The premium service offer provides household support by an advanced support team in North America for one year. The technicians are empowered to address a comprehensive range of issues across the breadth of Dell's product line.

"Our commitment to a great customer experience has never been stronger," said Ray Roman, vice president Dell global consumer services and support. . "This premium service is all about making the tech support experience more personal; users who want high-touch support can now receive it. We're excited to bring them to the market."

You: "Can I speak to your supervisor?"
Dell: "Ha, ha, ha! That'll cost you."

Dell's New Premium Support and Integration Services Build on Existing Tools and Improvements for Consumers (Press Release) [Dell] (Thanks, Beecher Bowers!)
(Photo:fallenposters)

David writes:

Recently, my son Justin and I both ordered Kingston 2GB USB "thumb" drives from Dell after seeing it mentioned on slickdeals.net. My son's arrived a few days before mine, and he told me that when the delivery guy handed him the box, he asked if there was anything actually in the box because it was so light. I didn't see the packaging myself until my drive arrived the other day. I asked my other son Brett, a budding photographer, to document the "unboxing" this time.

I'll let the pictures speak for themselves.

PREVIOUSLY: Dell: Let's Ship Tiny CDs In Massive Boxes!

Andrea eventually shipped the laptop to Dell so they could repair Joel's damage. Sadly, they forgot to repair her headphone jack.

Andrea writes:

I was just reading the story about the pubic hair laptop, and I have my own story about Dell!

Since I bought my Dell Inspiron 9100 in fall 2004, it has had so many problems, making my extended accident insurance totally worthwhile! My charger died after about a year, they replaced it after 3 hours on the phone, and that one died shortly after, which was also replaced. I reformatted the summer after college, and my Wifi quit working. I spent hours on the phone with a multitude of different techs and the last one realized the cd they'd sent me wasn't for a different wireless card. But the worst thing to go wrong was my computer's fans. Being an overzealous first-time computer buyer, I didn't realize what a GIANT this laptop is. After just a few minutes on, it heats up fiery-hot and kicks on the jet-engine fans. And after a few months, the headphone jack attached to one of the scorching fans stopped working.

So I called Dell. Over, and over, and over. Keep in mind this was in 2005. Every tech had their own idea what to do, and many of them spoke almost no English, so it usually took at least 2 hours just to explain what was wrong. Don't get me wrong, they were courteous and they wanted to help, but they just couldn't understand me. Finally, in fall 2006, someone decided to do something about it. They offered to send someone out to replace my motherboard, or ship it off to Dell somewhere. I couldn't afford to not have my computer for a week, so I opted for the Dell technician. Oh jeez was I stupid.

The next day, a gentleman named Joel called to schedule my appointment. He arrived at the scheduled time and went to work. I was alarmed by the overwhelming scent of ALCOHOL and cigarettes on him, but too polite to say anything, I let him do it. Except, he forgot his tools in the truck. He returned 5 minutes later reeking more strongly, but ready to fix my computer. I watched him take out all the parts, gently. My IT boyfriend came over around then, and we sat watching videos and watching Joel. After removing my motherboard, he started replacing parts. Except, they didn't fit. What to do?? GET OUT A HAMMER AND HAMMER IT BACK IN!!?? Oh yes, he did. With my LCD monitor attached.

When completed, there were a few problems. The frame around my monitor was cracked through, and there were 2 nail holes coming up through the wrist rest area and frame of the keyboard. I pointed them out to Joel [the destroyer] and he said 'Yeah, I thought that was weird when I got here'. He asked if it was working now and I said yes(like I was going to say no and have him touch my poor laptop again!) When I lift up my laptop, there was a neat little pile of the bits of plastic he had broken off.

