M11x-R1/R2 New Hinge Design (see post#1)

Mine was out of warranty but they still repaired it. Just bring up either Delta Knowledge ID: 401161 or DSN PSQN Document ID: 376475. Been fine ever since (and I bring it around a lot).

 

Send me a PM with your service tag and phone number, I can't promise anything but I'll double check your info and give it a shot.

 

If alienware cant do anything for you, I can walk you though the full process of repairing it yourself. Or if you want you can send me your computer and I will fix the hinges for free and send it back to you.

 

Read through thread again for links to another thread/pics. (or search)

 

I did the same thing after my hinge finally went an M11x R1.

I sent in the email and I didn't get any correspondence back, but I did get a box with a prepaid shipping label and tape - 2 days later. Sent in my laptop (after removing my SSD hard drive - I didn't want to have to go through setting up Windows 8 again) and 2 days after that I got it back with a brand new display and no broken hinge!

Couldn't be happier!!!!

Alienware's customer service has always been top notch when I had issues and this is was an out of warranty fix they stood by their customers. Ensuring I will probably updating my next PC to an Alienware. (Hopefully the rumors are true - finger's crossed and the ole M11x will return as a Haswell gaming laptop/tablet later this year!).

To the folks at Alienware that read these forums thanks again for the great customer service!!!:thumbsup:

 

Thank you for being our customer !

...too cheesy? haha

No but really, I'm glad you had a good experience with us. If anything shows up please don't hesitate to ask.

 

I am waiting for the empty box currently. I have been trying to find out if i need to send the power cord with my laptop or just the laptop is all they need? Please help.thank you

 

For repair? Just the system. Likely there will be instructions included.

 

Thank you. Yes just repair, both hinges are busted /cry. I have never had to send anything back for repair so I appreciate the help =)

 

You can even keep your HD iirc.

 

Any confirmation on this? I just got an email back from dell saying they are going to send me a box for my poor little m11x and I would like to keep my HDD. Can the alienware rep comment on this?

 

You can keep the HDD before sending your laptop in.

 

Hey guys my M11xR1 is finally starting to have its hinges go. They were fine when Dell started doing this so I never thought to try and get them replaced, but now when I open the laptop it is extremely unstable and when I close the lid there is a massive gap that's not supposed to be there from where the hinges are not closing all the way/getting caught on something. If I just email the address in the OP can you still get Dell to repair them or at least send you a replacement?

 

I just finished having the hinges replaced on my out-of-warranty R2 with no questions asked. I emailed the address in the first post and they sent an empty box for me within a couple days. I mailed my system and it was returned to me just over a week later with a brand new LCD panel. I didn't realize that the new LCD panel would include the top of the lid as well, but it did and now my somewhat scuffed old lid has been replaced with a crisp new one. I could not be more pleased with the result and turnaround time. Thank you Dell/Alienware!

 

Send me a PM with your service tag, I'll look into it

!!

 

I am reposting from this thread ( http://forum.notebookreview.com/alienware-m11x/710523-m11x-hinge-issue-2.html) because I never got help from an Alienware rep. It looks like this is an active thread, so I am reposting. My problem has actually gotten worse- I need to go in with superglue and plastic card to keep the screen from snapping off the bottom left almost entirely (on the front side of the metal hinge strip at least)...the entire screen comes off almost entirely off both hinges if something pushes it back fast and hard.

Reading the OP, it seems like I am eligible for a one-time repair/replacement. If I understand correctly, it replaces all of my fraying parts- the hinges, the plastic cover, the screen itself? Basically, everything involved with the screen monitor and the monitor's attachment to the main body of my M11x? Can anyone confirm that I understand it correctly, and that all of what you see broken in the pictures below will be replaced?

Also, can someone explain "on-site replacements?" I am in Austin (Dell HQ), so I wonder what my options are for getting everything fixed/replaced with working, brand-new stuff without losing my laptop long (law finals in 4 weeks, can't lose my laptop for more than a few days).

Thanks a million,
Nick

Original post below:
Background: I bought an M11x R2 as soon as the R2s came out, I believe later summer 2010. Love it to death, except that a little over 1 year after I got it (right after my warranty ran out), the plastic hinges for the screen started badly cracking/coming apart (despite my taking excellent care of the laptop and careful transportation padding products/accessories). I've gritted my teeth for almost 2 years now, just accepting that these Alienware laptops were sold with a major manufacturing flaw that causes the laptop to slowly fall apart. I've extended the life of the screen hinges/casing through very careful use of plastic tape, super glue, etc., to add some durability to the cracking hinges.

However, I picked up my laptop today and one of the hinges just finally pushed completely through on the front, with the metal silver strip pushing entirely out of the plastic. I managed to push it back in, but I can't ignore this anymore- my laptop will soon be entirely broken/un-useable. Needless to say, the hinges have also been pushing out the back/splitting at the joint bottom part for a long time.

