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

Some background. Ordered my system in April last year. M11xR1. Went 6 months & the right hinge broke. It didn't really bother me too much so I patiently waited for "the fix".

So, I emailed Dell @ that email address this morning.

Provided them with all the info, as well as pictures (Just in case?)


Tonight, about 9 PM I got a call from them & confirmed all the info in the email. He asked me questions about the issue (What happens when I open it, stuff like that. He also asked me if I put any pressure in that area.)

Then he took all my info again & confirmed everything once or twice. Then he put me on hold for a minute or two & came back & asked for the address to send the tech to. I set it up so he'll swing by my work & he'll do it while I'm working.

He told me that they have a new hinge design that I'll be getting & that it wont break anymore. He also said it would be a quote "new part". He sent me a confirmation email & we verified the numbers. He said the tech would contact me in the next couple of days & we'll set up the appointment. (He told me this without asking. I let him do all the talking)


It was relatively painless. It took maybe 15-20 minutes total. (Would have been shorter but we were having email issues. Try spelling out my internet handle/email address to Indian Tech support. )



It was a positive experience. The guy was really friendly & professional. His English was very good. When I was spelling out my email address letter-by-letter I started using the NATO phonetical alphabet & he picked up on it quick & then we knocked it out pretty quickly after that. (He even used the proper words mostly!)

Pro tip: Learn the NATO alphabet, it helps tons when spelling things out on the phone. (No more "A as in 'apple', R as in 'Roger', A as in 'apple', K as in 'Kite'. "Alpha Romeo Alpha Kilo")



So we'll see how this goes. I think I'm just gonna lay back & let Dell do it's thing. If it gets messed up they'll fix it. I printed out the service manual for the tech for when he comes just incase. I will confirm the part # on the new screen when he gets here & report that back (Whatever it ends up being) to you guys. I didn't ask anything about part numbers or new hinge or anything on the phone. I just let the him do all the talking. I did check my support tag on the website & my LCD wasn't listed in the part #s Chris posted. So I'll check that one too when he removes it & report that one as well.


My advise is to just relax & shoot them an email (or call). Tell them your hinge is broken. Let the little tech guys on the phone do their thing. Don't bombard them with tons of questions & get all anal about part #s & "redesigned hinges" & all that nonsense. When the repair guy gets there, check the part #. If it's not right, let him order the correct one for you & reschedule. Stay informed, but go with the flow. We are enthusiasts & the guy on the phone is not. They aren't equipped to handle enthusiasts who know the torque value on every screw in their system.

 

Noted. I'm just trying to get all the facts.

 

my R2 is less than 1 month old and my left hinge is making a popping noise. Should I just wait till the hinge completely fails or go ahead and make the call to dell?

 

Popping is a sign that the internals are already broken. Call now.

 

I am totally on board with Arak

I emailed them yesterday, got a call within 6 hours. I missed that call (work) and then they called me at 845pm. Pretty late, but who cares... I was happy to get service.

I set everything up with them and they realized that my warranty was expired *(by 5 days). They said that this was a known problem and that this "Fix" would be the solution and that the issue should never arise again (hopefully this is the new design that everyone is talking about). They tried to sell me on an additional 1 year warranty... I declined seeing it was 1/2 of what I paid for the laptop.

I am now waiting to hear from the technician who is going to come and do the install.

Because of this, I think I am an alienware/dell guy for life. I have only seen the same level of service come from Apple, but the whole apple thing is just not for me.

 

Ok, which explains why the French Rep didn't find the new designed part.

Now, would it be possible to confirm if the official word has been spread world wide in Dell?
Just to avoid telling the whole story again to non US Dell rep...

 

I live in Toronto, Canada
m11x R2.

i just called into replace mine, im getting 40gmx. and my old hinges were 9MMG6 ( clarified by the tech support). hope this helps anyone. Just call no matter what, that # wasnt even listed on my original setup through the website.

The person who helped me was very helpful, straight forward and fast

 

I'm also in Toronto. My warranty runs out on the 1st, so even though they say they will replace out of warranty, I think I'll call this week and hopefully set this up. I've had the screen/hinges replaced twice already ... hopefully this really is a permanent solution.