I called Dell right after this and the tech I got was pretty indifferent. After 3 hours, they said they'd send out a different Dell Service Technician to fix the problem. Guess who called? You're right, JOEL! I didn't answer his call. So I called Dell again, and said no, not Joel. I had to explain the damage to this technician too, which despite showing them pictures still took 3 more hours, they put in another service order. It was Joel, AGAIN! This time, he showed up AT MY HOUSE, WITHOUT AN APPOINTMENT. He called me 5 times that day, each time leaving angrier and angrier messages about where am I? The only reason I didn't call the cops was because I had just moved and this creepy freaking guy outside my house all day didn't know that I no longer lived there. He had been calling me on his cell phone, so I had no idea what company he worked for or what I was supposed to do. I asked Dell. They told me if I wanted someone else, I would have to call the company. So I did. I complained about him and demanded another technician. And they said he is the only Tech in the area, so it's him or nothing. So I decided maybe losing my laptop for a week wouldn't be the worst thing ever. I am still pissed that his company felt too good to give me an apology. If you live in Madison, WI, beware of JOEL!!

Dell shipped it out and back in 4 days to replace the cracked frame, nailed wrist rest and keyboard frame, and motherboard. Keep in mind the WHOLE POINT was to fix my HEADPHONE JACK. Everything came back all pretty except the jack was STILL BROKEN. AND the computer overheats and shuts down now! I called Dell, again. They stayed on the line with me for hours AGAIN. And FINALLY I got someone who knew something about my laptop!!! Dana shipped me a replacement fan, which was also a replacement headphone jack, and TADA! After 2 years, my headphone jack worked! Now, if my warranty hadn't expired, I could get my computer to stop trying to start on fire, and then shut down! It is completely worthless if I want to use it for longer than 5 minutes.

I attached 3 of the most obvious photos of what was damaged when he hammered my computer. The first is of the cracked LCD frame, the 2nd the weird dent from hammering a screw into the wrist rest, and the 3rd the completely drilled through keyboard frame. And in Dell's defense, my boyfriend got me a Latitude C640 from 2002 they were throwing out at his work and it's wonderful. It is portable, reasonably fast, and doesn't overheat, even after 6 years of use.

It is amazing how good it feels to vent that to someone who could benefit from my experience! Thanks for this opportunity, Consumerist!

Tom said he "tried to control all the variables: Same date/time, same browser, same external IP address, same Dell login, same navigation process (Dell.com>Small Business Desktops>Dell Deals) & (Dell.com>Small Business Desktops>Vostro), and exact same visible URLs." Here are screenshots from the Dell Deals page: as you can see (with some squinting), there is a sizable difference between the dual-panel Vostro system. Computer 1:
Computer 2:

Next, Tom tried to check the price on the dedicated Vostro page. Again, the prices were different. Computer 1:

Computer 2:

Pretty bizarre. Do any of our helpful Dell-employed readers have an explanation for this?

Charter Cable: gets all-around poor marks for quality of service, customer service, and technical support. They're on the record as admitting to blatantly lying to their customers. One time they irrevocably deleted 14,000 customer's email accounts, including all their emails, even the ones that you have to scroll all the way to the bottom to find the secret message. Whoops.

This is a post in our Worst Company In America 2008 series. The companies nominated for this honor were chosen by you, the readers. Keep track of all the goings on at consumerist.com/tag/worst-company-in-america/

STILL OPEN FOR VOTING: Dell vs Home Depot,
Sears vs Citibank, Wal-Mart vs TJMaxx, Mattel vs ATT, Capital One vs Video Professor, eBay/Paypal vs COX, Apple vs SallieMae, Diebold Vs Pfizer, MTV vs TransUnion
CompUSA vs DirecTV
Target vs Best Buy
Allstate vs Verizon,
DeBeers vs 1800 flowers, Starbucks vs United Airlines,
Exxon vs Crocs, Google Vs Sony, Ticketmaster vs Wachovia, Facebook vs The American Arbitration Association, Comcast vs Menu Foods

Home Depot: Got rid of all the nice retired electricians and plumbers on its floor staff and replaced them with surly low-paid workers who didn't know a brick from a brace, and didn't care. They let their in-home installation business line be contracted out to incompetent unprofessional local contractors and then didn't hold those teams accountable when egregious mistakes were made and seemed to make it a policy to, at the store level, ignore customers who complained. Perhaps because these were the same guys whose business Home Depot was trying to attract by focusing on the lucrative contracting and construction industries.

