*Alienware/Dell - Warranty Discussion Thread (Questions Only)*

They have been trying to fix a problem for awhile now and they final said they will replace the system. They said since I'm in Canada that they have to give a new system not a refurbished one.

 

Short Answer: Yes.

 

thanks! another question: i would like to buy a used m14x from a store, but they dont have information from the previews owner. i checked the service tag and it have warranty until jun 2013. Is it possible, someway, to trasfer the warranty without the previus owner information?

 

In that situation I would forget about it. You can call Dell and try to get the customers name, but then they would be violating the privacy act of 1974 and be sued big time. How can they not know who the laptop came from? Will the store honor the warrenty? If they say yes make sure you get that in writing from the manager and his supervisor.

 

I'm about to purchase an M14x, and I could use advice on what warranty to get.

1. On this thread, some have said to purchase any extended warranty/additional years the day you buy the laptop, because the price goes up later. But, I haven't seen anyone be specific about when it gets more expensive. Immediately, after 1st year, etc. Anybody know?

2. I've searched, but not found advice on exactly how many years to get (cost/benefit analysis). Someone in this thread mentioned that most problems in electronics show up in the 1st year. So, is that 2nd, 3rd, 4th year really a must? I had an M15x from the day they came out, got the longest warranty they offered, never used it past the 1st year...

3. What's the dead pixel policy?

4. Anything else I should keep in mind at decision time?

Thanks in advance.

Also, are there any "Dell Certified" or "Dell Recommended" places to get the GPU repasted? Anything else I should do to improve the reliability of an M14x, while I have it with a technician?

I already have a cooler/fan to put underneath the laptop.

 

I just bought a new m18x from Dell and it just shipped today. However, I just noticed that I did not choose the complete care/accidental coverage when I choose the 3 year warranty. Will I have to return it just to upgrade the warranty to complete care for the $120 that it would have cost me initially when I ordered it? Or can they just add the coverage now?

 

OMG they are so pushy on warranties, and wont let me hang up cause that will be messed up if I do lol. My situation is I want a 1 year warranty extension regular price is $229, I managed to lower it to $179 then to $165. Is that good enough?

 

Curious - what can one experience with Dell if you have an extended warranty for a product that is no longer offered after a couple of years? For instance I have an M11x-R2 that is near and dear to my hear that has a warranty until 2016... long after they are out of the market. Will Dell offer a full replacement if parts are unavailable or what? Any info greatly appreciated!

 

Well if it is unable to be repaired (not worth the cost or they don't have any parts), they will replace it with a system that is closest in specs. Examples: since the m11x isn't made any more, I'd guess they would give you an m14x. An m17x r2 user would probably get an m18x etc. Hope this clears it up for ya.

 

Thanks - that was my general expectation when I decided to extend the warranty just in case. Glad to hear that there isn't some other prevailing view

 

Just wondering if I invalidate my warranty if I add upgrades myself. I've literally just got off the phone with a dell rep amd he says that I do but I have observerved various forums now for weeks in my quest for a new laptop and it seems the norm for people to do this.

I understand the parts I put it won't be covered

 

The warranty is part-based, which means it includes every part in your system individually. It will not cover the new parts ( obviously ), but it will cover the original parts.

 

As above, it's always a good idea to keep original parts in case you need to fall back on warranty. Dell will not diagnose problems with your machine if you have third party upgrades installed. EG. If you upgraded a HDD to a retail SSD and start having OS problems, it's likely that Dell would as yo uto put the original drive back in to allow the to troubleshoot. That's why it's advisable to keep the original parts stored away safely.

 

Thanks guys. Really appreciate the advise

 

I would like the answers to these questions too.

 

1. It gets more expensive the minute after your order has shipped. If not configured at the time of purchase, you are at Dell's mercy of wether or not they let you change the warranty length afterwards and if they do agree to that, it would be at their discretion as to how much they charge for extending it. Also, if you are coing to the end of a 1yr warranty, you can bet your pants that it will be closer to double the cost of what it would have been if bought with the machine initially. Think of it logically, say you've had it for a year, the probability of failure has already gone up because it's a year old....with increased risk comes increased cost. You may be able to negotiate a discount on an extention but YMMV depending on when/who you deal with at that time. Bottom line? - get as much warranty at time of purchase as you can afford....unless you like the thought of repairing an expensive bit of kit out of your own pocket.

2. Answered at the end of no.1

3. Tricky one, but if it is the same as UltraSharp/Alienware stand-alone monitors, it would be the same as this: Dell Premium Panel Guarantee | Dell - best to get confirmation though from a Dell official.

4. Some upgrades are cheaper "aftermarket" such as SSD's and Memory - if you plan on buying that kind of thing, you might save some cash buying them from elsewhere and installing them yourself. Keep the original parts for warranty purposes. You might just save a nice bit of cash. Obviously, parts bought elsewhere are not covered by Dell - that's why I advise keeping the original components that you wish to upgrade.