 

Gotham city calling Batboy.

I know this sucks, but could you please locate DELL Chris M posts and append them to the OP in a meaningful manner.

I know I could just track DELL Chris M and could compile my own useful hinge information file, but that just seems like work.

This way I could keep abreast of the latest hinge happenings without having to wade through the primordial soup of well meaning posts, just to get those few snippets of useful information.

Thanks, that'd be way helpful if it's doable.

Update - Thank you Batboy, for the prompt update of the Original Post with summarized relevant information about hinge replacement process.

 

Post#1 updated.

 

Help! I searched my service tag and the LCD number that came up was:
4CF14 LIQUID CRYSTAL DISPLAY..., 11.6HDF, WLED, TLF, AU OPTRONICS CORP
Y1G2X ASSEMBLY..., COVER..., HNG-UP, NO WWAN, STCH-B

It does not match ANY of the old\new part numbers. What do I do?

 

My order placed in Jan of this year has now been confirmed, am installing the WWAN version. Original order was cancelled by dell, rang them on Monday and discovered they have re-ordered the part with the correct part number - verified the part number against Chris's info and it is the same.

based in ausi ETA not yet confirmed but am expecting it mid April.

 

Got my lcd replacement done, confirmed it is 40gmx.

But the lid is uneven. Is this normal?

 

Mine is too. I also got the 40GMX part. Though the Laptop does feel sturdier..

 

nope, that's not normal the lid should seat evenly. give support a call and follow up with an email visualizing the issues.....

 

This is my second time requesting another 40GMX LCD Cover for Alienware M11x R2.

1st - dying "ALIENWARE" word AlienFX
2nd - uneven and misligned LCD cover when closed, similar to the pictures tohave uploaded.

I am waiting for the third one to come this Friday, I hope.
The technician who replaced the second LCD cover was really not used to repairing Alienware M11x..
When would I be able to get a decent newly designed LCD cover?

Dell Chris, I strongly believe that Dell needs to double check the quality of refurb...
I think they just repair and refurb parts without even looking at what they have attached and have done.

 

Agreed. That's not normal. Have it replaced again.

 

Sending mine in for hinge replacement nows

 

Follow-up to my post.


The tech came to my work today. He said he was familiar with these systems. He was also aware of the hinge issue. But he didn't know that they had the new design hinges.

A quick part # check showed that he had one of the new redesigned hinges.
New part # is 4FFHC. I wasn't able to check my old hinge part # as he already had everything packed up.

The hinge & lid are new. At least, they seem to be. The paint is a little different than my old "cosmic black" lid. The old lid was very glossy & had a metallic flake in it. This new lid is more of a satin finish with less obvious flake. I don't mind, tho. it actually matches the rest of the notebook better than my original lid. (It's not the soft touch. Just a less-glossy version of what I had)

It only took him 15-20 minutes from start to finish. I didn't watch him do it. I just let him do his thing. I did listen very closely, tho. I didn't hear any popping or cracking plastic. I was listening for things like a screwdriver slipping & marring up the guts of my notebook.


When he was done, I DID notice that the keyboard wasn't seated properly. I just waited until he left & reseated it myself. (Very easy to do) Those 4 tabs on the left & right side of the keyboard weren't pushed under. So the keyboard was bowed out at the sides & the screen wasn't fully closing. A quick 5 minute fix. I also looked around inside & made sure he didn't mess anything up. Which at this time, it doesn't appear that he damaged anything while in there. He even managed to avoid breaking the little plastic piece around the power button.



I feel complete again.


The new hinge definitely feels MUUUCH better than the old one. I also notice that it doesn't "wobble" when open. (My old hinge did that from day one. Just a slight wobble) Time will tell if it holds up.


There is a very slight alignment issue. When closed the lid isn't square with the base. The right side sticks out maybe 1mm or so & the left side sticks in about the same. No big deal for me as it's not really noticeable. I guess it would bother some of you who are OCD about that sorta thing.