This is a post in our Worst Company In America 2008 series. The companies nominated for this honor were chosen by you, the readers. Keep track of all the goings on at consumerist.com/tag/worst-company-in-america/

STILL OPEN FOR VOTING: Sears vs Citibank, Wal-Mart vs TJMaxx, Mattel vs ATT, Capital One vs Video Professor, eBay/Paypal vs COX, Apple vs SallieMae, Diebold Vs Pfizer, MTV vs TransUnion
CompUSA vs DirecTV
Target vs Best Buy
Allstate vs Verizon,
DeBeers vs 1800 flowers, Starbucks vs United Airlines,
Exxon vs Crocs, Google Vs Sony, Ticketmaster vs Wachovia, Facebook vs The American Arbitration Association, Comcast vs Menu Foods

So I rarely resort to complaints as I think I am an easygoing consumer, but this time Dell went over the line. Maybe I just needed to write this email to vent, but I think it may be worth a post on your site...

Recently my 1 year old Dell laptop stopped charging the battery, so I called technical support (still under 3 year warranty) to try to resolve the issue. The technician recommended trying to plug another Dell power adapter into the laptop to see if this was the problem, and surprisingly it worked - problem solved...send me a new power adapter and I'll be on my way.

Unfortunately here things took bad turn. The technician thought that it would be a good idea to try the faulty power adapter in my other Dell laptop just to confirm that this was the problem. I told him that this laptop was no longer under warranty and that I didn't really want to mess with anything else since we had already resolved the issue. He said that we had to confirm this before he could authorize a new adapter being sent to me. So I plug it in and ZAP! Burning smell, and my old laptop was fried - nothing could revive it. At this point I was worried the technician would hang up, but to their credit they stayed on the line and after about an hour finally agreed to replace my old laptop. At this point, I was rather satisfied despite all of the problems - I was getting a new replacement for my old laptop.

About a week later, I get my "new" Dell laptop. I open the case, and the instruction manual is bent out of shape, and I start to worry. I reach the bottom of the box, pull out the laptop, and first thing I see is the top is covered in scratches. Some people may say that I should be happy since I was getting a newer model laptop to replace an old laptop with no warranty. My old laptop, however, was in great condition. When I opened up the new laptop, I saw the screen was scratched and dirty, and the keyboard was covered in debris. Wait, not debris....what is that? HAIRS!? Not just any hairs - these could only be described as pubes. I hate to be so crude, but pubes are pubes. Not the incidental curly hair, but rather mini-tufts between the keys. My only guess is that Ron Jeremy was the previous owner. At this point, I called Dell back, and I have written this email in between talking to 3 different people and over an hour of hold time. Nobody wants to help, and I'm reached the limits of my tolerance for poor service.

At this point, I'm considering 3 options:

1. Vacuum it, douse it in alcohol, and just try to use it and forget about "the hedgehog"

2. Sell it and buy a new laptop

3. Go to the gym, run 3 miles, trim body hair directly over the keyboard, send laptop back to dell (this is the cleaned up version)

Any other ideas?

("Free Human Hair" Photo: Kevin Dean)

She recently sent us the Executive Email Carpet Bomb she lobbed towards Dell's headquarters:

To: tips@consumerist.com
Cc: michael_dell@dell.com, donald_carty@dell.com, ronald_garriques@dell.com, michael_cannon@dell.com, mark_jarvis@dell.com, lawrence_tu@dell.com, susan_sheskey@dell.com, andrew_esparza@dell.com, paul_bell@dell.com, stephen_felice@dell.com, david_marmonti@dell.com, brad_anderson@dell.com, jeffrey_clarke@dell.com, martin_garvin@dell.com, alex_gruzen@dell.com, joan_hooper@dell.com, william_gray@dell.com

Good Morning,
This is my last resort. I am writing today to share with you a problem that has become so excessive over the last eight months that I no longer know what to do with it. I have given up the idea of ever having a Dell hassle-free life so I am just trying to live mine by minimizing their interruptions in my day to day life. Here is my story:

I am not a Dell customer. I DO NOT OWN ANY DELL PRODUCTS (AND I NEVER WILL). I got a new job last July and for my job I inherited a very important phone number that all of my clients have used for the past seven years. I work for an extremely small non-profit (i.e. I am the only paid employee) and I work with youth and their families. I have 30 families who move around often and the only way we keep in contact is through this stable phone number so changing my number was not and option.

