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Alienware - Tech Support

Angie of League City TX (02/03/06)
In Feb 2005 we bought a low-end Alienware desktop for 1300, paid in full. Got the computer in March 2005 & within 2 weeks began to have problems. It was blue-screening (wouldn't even make it to the Windows welcome screen). For approx 2 weeks on/off the phone with Tech Support, they had us perform numerous technical manuevers to locate the problem (unplug/replug hard drive, check BIOS settings, remove/reinstall memory card). We had to open the computer OURSELVES as on-site tech support was not available, according to Alienware. After 2 wks they finally said we had to ship it back to them for repair.

I tell them we want a refund & they agree - minus a 15% restocking fee. BUT...if we send the computer back, they fix it, send it back & if we have further problems w/the computer, we get every penny we paid for it back. I agree & they email us a pre-paid shipping label. We send it back & days after they receive it they call us to say the outer case was broken & we had to pay 150 for a new one, not to mention that the original problem w/blue screening was a defective hard drive. I spoke w/ a manager & let him know how upsetting it was for me to know that we sent them a properly packaged, DEFECTIVE computer for repair & AFTER they fix the problem they decide to let us know the case is broken.

We practically begged for the case to be fixed at no charge, which we got. When we get the computer back, my husband opens the case to check everything out, only to find the CPU fan sitting on the floor of the tower instead of in it's slot. We call Alienware back & they said they would send us some Thermagel & an on-site tech to install it (suddenly they have on-site tech support!). The tech comes out, puts the Thermagel on & the fan in & off he goes. It is May by then, the computer seems to be running fine.

In July the computer goes out again! After more calls to Tech Support it is concluded that the CPU fan is no good & is causing the computer to over-heat & shut off. They send me a new fan & another on-site tech. Tech puts in the new fan & more Thermagel. It is September 2005 by this time. Fast forward to just 2 wks ago - computer suddenly does NOT turn on. More calls to Tech Support. After taking the cover off again, I'm practically a pro & consider taking computer tech classes & make serious money. More technical manuevers.

Alienware concludes it is a bad memory card & we have to ship the computer back to them for repair. I FLIPPED OUT! I brought up the fact that the computer was practically useless for the entire time we owned it (10 mths now) & the previous phone agreement of a full refund due to continued problems. I was told we could still get a refund - minus the 15% restocking fee. I FLIPPED OUT AGAIN! I placed a call to the president & some yahoo calls me back a week later to try to resolve the issue w/customer service. My next step will be sending emails/letters to the president & so the pressure will continue until we, the consumers, are fully satisfied. Good thing we didn't buy one of their higher-end computers/laptops....

Timothy of Breckenridge, CO December 26, 2005

Timothy of Breckenridge CO (12/26/05)
I ordered a workstation from Alienware that cost 4,200. Four days after I recieved it there was a software problem with the mup.sys driver that prevented the computer from booting into Windows. I was told that the only way to fix this problem was downloading drivers from their website, and then putting them on a floppy disk. One problem, the computer doesn't have a floppy drive. The tech support person said that I should simply disassemble someone else's computer to get their floppy drive and then intall it into the Alienware machine.

I couldn't belive it. What if I bought a defective car and the dealer said to simply take some parts out of one of my friends cars to fix it. I thought this suggestion was outrageous since I just paid over 4,000 for the computer. After complaining to their customer service department they said I could return it at my expense (250) plus a 600 restocking fee. They wanted me to pay almost a thousand dollars to return a computer that went defective in only 4 days. After all I had heard about Alienware, I thought I was getting one of the best computers available. However, the level of customer service is horrible.