Now, I just gotta get them to come back out sometime & fix my dead speaker. (1 thing at a time, I don't want to confuse poor Dell)



Overall, I give it a thumbs up.




*EDIT* For what it's worth. My lid is uneven just like tohave's. A minor issue & it doesn't bother me. Doesn't seem to interfere with the function of the hinges/lid. My keyboard still touches the screen as it always has. (I wonder if Dell would reimburse me for the Green Onions anti-glare screen protector still attached to my old screen? Ha! Unlikely)






Here's what I was talking about the lid being "out of square"





Overall pic showing the satin finish.

For comparison's sake. Here's the old glossy finish. (& broken hinge)

 

I emailed an Alienware rep for the UK the other day, as my recently changed screen is having get another hinge problem with the screen wobbling more than 1cm and being loose.
They told me the new screens are currently unavailable and will check stock weekly.
Anyone else in the UK been told the same?
Or is this just because I'm out of warranty?

 

Thanks for the detailed description of your experience, and for the pics!

Worth requesting!

The new finish looks interesting... not sure which one I would have prefered... Speaking of new Alienware hinges - how is that 3dconnexion faring? Worth the money?

 

So I spoke to the tech support guy and he said he was going to email me a confirmation and such... I have yet to get the email or hear back from a technician. How long should I wait before I call them again?

 

I'm not sure how I ever lived without it!


I have 2 of them. 1 for my job workstation & 1 for my home workstation. If you work in a 3D environment I highly recommend it. There's a slight learning curve, but once you get over that it's amazing. If you don't want to fork out the $300-400 for the Space Pilot Pro, they have the cheaper, 2 button SpaceNavigator. ($100) I have 1 of those for the M11X(Although, I purchased it back when they were selling the "Personal Edition" version of it for $50.) A side note: The rubbery finish on the "knob" portion tends to peel off on the SpaceNavigators. (I've seen 4 of them wear off now. After a couple months usage.) My SpacePilot Pros haven't exhibited this problem, tho. Nothing major....just an aesthetics thing.






I like the satin finish. It's less of a fingerprint magnet.

 

Just to relay my experience so far...

1) Emailed Alienware last night with the info mentioned in #1 post. I Got a reply back within minutes verifying my info.

2) I received a call from Alienware today. Didn't pick up the first time they called because I don't know anyone from Miami, FL. But, after I googled the number I was shocked. Second time they called a few minutes later I picked up.

3) Since my purchase was through BestBuy, my 2 M11x laptops are eligible for depot service only. It doesn't really matter much to me and I actually believe the depot service might have the technicials with the most experience...

I should get the boxes tomorrow and will be shipping it out on Friday. I'll update this post when I get them back.

FYI: One of the M11x is about to fall apart at the hinge. The other is just starting to show signs to misalignment. Both of these laptops are used with external monitors and rarely moved. So, that's the reason they lasted about a year before breaking...

 

Thank you kindly, Arak-Nafein - the device fascinated me for a long time, yet it is indeed a pretty penny to pay, so I was eager to hear some real life field-action opinion.

Guess it is more or less like the m11x keyboard finish? Sounds good then - looks nice and cleans well.

 

I ordered one of these last December but canceled it because of the hinge issues that this laptop had, but now reading that dell released a new hinge design. Does this mean that the hinge related issues are completely gone? because I'd sell my HP dm1 if that is true. that was the only thing holding me back from getting this laptop.

so is it true? are these new hinges what we have been waiting for? also if I order one of these will it come with the new hinges or not?

 

I two had to get a new hinge for my m11x, this is the 2nd time actually. The first time when I got it back it was wobbly. The 2nd time and hopefully last time it seems a lot more studier.

 

I'd say more like the pieces on the side & bottom of the laptop. It still has a metal flake to it, but it's far less shiny than the lid was. Not quite matte, tho.


I'm charging the battery pack on my good camera I'll take some photos so you guys can see what it looks like.