In August 2007 I started receiving calls from the Dell collection center in India. The calls were not for me or my job, they were for the man who previously had my job and phone number. He linked his personal Dell account to his then work phone number. The first ten times Dell called I gave them the previous employee's new phone number and asked them to remove my number from that account as it was no longer current... But the calls kept coming....

Steps I have taken to avoid hearing from Dell:

1) I notified the person they were trying to reach. I had him call and change his contact information. He did that and Dell assured him the problem was solved and that they would not call me again. But the calls kept coming...

2) I had 6 lengthy conversations with supervisors at the Dell Call Center in India. Sometimes they would give me a badge number, recording ID, their name and one time in a thick Indian accent I was told I was speaking with a "Michelle Woodward" for the record. Dell promised the problem was solved and that they would not call me again. But the calls kept coming...

3) I called the customer service line on Dell's website. Since I am not a Dell customer and I don't even know what item they want me to pay for that I do not own, it was a long and frustrating call. In the end Dell assured me the problem was solved and that they would not call me again. But the calls kept coming...

Now, 8 months later, Dell calls my work phone up to three times daily. I finally bought a new phone (but I can't change the number because I need it to do my job) just so I could set it to ring silently when Dell calls. I try to ignore the calls the best I can, but recently the calls have started coming from local DC numbers as well as the Indian 800 number. I am sometimes fooled into answering the local calls only to find that I am again on the phone with a company where I am not a customer.

Now I understand that people must lie and give fake phone numbers to dodge paying for their stuff. I am sympathetic to a point about how hard it must be to streamline a system. But I have done everything in my power to point Dell in the right direction, but they refuse to take my number out of the system. Dell you don't want me. Please leave me alone.

Finally someone suggested that I write to consumerist. I saw the Dell executive emails on your site, so I will be CCing this email to them as well. All of them. We will see if they respond. Maybe I will start calling them three times a day.

Sincerely,
Dell's used up call girl
Kat

Except as provided in section 1692b of this title, without the prior consent of the consumer given directly to the debt collector, or the express permission of a court of competent jurisdiction, or as reasonably necessary to effectuate a postjudgment judicial remedy, a debt collector may not communicate, in connection with the collection of any debt, with any person other than the consumer, his attorney, a consumer reporting agency if otherwise permitted by law, the creditor, the attorney of the creditor, or the attorney of the debt collector.

(Photo: publicprivate)

Jake writes:

I need some help; Some help dealing with Dell.

I purchased a DEll XPS 1530 (red) edition at the end of January. Being the geek that I am, and have had a laptop last up to 4 years (an iBook G4) without problems, so why get insurance?

On (roughly) day 45, as I finished a paper, I closed the laptop. I unplugged it from the charger, set the laptop on the table, unplugged the charger form the wall, grabbed my M1530 off the table and walked upstairs.

I opened the laptop up after I plugged in the charger to the wall and laptop and sat down in my room. There was a huge crack in the LCD screen that starts the the bottom of the screen, which was next to the hinge of the laptop.

$1300, 45 days and there is a huge crack in the screen, that honestly, shouldn't have happened. If they didn't make such cheap products, that wouldn't have happened.

I called Dell since the laptop was under the one year manufacturer semi-warranty. Sure enough, they want money to replace the LCD screen that broke.

Considering that I have seen laptops that have been dropped, kicked, traveled with, taken apart, stepped on and beat to hell and still run perfectly. A less than two minute walk up the stairs and me setting it up so I can use the laptop in bed causes a crack in the LCD screen and Dell is being too cheap to realize that I have a defective laptop.

What should I do?!

