Monday, February 27, 2017

Alienware. Where support is not really here. Or there.

What is one of the important things you consider when buying a PC? The processor? The graphics card? The screen size if you're buying a notebook? Sure. But how many of you actually think about the warranty? And how many of you take it for granted?

"Oh so it comes with an one-year warranty? Oh ok, isn't that the standard?"

Yup, most people will be contented with an one-year warranty. Which is really the minimum these days. So when a popular brand like Alienware provides a three-years warranty, that's really a gift right?

Wrong. Apparently, they didn't expect you to expect them to honor this three-years warranty. It's a... "For display only" item.

And here's the real-life story of why you shouldn't trust an Alienware warranty.

The long story can be found here, on my friend Sarah's blog:
Buy Alienware Dell ?

The short story is here:

  1. Girl bought Alienware PC with 3-years warranty included.
  2. Alienware PC broke down within the 3-years warranty period.
  3. Girl called up Alienware Support and was asked to switch on and off the PC, then switch on and off the PC, then switch on and off the PC...
  4. Alienware Support finally decided to move their arses and do a house call. Only during THEIR business hours. Which means Girl has to take a day off from work. Lucky for her, after some negotiation, they gave in and made the visit at 7pm.
  5. Alienware Support tried to fix the PC with refurbished motherboards. 
  6. Refurbished motherboards still won't work, PC still not working, and Alienware still refused to replace Girl's PC or even with a new motherboard.
  7. Girl still stuck with a defective Alienware PC.

So yeah. This is why you should consider spending your bucks on other brands like HP, Asus, MSI, Acer... well, basically any other brands BUT Alienware.