My M17x R4 replacement story

First repair
AMD 7970M dead, doesn't show in the BIOS, tech dispatched

Second repair
7970M dead again, tech dispatched

during the repair the technician put multiple deep scratches onto the back of the screen. basically the top of the laptop when the unit is closed

Third repair(within 2 weeks of 2nd repair)
System some times will not resume from sleep and then will be followed by 7 or 8 beeps. dell believes this is the monitor cable. I also request to speak to a super to discuss how the technician has damaged and scratched the unit

they then dispatch a technician to replace the following
Motherboard, LCD + Cable, Gpu, Screen housing, laptop housing (not a simple task)



You would imagine at this point for the 3rd repair they would send the super tech or someone who was a 2nd tier support person ... not only for a complete disassemble
and but also to put forth every best effort to have a working laptop after the 3rd repair.


NOPE. guy shows up he is in his late 60s and in his hand is freshly printed manual on how to take apart and put back together a M17x. his first words are ... (I kid you not) Hmmm never seen one of these before.... (FACEPALM)

long repair story short. 5 hours later the laptop is "repaired" and here is where we stand ...

1. the new screen casing is scratched worse than the old one due to him flip flopping the laptop so many times trying to figure out what went where
2. SD card dust cover ... missing no where to be found.
3. screen assembly doesnt fit together and at the top where the corners meet there is a 2-3mm gap and the latches will not catch (completely borked)
4. the keyboard is completely unlevel... its like the keyboard has its own hilly landscape ... also if you push space it collides with the keyboard trim
5. GPU fan only has one speed now which is 100%, its because of high temps but im pretty sure the whole thermal paste step was skipped or done completely wrong

Replacement request call

called dell back stating the horrific results of their repair and that the system with new parts is having issues and that I would take nothing else other than a new system. they stated they would call me back with the results of the request for a system replacement.


Replacement Results
took about 2 weeks I'm assuming due to the holidays but I was approved details below


My Original configuration ordered from Dell
CPU: Intel 3820QM 8mb cache 3.7 turbo speed
Memory: 6GB DDR3
GPU: AMD 7970M
HDD: 500GB
Screen: 1920x1080 LED

The first time around they stated they were going to replace my system with the following
CPU: Intel 4700QM 6mb cache 3.4 turbo speed
Memory: 16GB DDR3
GPU: Nvidia 770M GTX
HDD: 750GB
Screen: 1920x1080 LED

NEGATIVE GHOST RIDER
I told them the CPU was unacceptable due to the old configuration had 8MB cache and had a turbo speed of 3.7
I also told them that the GPU was unacceptable due to the 7970m was a 100watt card and I showed the gpuboss.com comparison of specs vs the 770m

They agreed with my arguments and they are building a new Alienware 17 in the following configuration.

Final specs of replacement being sent
CPU: 4th Gen Intel® Core™ i7-4900MQ processor (8MB Cache, up to 4.0GHz w/ Turbo Boost)
Memory: 16GB DDR3
GPU: NVIDIA® GeForce® GTX 780M with 4GB GDDR5
HDD: 750GB
Screen: 1920x1080 LED


Now Im reading that there are cooling issues with the new Alienware17???


bottom line moral of the story. the warranty is worth its weight in gold. dont skimp cover your investment

 

I wouldn't even say that's a warranty issue, but Dell's customer service is top notch. Yes sometimes it does take time for stuff to start rolling, but better than the alternative (keep repairing the computer).

 

Haven't seen many issues related to heat on the Alienware 17. I would recommend you to use it on a desk or table, check it every couple of months and clean it's insides. If temps get above normal re-apply thermal paste. This will make it last long.
About the warranty, I always try to recommend the same to everybody. It's worth it, like an insurance. You never know when you will use it but when the time comes, you are grateful that you had it.