Since the laptop is so new you might be able to take advantage of any damage guarantees that your credit card offers. For example, an Amex gold card has up to $1,000 of purchase protection that includes accidental damage (not that this applies to you, or anything, but you'll be sure they won't hassle you.) Some cards will double the manufacturer's warranty, others offer a return guarantee that will fully compensate you if you decide to "return" the item within a certain period of time and the retailer won't accept it. If you can't work it out with Dell, you should call your credit card company and talk to them about what they can do to help you.

It's important to understand what protections your credit (or debit) cards offers so you can take advantage of them.

Good luck!

(Photo:Ben Popken)

In addition, I used to receive catalogs from Dell Home and Home Office but they honored my unsubscribe requests. Obviously whoever is running the small biz catalogs is not doing their job right. It's my hope that this series of beautiful and seemingly childish gestures might possibly prompt Dell to investigate the matter. If it results people's unsubscribe requests actually get honored, then I will have saved more trees by burning this catalog then if I recycled it. It's just a hunch, but somehow I don't think simply placing the catalog in the recycle bin will have the same effect as my direct marketing pyre.

I think readers on Consumerist might find this interesting... with all the emails being sent to executives these days, are they becoming deaf to it? It appears at Dell that might be the case.

A comparison:

Four years ago, I wrote to Kevin Rollins, the then CEO of Dell, about a prolonged problem with a monitor. I received a very quick and friendly reply from Mr. Rollins, which was copied to two other executives. One being Ro Parra and the other I can't recall. The issue was SOLVED, sincere apologies were made, and I was thanked for letting them know about the problems.

Three weeks ago, I wrote a top-level executive at Dell about a problem with the same product. I received no reply from the executive, but got handed off to something called the customer resolutions center. The representative was curt, unhelpful and misinformed about technology and just about everything else. She even gave me the infamous "I have no supervisor" reply when I asked for hers. When I did speak to her supervisor, he was very professional, but since then has never returned one of my calls.

Apparently, at Dell writing to executives no longer has quite the punch.

Don't get me wrong—I don't think executives are required to write back to every customer that emails them. But the message I got from Dell four years ago was crystal clear: customers first. The message I got three weeks ago was... don't write us, we'll write you?

I think I'll stick with companies that welcome hearing directly from customers.

Seth

In April of 2005, I purchased a Dell Inspiron 9300 laptop computer. Approximately a year later, I was given a replacement for ongoing issues with the computer, and that replacement served me fine for approximately another year before it too had ongoing issues and was replaced under warranty. However, this is where the problems began...

In June of 2007, I received the replacement for my Inspiron 9400, which replaced my original Inspiron 9300). The model was an Inspiron 1720, and in several ways, was inferior to my previous system. I explained this, and was granted a replacement for it as my points were valid. Once I received the replacement, a Dell XPS M1710 computer, I shipped back both the Inspiron 1720 and the 9400 that I had in my possession. However, upon inspecting the XPS M1710 I received, it was not, still, "the same, or better than" my Inspiron 9400 (which I was told it would be). So, I escalated the issue even further, and was granted yet another replacement. In mid-August of 2007, over 2 months since my original request for a replacement, I finally received an adequate replacement, that certainly exceeded my expectations in terms of its specifications and features.

This XPS M1710 worked great for approximately 2 months before it, too, started having issues. I proceeded with NUMEROUS replacements. Only 3 times was I able to have a technician to my home to replace the damaged/malfunctioning parts, due to the duties of my job, but I am a capable A+ Certified technician myself and am fully qualified to replace the parts myself, although I am not a "Dell Certified" technician. Each and every time a parts replacement dispatch was sent to my home, I promptly returned the defective part within the 15 business day allotted time that I am given. I, however, after a pattern of specific replaced parts (namely the videocard) began searching the internet to see if anyone else was affected by consistent videocard issues. It turned out that I was not the only one affected by these issues, so I requested a replacement computer in February of 2008. The replacement arrived at my door on February 19, 2008.