As for getting Dell to repaste your GPU/s, unless you can demonstrate abnormal temperatures, I doubt they would do a repaste job for you. It's not that hard and there are plenty of YouTube videos/tutorials out there (and on NBR) that would enable you to do this yourself. It does not void your warranty - just be advised that if you damage something in the process, technically that is user induced damage and therefore, not covered. I would just see what the temps are like first even before thinking of repasting - you might be pleasantly surprised as Dell used good thermal interface material which works very well, on the whole.

Hope that helps.

 

well i got a ridiculous quote of $415 for one year and then over 800 dollars for two years that's ridiculous I thought. I also asked the dell rep if its basic warranty extension as I thought maybe he was including accidental coverage with those outrageous prices, but he kindly said "no" lol

anyone have any idea why I would be quoted this price? the warranty on this m18x on my sig is good until end of june 2013

 

Spoiler

Well, did your old warranty expire? How long have you waited to buy this one? I'm in a similar problem, waiting until I get my m17x to buy an extended warranty.

 

the original warranty is good until 2013 June 27, not sure what am going to do, at this point I might be selling it

 

well i called again and got a much proper pricing of $376 for two years. What the heck gives with the inconsistency of warranty quotes, dell seems to be deceitful on this topic when we have to extend our warranty.

 

the person who I was talking to about extending warranty called me back and supposedly 376 was a mistake, its $462 lol...wow dell warranty services cease to amaze me.

 

just wondering if any of the reps here can help me get a good deal on one or if anyone one here has a good rep that could help me get a deal thanks in advance

 

Check the main Alienware forum page, there's a money saving thread that's on the first page.


Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk HD

 

Something is giving me headache! I hope you can give me some tips

I'm going to have to call Dell soon, my m17xR3 is getting more and more Bluescreens. More specifically 'STOP 0x116 / TDR Timeout' and its happening every other day now. I tried to resolve it my self ( Alienware Systems: Computer crashes showing error code 0x000000116 (BSOD 0x116) | Dell US) thinking it may be a software issue, on top of that i also wiped my HDD , did a fresh reinstall of Windows and tried disabling Optimus in BIOS, but to no avail.

And NOW the problem: I have aftermarket upgrades since ~2 years, BUT i can't seem to find the box where i put my original 320GB HDD and the 3x2GB RAM. I currently have a 500GB MomentusXT and 4x4GB HyperX installed.
Could this be a Problem if they replace the whole unit?
Should i maybe buy replacements for these parts?

Thanks in advance!

 

I bought an m18x last year with a accidental warranty.

I recently spilled a beer on the thing and fried it. (no not on purpose)

I was wondering how likely/unlikely I may get the newer model the m18 as a replacement? Also do they replace with the same exact hardware you had?

Someone told me if a couple years pass by there's a good chance you'll get free upgrades since they don't carry the older parts.

Was just wondering if anyone had any experience with anything like this involving the accidental warranty.

 

I've accidentally broke one of the metal pins on the hard drive bay connectors and I was wondering if there is a way for them to just replace the connector and not the whole motherboard. The pin only snapped in half leaving part of still there. I had to pry it out enough to get the pin contact the hard drive adapter. The hard drive still works, but it might not if or when I will change the hard drive again. I also have some scratch marks on the plexiglass. When Dell repairs it do they take the whole display or just part of it or what? I've got one year accidental warranty til December of this year (2013) with an M17x R4.

 

Dear reader,

The new 17" from Alienware is too expensive for me. So I was thinking I'd get the M17x R4 with 680m which is on sale. But if my laptop develops a problem in the future I would really like if Dell could swap me for the new design Alienware 17 with an equivalent GPU at that time.
In which situation is this likely to happen also on which warranty plan? The 2 year + 2 year accidental damage or 3 year with no accidental damage (almost same cost)?

Please give me advise on this. I sincerely thank you in advance for your advice.

Best regards
Victor

 

I think Dell will keep stock of the last gen parts for at least another 2 years, or even 3 more years. The 675M/680M and the 7970M are still considered high end for another year. Heck, Dell is still offering the 2012 models as of right now. Chances are slim that they will give you a current revision just because the one you have is broken. And frankly adding a warranty for that long and costing that much....., you might as well consider getting the 2013 models as they would be the same price. Sure, you'll get a shorter warranty with the 2013 model. but it seems to me you want a warranty for that long just in case they might replace the older model. They might replace it if your system constantly have problems, like several bad GPUs or overheating. The just say you want the newer model for all the headaches and inconveniences, and the newer model will most likely have less problems and say you want a full refund otherwise.

All in all, it really depends what's essential to you. Having the latest version, but risking something happen to it after the warranty ends. OR save money and just opt for the R4, which is still considered top end.

 

Hello everyone first let me start off by saying i have searched for this issue and i could not seem to find a specific answer so if it has been answered I apologize.

