Dell couldn't fix my Vostro 1700.

Dell couldn't fix my Vostro 1700 that had complete care after being sent to the depot and then sending a tech. A Dell rep promised a new replacement both on the phone and in an email. Considering I have the 1920 by 1200 screen and I use both my hard drive slots, what would be a suitable replacement that I should expect?

Edit: Dell thinks the Vostro 3700 is a suitable replacement, I disagree. Any opinions?

 

I know wonder if I should just take whatever Dell is willing to give.

 

Tell Dell you want the Precision M6500 with the WUXGA screen, and for the fact that it can have two hard drives. That new Vostro 3700 only supports one drive and the screen is a 16:9 (I didn't check to see if 1080p was available after I found a 1600x900 one, because either way it's lower than your current Vostro's WUXGA).

Keep complaining, and if nothing works, send an email to [email protected].

I just had my M11x RMA sent in a very timely manner by dealing with them that way.

 

Strictly speaking, the Vostro 1700 was the small business equivalent of the Inspiron 1720 - a model which alway had a second HDD bay, although I never remember seeing one with a second HDD.

The current equivalent of your computer is the Vostro 3700, although I suppose that Dell still has Vostro 1720 models available through the outlet.

 

Even though the Vostro 3700 is the newer version of that model, it's clearly a downgrade for his purposes. Dell isn't allowed to downgrade anything; it has to be equal or better. Until 2304000 = 2073600, and 2 = 1, this isn't an okay replacement.

 

I use the second hard drive bay. Dell has no Vostro 1700, 1710 or 1720's on hand. The 3700 has one hard drive and max's out at a 1600 by 900 anti glare screen.

 

you paid for CC so you are def in the win

demand no less then the best

frik they couldnt even fix it

stick to your guns and accept ZERO downgrades

bol

 

You really won't find all that many laptops these days with a second hard drive. There are only few out there - only the M6500 and M17x from Dell and the HP DV7/Envy 17. There are a few less obvious brands, but mostly they're gaming systems. Perhaps the Inspiron 17 and Studio 17 have the space and room for a 2nd 2.5" HDD bay, although they don't seem to ship that way.

As far as 1200P screen resolutions, there are fewer choices out there than a few years ago because the expensive screen upgrades just weren't popular. Very few people saw the 1200P screen resolution upgrade as cost effective, and most of the people who need that sort of resolution are probably using an external monitor already. It stands to reason that only the Precision M6500 line still offers a 1200P screen option.

In the end, a Vostro 1700 was really just the small business equivilent of an Inspiron 1720. The current equivilent is the Vostro 3700, not the Precision M6500, which is a much higher end workstation. These day, you can't individually configure the options on a Vostro and Dell does a much better job in differentiating their Vostro line from the higher end Latitude notebooks and Precision work stations.

I'm a bit surprised that Dell supposedly can't fix your Vostro 1700 and you didn't specifiy the current issue. Keeping in mind that your notebook is now 4 generations older than the current lineup, they might not keep new motherboards in stock, for instance. Keep in mind that most consumers probably just stuck with the standard 1 year warranties, since these were low end business notebooks. Dell probably stocks replacements much longer for the Latitude line, where the standard warranties run as long as 3 years.

Since you have a very peculiar high end build of a low end business laptop and a very specific personal preference, why don't you tell us what is wrong with your current Vostro 1700?

 

My "peculiar high end build of a low end business laptop" was not all that uncommon, many people wanted the higher res screen it offered and it was not an expensive upgrade(pre LED). As far as the two hard drives, who doesn't want lots of space for storage, especially when doing photo and video editing. The screen being glossy as well makes for much easier and accurate results that the anti glare screen now offered on the Vostro 3700.
Now for the repair problem, it was sent to the repair depot for a complete care issue, took a spill off a high counter, broke both hinges, pulled screen wires out of base and twisted the case. Depot replaced hinges, screen bezel, lid, bottom of case. I received the laptop back with balled up candy wrappers in the box with my laptop, the screen flopped back and forth, the laptop rocked back and forth (you could clearly see the bottom was warped), battery did not seat properly. After taking off the battery I noticed the battery contacts on the laptop were mangled and some of them touching each other, on the battery itself the slots the contacts fit into were broken. After this the case was escalated and new parts were ordered and a tech was sent out. Before the tech was sent I was told if the tech could not fix the laptop that it would be replaced with a new system. The tech came and replaced the hinges, screen bezel and lid again (I don't know why), the palmrest and bottom and also the motherboard. When he was done the laptop would not power on at all, he took it apart again and checked everything and it still would not power on. The tech notified Dell that he could not repair the system.
I emailed the rep I was dealing with to ask what the next step was and he replied that he would replace my laptop with a new one like he stated over the phone. He took 24 hours to get back to me saying an order for a Vostro 3700 had been placed. I looked and saw the screen difference, 6 cell instead of 9 cell battery. It wasn't till later and another escalation that I noticed the lack of a second hard drive slot.
Dell is now not following trough on the promise of a new system, unless I take the downgrade to the Vostro 3700. It is now going on 5 weeks without a functioning laptop.

 

Oh, a glossy screen on a business laptop.
Glossy screens are more typical of consumer quality notebooks. Well actually, the Vostro 1700 was pretty much an Inspiron 1720, which explains the glossy screen. Yes, I remember these notebooks.

The problem is that business users expect anti-glare screens, since a glossy screen, no matter how bright, is nearly useless outdoors, or near a window. It stands to reason that Dell would offer anti-glare screens on the Vostro 3700.

Dual hard drives are another issue. For some reason they never really caught on, probably because resellers never seem to stock dual HDD notebooks. So that leaves a few gaming notebooks and high end workstations. I can assure you that your Vostro 1700 doesn't fit either definition.

Did it boot up?

I guess some tech had a sense of humor.

Well, there a more than a few reasons why a notebook PC might not power on after all of that work was done. Maybe it was a bad replacement motherboard. Lots of things can go wrong. It all goes to show that on-site service isn't a cure all. Sometimes you're better off with mail-in.

As far as the battery contacts, that's something you should have noticed before you sent it in to the depot. The 9-cell battery really sticks out the back end, and I can see where it would be damaged with a fall of that sort.

You should have more carefully inspected the notebook and specified repairs before sending it in the first time. Live and learn.

It sounds like Dell actually treated you fairly well with the replacement offer. The Vostro 3700 is the closest equivalent to your system. Dell can't offer you something that they don't have. What do you expect? I don't think it's reasonable to think that Dell owes you a new $2,000+ M17x or M6500 for a three year old Vostro that you knocked off a counter.

I'm also not sure what you mean by an "escalation."

That's not Dell's fault, now is it. When you break your own computer, you can't expect some personal inconvenience, complete care warranty or not.