Approximately 2 months before this, however, I received a phone call from someone in Dell Collections asking about the defective parts I returned, along with the Inspiron 9400 and first XPS M1710 I received. I provided any and all information that was asked of me, including tracking numbers and ship dates, and believed the matter to be closed, and never heard anything more about it.

The replacement computer that arrived to me on February 19, 2008, was an XPS M1730 computer which was shipped to me directly from Dell Returns. Upon opening the box for the computer, I was appalled. The computer is heavily used, very beat up, with 2 noticeable dings below the DVD drive, scratches on the LCD lid, LCD itself, palmrest, and finally several dead pixels on the LCD screen, coupled with very low brightness of the LCD. COMPLETELY unacceptable. On top of that, it does not have certain things that I was told it would have.

I began stating the issues with this new computer, and ran into a brick wall, as I kept being told to be "happy" with what I received. I finally got into contact with Mr. Mike McKinney at the Dell Resolutions department, and he agreed to replace the system yet again, and sincerely apologized for the inconveniences. I thought these matters would come to a close, and awaited Mike's response and notification of the system replacement.

However, none of this came, and I wanted to (obviously) know the status of my case. At this point, I filed a claim with the Better Business Bureau (BBB) as I've grown extremely tired of these constant issues. On February 24, I was told by a very rude Dell Technical Support representative that there would be no more replacements, and he escalated the case to the Fraud department. This made me VERY angry as I had not, and never would, commit ANY kind of fraud. Again, I will repeat what I stated above. For everything that was asked of me in terms of replacement computers and replacement parts, I did EVERYTHING exactly as I was told to do. I shipped back every defective part without fail, and shipped back every computer that was replaced. After several days of not knowing what was happening, I finally was given the contact information for "Neil", who was handling my case. I got into contact with him at approximately 10:30AM on February 28th, and was treated VERY rudely. The person did not listen to ANYTHING I said, and repeatedly said that there would be no more replacements. At this point, I am so frustrated and so angry, I cannot even describe it in words.

The Better Business Bureau case is still open, and has been updated with the most recent information. I have not, nor would not, commit any kind of fraud against Dell. I don't know where the error is, but it is CERTAINLY not on my end, as I will state again, I did everything I was told to do in a timely fashion.

I would like a timely resolution to this problem, and expect someone to contact me regarding this. Please contact me at the above address, or by phone at [redacted]. I appreciate your time and help in these matters.

Sincerely,

Anthony Nicholas

March 3

Dell at this point is REFUSING to do ANYTHING. They don't want to replace the laptop, they don't want to send me the parts to replace the defective/damaged ones on the laptop, NOR do they even want to send a technician to replace the defective/damaged parts.

The laptop itself now refuses to boot (Machine Check Exception bluescreens on bootup, not fixed by reinstalling or reimaging the OS) and crashes in Dell Diagnostics when it gets to the point of testing the CPU, which leads me to believe it's a CPU error (the processor is likely faulty). Also, there is no wireless card or bluetooth card, which I hadn't noticed before as I had never tried to do anything significant with the laptop, it had been sitting in its box. I verified the lack of bluetooth card and wireless card by removing the keyboard to see if the wireless card was present, and it's not, only 3 wires that WOULD connect to the wireless card. The bluetooth module SHOULD be situated in a holder accessible by removing the battery, and it too is vacant.

A catastrophe this is, and Dell refuses to fix it or take any responsibility for it.

-Anthony Nicholas

March 6

OK guys at Consumerist... I could REALLY, REALLY, REALLY use your help.

Dell is refusing to "release my account" so that the computer can be fixed. The guy holding the account's name is "Neil" and he won't return my calls, nor will he bother to deal with me anymore. As I had said in my previous e-mail, the computer has gotten worse. At this point, after sitting for a couple of days, when I press the power button on the computer, the power LED comes on for about 1/2 a second, and then goes out. It refuses to boot at all, so now I'm stuck with a perfectly non-functioning, scratched up, dinged up, $5000+ computer.

Dell refuses to give me any refund, or fix the computer at all. I still have warranty coverage for 43 days, and at this point, I'm thinking Dell wants to stall and "review" my account for the next 43 days so my computer goes out of warranty, and they don't have to do anything, unless I pay HUGE bucks for it.