I need to get either my screen replaced entirely, or at least a new plastic casing/hinging around the screen (if that's cheaper...my screen is pretty scratched up as a result of the hinge issues, so a new screen wouldn't hurt). I am hoping to do this without it costing me an arm and a leg, since my laptop itself works fine. I live in Austin, so I am hoping there is a Dell service center I can manually visit without losing my laptop for an excessive amount of time (I am a full time first-year law student and need my laptop for many hours daily.)

Please help!

Pictures:

 

Send me a PM and I'll help you out. I will need your tag and address. Since the PC is OOW we will probably send it in for repairs.

 

My hinge started going bad a few months ago, I sent an email to the address on post one and never heard back from them. My hinge are popping up and down creaking and squeaking quite a bit now. What are my options since I'm out of warranty?

 

If no response and no warranty I suppose you can either self repair or keep an eye out for parts on ebay. Did you send a note to Luis? One post up?

 

After some searching, apparently Dell isn't accepting anymore hinge fix for out of warranty? I thought they were giving all M11X owner one replacement regardless of warranty . If I have to diy do I have to buy the whole LCD or just the hinge part?

 

Hiya Luis! I've been a lurker here for years with very few posts so I dont have the capability to PM :-(.

My hinge is broke and I emailed that address in the initial post about a year ago without a response. Re-discovered this thread and tried emailing again this weekend - nada response. Is it still possible for me to get my R2's hinge repaired? Thanks

 

Hi there, send us an e-mail to [email protected] and I'll review it ASAP.

 

Thanks Luis! You rock! Appreciated!

 

I just got my laptop back today and am very happy with the work they did. They not only replaced and fixed the hinged, but they all around seem to have cleaned up the computer. Someone dropped my laptop out of my car one day in the Alienware sleeve it comes with and one of the corners and the middle bottom part of the laptop were a little dinged up and kind of looked like crap, it seems like they sanded it down a little bit or something. It is much more smoother now and way less noticeable and awesome that they kind of wiped up and cleaned up the laptop in general in addition to fixing my hinges. Thanks a lot Dell, I really appreciate it.

 

Hello,

I am the lucky owner of a M11X R2 which is nearly 3 years old. Of course, it is out of warranty.

I've taken good care of my computer, but the hinges are starting to break. I would like to know what I can do about it, who I should contact to get a replacement or fix on the hinges.

I've already emailed to the following adress:

[email protected]


Thank you very much for your help.

 

In case this may help anyone, here is my review.

My Alienware M11x R2 had a creaking/snapping issue for a good year now. Slowly got worse as time went on. I decided to try to see if Dell was still willing to repair my laptop out of warranty and to my surprise. They were more than happy to help me with my wonderful laptop. I emailed to both [email protected] and [email protected]. I managed to get a reply from the second address next day and they shipped a packaging box for me to send my laptop in for repairs swiftly. I received the box with instructions a few days later while the only issue being the provided foam to keep the Alienware in place did not match up and I had FedEx take care of it for me by cutting up the foam a bit to provide more space for the laptop to settle in comfortably.
What I decided to keep was my hard drive and the four screws that go along with it. After about a week, the laptop was sent back to me in great shape. Nicely cleaned with a brand new upper half replaced (The screen and all). I was very happy with the swift replies and the result getting my laptop back. Up until when I decided to open up my laptop to seat my hard drive back in.

I left the interposer in the laptop being very specific in following the instructions of keeping the "hard drive only" rule in mind. Getting the laptop back, I suppose someone forgot that I included it when I shipped my laptop out. So, I decided to reply back to the Dell support that has been so kindly working with me giving him the heads up about the case. We exchanged e-mails back and forth early morning clarifying the problem and I was promised the part would be shipped out to me asap. A week and half later, I decided to check up with Dell to see if there was an issue on their side because I haven't seen any package come to me as of yet. After about 2 and half weeks, I have received no replies since. Whether, they saw the issue as insignificant or they just abandoned support because warranty was expired. In any case, my high positive view of Dell went a bit downhill because of this. Nonetheless, I am very very happy they went out of their way to repair my laptop out of warranty years later. Unfortunately at the moment, I can't enjoy it without the little interposer to hook my hard drive into my laptop.

TL;DR For those who decide to use Dell's services. I suggest you keep the hard drive, screws, caddy, and interposer when you ship your laptop out that way you don't experience the same possible issue that I have. The service seems to still be available at the time of this post and I hope you enjoyed your Alienware as much as I have.

 

Hi all, I've got an inquiry that I thought you guys could help me out with.

I have recently acquired a M11X-R2 for free, but the person I got it from had both cracked the LCD and the hinge assembly. I see here that Dell will supposedly fix these things out-of warranty. Does anyone here have an idea if they will still work on the laptop if the original LCD is broken? It says on the Dell website that the whole assembly gets replaced during the process.

If they don't, I might just buy a new assembly/LCD off Ebay. The laptop itself is pretty good, the 1.2GHz i7 and 8GB of RAM, so I certainly don't want to send the laptop off just to have them refuse service due to the dead screen and not even give it back to me.

Thanks for your input.