Sherry of Costa Mesa, CA December 1, 2005

Sherry of Costa Mesa CA (12/01/05)
I ordered the workstation online on September 16th. We waited almost 3 weeks to receive the machine. We were disappointed to learn once we removed it from the box that it only had a single processor installed. When I ordered online, I had chosen dual Opteron processors, but it was determined with an Alienware sales rep I spoke with on the phone that because of a glitch on the online system (you can not hit any "back" button while ordering), the system was built with only one. After additional phone calls to Alienware I was able to purchase the second processor and have that shipped out to install myself. Another week passed before the second CPU was shipped. In the meantime, the computer sat in our office - it was not even turned on as we needed the dual processing power to run the advanced 3D animation jobs.

I was dismayed to find that all that was shipped was the CPU itself, in a simple envelope - not even an anti-static bag. Almost all companies I had previous purchased CPUs from included the heatsink and fan with the CPU purchase and also had anti-static protection around the CPU plastic enclosure. Over 4 weeks from first ordering the machine, we attempted to boot it up. What came up instead of the Win XP64 welcome screen was an error message that OS files were missing or corrupt. Unable to get around the error, or even boot to safe mode, I made the decision to reformat the main hard drive as we needed to get the machine into production on the jobs we had.

After formatting the main hard drive and reinstalling the operating system I thought the machine would be free of errors. I loaded it up with our software and we attempted to begin using the machine. Bear in mind that we only installed Win XP64 certified software and external components. We began having problems on day 2 of using the machine. On boot up, the Win XP64 welcome screen would hang, unable to fully boot. I attempted a number of ways to first determine what was causing this and then fix it.

Finally, I instructed one of our designers to call the Alienware tech support and explain the problem. My designer was on the phone for approximately 3 hours, attempting in vain many of the same things I had already attempted to fix the problem. Tests were run on hardware, etc. The last items the tech had asked my designer to perform rendered the computer absolutely useless to us - unable to boot at all. The next day I phoned Alienware again and explained my dissatisfaction with the system in general, and asked that the problem be resolved as quickly as possible. We had already begun to lose money on the jobs that we had planned for this workstation. I was told that the system would have to be shipped back for repair. I was given an RMA # and a FedEx pick up notice.

Four days passed (this was not the fault of Alienware but FedEx) before the computer was picked up. It is now more than 10 days later and we receive the machine back. All that is noted on the Computer Repair-Customer Receipt is that the, "failure was duplicated", "repaired", and "other - O.S. Corrupted". This could have been preformed right here, by myself, without having to ship it back to Alienware. In fact, this is where we started: with missing O.S. files and my formatting of the hard drive and reinstalling the O.S. Obviously this did not fix the problem initially, and if no hardware changes had been made and the same O.S. disk installed, it would leave one to believe the same problems would begin again. In addition, when the system was sent back, I included a detailed letter as to what was happening and what had been done already and specifically asked for a detailed response and to install a fresh O.S. Neither of which happened. All this aside, after receiving the shipment today we removed the computer from the undamaged box to find the metal casing was damaged. The left, bottom of the case side barely fits on the tower as it is smashed in - meaning this machine had been dropped from a height. Obviously, this was not FedEx as the box was our original box and was completely undamaged/smashed.

I can not believe that an Alienware employee would damage a system so obviously and then simply box it back up and ship that same damaged system back to us as "fixed". We did not bother to turn it on - simply took photos of the damage (enclosed) and boxed it right back up again. We are now approximately 10 weeks from the time we originally purchased this machine and have not been able to use it. I spoke with Christopher Warner on the phone today who refused to offer a refund - all he offered was to replace the damaged case. He also mentioned that was our only option. I also attempted to ask for a completely new system, since it was obvious due to the damage of the case that the system was dropped at some point, and we were refused that as well. We simply refuse to continue to do business with Alienware and demand a complete refund of our original purchase price for the computer that never functioned properly and the additional CPU that is currently installed in the computer: An amount of 4603.26.

We have reported Alienware to the Miami Better Business Bureau. Our complaint ID is 2085963, as well as the Attorney General's Consumer Affairs division. This case has also been documented by mailing via FedEx a similar letter and photos of the case damage to Alienware's Agent of Service, Nelson Gonzalez. We have since discovered hundreds of other similar complaints files against this company.

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