Again, please help guys, I'm at a loss.

RELATED: Man Haggles With Dell Over Failed Laptop For 3 Years

All stores were taken down last night around midnight. Conference calls were issued today and ALL employees associated with Dell Direct Stores (marketing, training, sales, management) were laid off with little to no hope of lateral job changes within Dell. Severance seems to be 60 days with pay. If you had a Dell Direct Store near you go check it out - it should be gone today.

Severance packages are arriving to employees' homes this morning

"Dell to Close Mall Kiosks As Retail Strategy Shifts" [Wall Street Journal]

I purchased a laptop through my company in 2005. The laptop I bought was the Dell XPS (Gen2). I had several issues with the DVD burner right off the bat. Within months Dell was replacing my 6800 Ultra laptop video board due to video artifacts. This happened again and more parts were replaced. In Late 2006 Dell swapped my Gen2 system for a M1710. In my book, both the customer service and the quality hit the fan. They sent me a laptop with less memory and poor video.

Eventually after many calls they sent the right memory and fixed the video. Unfortunately, the laptop had serious thermal design flaws and I had another system exchange, multiple system board and video swaps. Not to mention overheating batteries. I got to know the local BancTec technicians by name. I really never was able to use the laptop. After more than 11 part replacements, they sent a M1730. In my opinion, they rushed the QA. The M1730 is a power hog and has to remain plugged in at all times. This is a laptop we are talking about. Something they sell as a mobile gaming solution. They even try to upsell additional batteries when you call them on the phone or buy it online. The M1730 is configured with SLI, however the fist system they sent had 1 bad GPU on the 2GPU video board.

So, they ordered me another laptop, which was canceled, and then reordered, and then canceled again. For all of my trouble I asked that they upgrade me to a faster processor and a blu-ray drive. The manager said okay, but that they had to order the parts after the laptop shipped. Then they shipped the laptop late and had to reroute the laptop as I was at a different location. I am a consultant and travel on business. DHL and Dell were not able to track the laptop. It was actually out for delivery on a DHL truck in FL, instead of a truck in GA. I finally found out what was happening by talking to local DHL warehouse dispatchers.

The one that finally arrived had a Bad LCD with bad pixels and light distortion. Dozens of calls to dell tech support got me nowhere. The manager who made the promise was not returning my calls. At this point I was frustrated but not out of options. I sent an email to the Consumerist Dell Executive email list and 4 hours later I received a phone call from a very nice lady who works for the Dell Executive Resolution Team. She said she was looking into my case and would try to make things right. I was very relieved to speak with someone based in the US who was empowered to make things happen.

The first thing she did was ask that I send her a list of the exact configuration that I had and the one that I desired. Not to0 hard. Only two parts difference. I sent the exact list as configured on the Dell website and waited. After a week or so, and no updates showing on the order, I emailed/called her. She couldn't find out what was causing the order delay so she canceled the order. When I looked at the order and matched up the parts, I found the video board was missing from her order part list (not mine). I also noticed the list was missing the Bluetooth card part. She wanted to let the order process (expedited) and take care of the Bluetooth part later. The ship date came and I tried to track the DHL tag. DHL said they hadn't picked it up, and Dell couldn't tell if the laptop had shipped. I called DHL a few more times and they said Dell had registered the tracking number but hadn't actually shipped the box. I related this info to woman at Dell and she began checking other contacts.

Finally the tracking number came up as Ground Service. Dell had expedited the laptop build, but had not sent it next day. Every previous laptop had been sent next day and the Dell website listed Next-Day service. Eventually I did receive the laptop and it was missing Bluetooth. I swapped the BT daughter card and you think the story would end there. Nope.

The current M1730 has major issues and already I have had the motherboard, power supply, and battery replaced. The Blu-Ray scratches the dvds and the first replacement they sent was DOA. I am trying to test the second Blu-ray, but my laptop has been crashing and locking up. I've worked with a Sr. Dell Executive Technician for 5 days. Here are my current unresolved issues:

The laptop power cord can be loosened by moving the power cord or the laptop. When this happens, the laptop switches to battery.