*EDIT* Here they are. They're very large so I made them links instead of embedding them.

http://i495.photobucket.com/albums/rr312/Arak-Nafein/DSC_0206.jpg
http://i495.photobucket.com/albums/rr312/Arak-Nafein/DSC_0212.jpg
http://i495.photobucket.com/albums/rr312/Arak-Nafein/DSC_0217.jpg
http://i495.photobucket.com/albums/rr312/Arak-Nafein/DSC_0220.jpg
http://i495.photobucket.com/albums/rr312/Arak-Nafein/DSC_0221.jpg

Left the fingerprints on there so you can get a realistic idea of it's fingerprint attractiveness.

*EDIT EDIT*
Made smaller copies for forum viewing.

 

Just got mine today and installed - checked the part number and it's correct was going to pull it apart to check the screws and see what they did to the design but it looked nice and shiny so just installed it.

Day one - so far so good, same display AUO105c

 

Guys, my new M11x is 'in production' and will probably arrive late next week I would have thought. Whats the betting that the new hinge design will or will not be incorporated into the current production runs?

It would seem silly to be using old parts considering this is just storing up future support visits.

Cheers.

 

People who ordered M11x have asked the same questions over and over.
We don't know and only time will tell.

 

I don't think Chris from Dell ever confirmed that the new production run would have the new hinge did he? (sorry I am not going through 300+ posts again )

I just assumed they were sticking with the old hinge for the R1 and R2 in production since not all of them fail, it just seems like it since we see the failures reported here - although enough failed that they came up with a fix.

My guess, and that is all it is, is that the R3 will have the new hinge but the R1 and R2 production line will not.

Stain

 

theres a guy at my house right now putting on the NEW HINGES...

he just put them on but the computer wont turn on now.
HAHAHAHA

(hoping for a free replacement)

 

Well, so far the process has been horrible.

I called 1-800-ALIENWARE, like I have the previous times I've had the LCD/hinges replaced. First time I get through, I'm told that because I live in Canada, I'm talking to the wrong person and that he'll transfer me to Alienware Canada (does that even exist?) I'm put on hold, which is dead-air. After 10 mins, I give up and call back. I apparently get the same CSR and he tells me that they're having phone issues and that he can't help me because this is the US number, but that he'll get me the Alienware Canada direct number. Back on dead-air hold, this time for 20 mins, before I hang-up.

I phone back, and this time I get another CSR, who after confirming Service Tag, Name, Address, email, phone number, asks me what my issue is; I tell him that I have had the hinge problems with my m11x and that I would like to get the redesigned replacement hinges as promised by Dell. He asks me if my hinges are broken right now, I say no, they are not broken right now, but they have begun the rattling and the crack sound when opened/closed, just like they did the two times previous when they began to deteriorate. I insist that they need to be replaced and go about trying to get him to confirm the part numbers for the new hinges. I can tell at this point he's miffed, but whatever. So after putting me on hold for awhile, he comes back and confirms the part number as Chris outlined here which appears to be the correct one, and says he'll order the part. All's well now right? Well, he never outlined anything about the process, about whether the tech will call me, whether I'm supposed to install these parts myself, when they will be available, nothing. He says he'll send me an email, (which I get ... the email is basically an automated reply saying that my issue is now fixed ... wth?) and then just says "good-bye" ... no "is there anything else I can do for you", or "I'm sorry that we've dicked you around for the past hour." Given the content of that email message and the fact that I've had them cancel service requests for no reason and no notification the first time I tried to get my hinge replaced, I'm not confident about this turning out positively. I guess I just sit here and hope that I actually get a call from the UNISYS tech. I am not happy with Dell/Alienware support ... period.

 

Dell Support History and Status

 

I am requesting for ANOTHER LCD cover replacement due to it being uneven and putting too much pressure on the right hinge.
Not only that, I think the on-site technician scratched the back of my LCD Cover... Either during production stage or while putting it on.
It is pretty difficult to explain it in words of the current problem...
Let's say that I am looking at the monitor in which the right side of it is closer to me and that the left side of it is further.
I am also having a huge gap for the front cover that has the On/Off Alienware head button.
Probably because on-site technicians opened and closed a number of times after series of part replacements...