 

has anyone tried contacting dell recently? my hinge isn't fully broken but I don't like its condition. will be trying to contact them once im at home again (away job at the moment). anyone have any advice on dealing with them? quoting any policies etc?

 

Contact us @ [email protected]

 

is this for UK based Aliens too? or just north american? thanks for the reply

 

unfortunately we can only offer support on US and CA, you may contact your local support via phone if you are in UK.

 

I'm wondering if I could still get the hinge replaced in my M11X R1 even the previous owner did a lazy job gluing it back on? Or it's no longer eligible for the replacement? Thanks!

 

I just got my m11x r1 back from being repaired and I am very happy. The process got a little rocky since I am not the original owner though. First the return box was sent to North Carolina, then they sent it to me, but with the previous owner's name on it, then when they sent my repaired PC back they had the previous owners name on it again and Fedex wouldn't deliver it, so I had to call a 3rd time, and correct my name again so Fedex could re-deliver. Other than that the repair seems spot on and didn't cost a dime. Thanks to Luis for helping me get things straightened out.

 

So they still replaceing the hinges for free? Cause my m11x r2 hinge seems to be lifting up when closed and i have to push the lid down. Also when they send the box do they give a prepaid label to?

I tried the email [email protected] and it doesint work. So i tried the one on front page [email protected] and it worked.

 

The repair was free of charge, and the box they sent had a return label.

 

Send us some pictures to [email protected], we'll take a look and let you know.

 

Hello l porras How long do you guys reply to emails? I sent a couple yesterday and than one to that email no buddy got back to me yet, Just wanted to make sure you guys got my email. Thanks.


And that's great to here it was free of charged and they send a box with a return label

 

If they can verify all the info (address, service tag) they won't even reply. Just create the order, you ca check the DPS's on your account at support.dell.com.

 

k i have it setup and they shipping me a box today or tomorrow from what they said on the phone I have one question tho. Do i take the hard drive out or leave it in? I seen people said they took there's out for some reason.

 

Just got my m11x r2 from repair, They replaced the whole top. lid screen and hinges, Now my m11x looks like new And the hinges are normal, And not loose either.

Very fast to, They got it the 4th and they fixed it the same day and shipped it on the 5th and i got it on the 7th Friday


Thanks dell/alienware

 

I was still getting my fleet of M11X's (14 for our business as they are tanks) fixed with no issues out of warranty, but on the very last one they told me as of July 3rd, it won't happen again.

Which seemed like crap since I had JOST got one back from them 2 days prior to calling to fix this one.

It's BS they just say "no more" when it's their faulty hinge and the outsourced rep was beyond rude to me, which is uncalled for from a guy with just 1 alienware, much less a guy with over a dozen.


Anyone got a lead on the replacement parts at a decent price?
Thanks in advance

 

I am in Holland and my right hinge on my new bought MX11 r2 broke loose .
After reading the news about the factory fault and Dell fixing this even outside of warranty I contacted Dell here but they told me no which is really strange as they admitted in the press that the fault was made in manufacturing and not fixing it is completely against consumer law here

 

Repaired it myself with Bison epoxy, was pretty straightforward, also looking for a new bigger laptop now but no more Dell for me .

 

I still have my M11x R1 and the replaced hinge is still robust - about 3 years now to the day.

 

There seemed to be a rash of these back then, not just with Dell... nowadays it doesn't seem to be so bad, perhaps some common design defect was happening across vendors. Beware though, if you think hinge issues are a pain with Dell, you might be surprised how other vendors deal with it....

I always wondered about this ... it was a "lifetime" replacement outside of warranty- I think they mean "lifetime" as in some period of existence for the systems, say 5 years. That would really bite, I have an M11x-R2 that has had a fan, keyboard and M/B replacement over the years, but the hinge has been fine. Comparing it to an M11x-R3 it feels a lot lighter so I suspect it is the original design. I sure hope they honor the hinge replacement going forward, hell it even still has a warranty till Jan 2016!

 

Hi guys,

I'm thinking about pulling the trigger on a M11x R2. Is there a way to check if it already has the new hinges? And if it doesn't, what's the situation with replacement hinges? Does Dell still offer the service? The last few posts sound like they don't. I'd be happy to change them myself if necessary, but I have no clue where to get the new hinges. Ebay isn't conclusive. You can get the entire lid but that's too expensive for me.

 

If I remember back several years, I think it was the mount points in the lid that broke away.
The hinge was fine if only lacking extra mount points to spread the load.
So, the only 'cheap' solution is epoxy/glue and try to build up the mount points again.

There was, in the day, some interesting photos of the hinge problem and the solution people had 'engineered' to fix them themselves before Dell embraced 'good will to all'... for a period of time.

I've read posts that indicate Dell no longer addresses M11x hinge failure.
Thought that had ceased years ago.

 

Thanks for the info. I never understood why anyone would bolt mounting points to a lid, that's just asking for trouble. I'll see if I can find an R3 but if not, I don't mind trying to fix it myself.