When the laptop is running on battery, it freezes and locks up. This happens every time, not just occasionally.

When I plug the laptop back in from running on Battery it bluescreens or freezes.

The SLI drivers are poor and do not work. Dell has 2 drivers, one production and one beta. The production driver causes the laptop to freeze when Freecell is started. Performance at high resolutions is worse than previous generation laptops. The beta driver fixes some problems but the driver readily crashes when switching to SLI.

When cold booting from the battery the laptop is more stable, but cannot play DVDs, video, and is very slow to respond (like a 400Mhz Celeron)

I've rebuilt the laptop more than a dozen times with various driver configurations.

Dell is not able to give me a clear workaround for these issues or a expected fix. I have been told to keep my laptop plugged in at all times.

I've send another email to the Consumerist Executive list, and received another response from the lady at Dell. I will post an update on what they tell me.

(Photo: Fireflock)

We've been following all of the discussion that our recent partnership announcement has created. While most of it has been very positive, it seems there is a lot of confusion around the pricing of the (PRODUCT) RED offering. Above and beyond the entry level XPS ONE, the (PRODUCT) RED version offers Windows Vista Ultimate and Microsoft Home Office and Student, a $300 value of upgrades when purchasing through DELL.

We're aware that not everyone will need or want these upgrades. (RED) is not about buying something for charity - it is about doing good while you are buying something you need. For those consumers who are in the market for a DELL XPS ONE with WINDOWS VISTA ULTIMATE, the (PRODUCT) RED option gives them the opportunity to get all of these features AND trigger an $80 contribution to the Global Fund to help fight AIDS in Africa, at no additional cost. For those consumers who are not in the market for this type of full-featured experience, they have the option to purchase another DELL PC that meets their needs.

(RED) is just one tool for people to do good - it doesn't replace the need or desire for charity donations, volunteering or getting involved in other ways. It is simply a choice when you're out shopping for something you need.

Most of the discussion demonstrates an enthusiasm for these partnerships and a desire to have more (PRODUCT) RED PCs available at a broader price range. We are also very excited about the potential of the DELL & MICROSOFT partnerships - which are just starting with these products. These new partnerships will help increase overall awareness of the AIDS epidemic in Africa and increase contributions to buy lifesaving ARV treatment for those who cannot afford it.

If you have any questions, feel free to contact (RED) at info@joinred.com.

Thank you,
bn
(RED)

PREVIOUSLY: Is Dell's Pricey (Project) Red PC A Ripoff?

The controversy comes from the fact that the $300 "upgrade" to the standard system is for Microsoft software only—leading some to conclude that the world would be better off if you just donated the $300 to charity, rather than spending it on a (Project) Red PC that comes with expensive software you may not need and can find cheaper elsewhere.

Not to rag on a charities, but these are the things that everyone should think about before making a donation or a purchase that "benefits charity." Some people will probably want and value the software (and the pretty red computer) and think it's a good deal. Other people will disagree. Ultimately, it's your money.

Dell's XPS One (PRODUCT) RED is a charitable rip off [Engadget]

The company I work for orders all of their computers from Dell. About 4 months ago we started receiving random Adobe Acrobat Standard CDs & licenses for free with every single computer that we purchase. We did not request these CDs. At first, they came inside of the box with the computer. Soon, they started arriving in a padded envelope. After that, they began arriving in their own box, complete with paper padding, and a padded envelope. We have received well over 100 of these.

Christian, just wanted to circle back and let you know that we're working this now. As much as we would like this to be a very simple fix it isn't. But you do have our commitment that we will have this fixed in the next six months. Two things we are looking at:

1. Option to exclude all manuals and CDs from packaging at time of order. And, an option to have one set delivered for multiple systems.

2. A move to packaging alternatives

We'll be sure to keep you posted.

Best,
Sean

Dell and the environment: green is out, brown is in [Technologist For Hire]
Update on Dell's Environmental Impact [Technologist For Hire]