Dell asked me to send photos again which I was not happy to do so.
I sent them the photo on Wednesday and I just got replied on Thursday that they have not received the photo.
They made an appointment for on-site technician to come to my house JUST to see what the problem is.
I have wait for another weekend for this, my god.
I wasted two anti-glare LCD protectors and 3 weeks of my life waiting which will increase over time.

 

First time poster here!
Bought a brand new M11x R1 roughly 2 weeks ago and seeing it was my first non-apple PC in ages, have been absolutely loving the little bugger.
Squeaks (right hinge) started up two days ago so I called in AW support yesterday and kudos to AW/Dell I got superb phone service. 20 min I had confirmed part numbers and a confirmed service order no questions asked.

Got a call first thing in the morning at 8am today, technician was here at 9a and was out by 945am. Confirmed 4FFHC parts and I can confirm that the hinges are much more stable and smoother than the previous set. Tech did a great job, didn't mind me watching to see what makes this thing tick. After completion, had a quick look around and had him reseat the keyboard to make it was level and recheck the hinges. Screen is aligned with no give on either side and looks great. No more wobble when stationary and lid holds fine even when tilted over.

Nicely done AW. Looks like you got yourself a long term customer.

Cheers!

 

Squeaks aren't indicative of a hinge problem. Heck my MacBook Pro squeaks...

 

So does mine but it sure doesn't pop along the edges like my M11x. Problem solved though, now to see if the fix sticks!

 

I ordered 2 m11x SU7300 systems and received them both over the last two weeks and in Dell's system the parts don't match the part # for either the new hinge or old hinge and it also shows in the system as R3. So, my guess would be that maybe the new part(s) are shipping with systems being produced otherwise wouldn't it just be designated as R1 or R2 accordingly?

 

I kinda doubt that. My original part # didn't match up either and it was tagged as a R3 on the Dell support site but after talking to AW support it was still the older hinge. I think they'll start with the actual R3 production line?

 

Seems like a lot of people are experiencing poor installation due to techs. Aren't you better off just sending it to their repair depot (supposedly alienware engineers fix it)? Although you'll be alienware-less for a few days. I had to send mine in to get my hinge replaced and the soft black paint started peeling so they're reading that as well (my m11x) is only 3 weeks old fyi.

 

Which PN are you showing? We have #3V4R3 and #VWGCV.

 

I would be kind of tempted to send my machine to the depot just so I didn't have to watch my machine get broken down

 

I have a question, whats the difference between the WWAN LCD and the WLAN LCD display?

 

Stay on the topic in regarding to hinge design please.

WWAN = Wireless Wide Area Network
uses mobile telecommunication cellular network technologies (e.g. 3G)
WLAN = Wireless Local Area Network
what nearly everyone has

 

I had my hinge replaced today, physically the hinge looked almost exactly the same but after installation it definitely feels a lot better. I was skeptical but there's no play when moving the hinge back and forth and feels very solid. I had a gap before but now the hinge is very even, the tech did a great job and even used his step by step guide because he wasn't too familiar with the m11x. Overall very happy with the results , lightning fast service as always once you get past the dell reps!

 

Just letting the people know what i've experienced with the m11x r2 i own so far...

i've had my lcd replaced 3 times (because of the uneven hinge gaps):-

original part number (from dell's support history and status): 9MGG7

1st replacement part number(from dell's support history and status): 40GMX
(seen from the box containing the lcd brought
by the technician): 40GMX

2nd replacement part number(from dell's support history and status): 40GMX
(seen from the box containing the lcd brought
by the technician): 40GMX

3rd replacement part number (seen from the box containing the lcd brought
by the technician): 40GMX
Now here's the twist* (from dell's support
history and status): GNJW3

From what i can see from these replacements... imho, it doesn't really matter what lcd part number one has or what does the online support history and status say...

As long m11x owners have proper working laptops with no defects, that's what matters.

Oh, almost forgot... in 2 weeks time, dell will be sending over another m11x to replace my existing one...

Hopefully there's no defect with the new m11x i'm going to get.

 

check also on the two rubber stoppers on the palmrest because sometimes they are not at the same height thus making the lid unevently seat/close.....