So i have a Alienware m17x r3 with a 580m and the warranty has been long expired, over the past 2 weeks ive been getting BSOD's and some shutdowns nothing to serious happens maybe one day out of the week. The question i have is say i extend my warranty with the basic 1 year warranty, and then my graphics card fully fails would this be covered or would i be SOL?

 

If your warranty has already expired, you might not be able to arrange a warranty extension at all. I've heard of some instances where Dell has agreed a warranty extension after the original warranty has expired - but it's no gimme that they will.

I think your best bet would be to see if you can get warranty first of all....if you can, great. Any problems should then be covered. If not, it's time to start saving....

The thing that could play in your favour is that you haven't actually had complete hardware failure just yet....maybe you could enlighten us as to exactly what is happening? - it might be something that you can fix yourself with the help of forum members.

 

Concerning not being able to renew my warranty i went to the dell support website and i am currently at the checkout page for an extended warranty so i assume that means im okay in that area?

ive done several testing and other reporting on whats happening and it seems to be a TDR 0x116 error when it does happen, ive done two complete restore and it works for a while then once a week it starts once again. My main worry is that due to my reading on these forums a TDR message means nothing good.

Note: one time actually yesterday i received a 6 beep error on boot-up meaning Video card failure

 

TDR's tend to be video driver/video card related - 6 beeps is certainly video card related. If you can extend the warranty, I'd probably do so...if it's letting you buy it....

 

That is what i thought, so two questions

1. The Basic $280 warranty would cover a replacement if needed?

2. *this might not be the place to ask this if so i apologize* I have dealt with alienware support quite a bit and i do know that the 580m's are reaching there End of Life so they might be already out of stock or i might have to wait forever if i need a replacement. The question is would I just have to wait until they recover a 580m or would i have to fight for them to give me one of equal or better value?

Thank you for all your help

 

Basically, Dell warranty will give you "like for like or better" as a general rule of thumb regarding replacements.

1. If you have warranty, and something goes wrong that requires a replacement - yes, you would get one.

2. Replacement stock for old tech will be dwindling, if not pretty much non-exisitent for 580m. I've seen people coming from newer tech. with faults (680m) getting new machines with 780m etc. Replacement does not mean that you WILL get a new machine, sometimes Dell will look in their outlet inventory for a close match....if they do, it cannot be worse than your original purchase....like for like or better is the rule...

Dell should not keep you hanging - although they do have the right to search for a refurb. for you, it should not be and extended wait.....3 attempts within 3 days and if no joy, new build......

Hope that helps......main thing is, if you can buy warranty, I'd advise you do....Dell will look after you when the time comes...$280 for a years complete warranty is probably a great deal compared to buying a replacement gpu yourself.

 

Sounds great just bought my warranty thank you for all your help

 

Your welcome - at least now if you do have complete hardware failure, you are covered.

 

Hey everyone, Ive been looking on these forums for a while now. There has been some really great info.

That being said I saw the discussion above me had me thinking; around last week my m17x R4 was having the 6 beep error which i guess means dead video card. Well i haven't had a warranty for a year but i think i can renew it. If i do since this happened before the warranty will i still be covered or am i out of luck

 

Welcome to the forum..yes by all rights you would be out of luck, some would consider it fraud to deceive Dell into repairing an item already broken. Depending on the card you could pick up a used one on ebay or thru a member here for a lot less than the cost of a new warranty. The cards really are not hard to change out and you get to know your system better. There are plenty of tear down videos on You Tube and advice here. You could also upgrade that card to a newer one..:thumbsup:

 

Just an update for anyone that had the same issue as me with the BSOD's and what not, called Alienware told them what happened they said "you have the 580M correct" i said yes sir and he said oh well we have this problem alot and a new 580m and a technician will be at your house Wednesday the second of this month to replace it. The Call lasted no more then 30 minutes tops

Note: i know this thread is for questions only just wanted to update my issue so that anyone else suffering from BSOD's early on should get the warranty ASAP!

 

Hi all!

I've recently purchased a "Dell Certified Refurbished" Alienware 14. It brings the standard 1 year warranty, until Jan 2015. Can any of you tell me if you can upgrade/expand the warranty on these Refurbs?

I wanted to see if I could get another 2-3 years warranty on it to be on the safe side. Is there a day limit on when you can apply for the extension? Or can you do it whenever during that first year?

Kind regards

 

Hello,

I just got a quick question about Dell/Alienware warranty when it comes to replacing HDD/Ram
Are we permitted to upgrade our systems (on our own) without breaking the warranty?

I've heard some conflicting reports.

My system atm is:

Alienware 17
i7 4900MQ
16GB ram
GTX 780M
256 Msata SSD
750 GB WD 7200 RPM HDD

Just wondering if I can add an additional HDD and expand the ram on my own or if I have to go though Dell.

 

You can do that on your own.. Just make sure you don't break anything when you fit them in.. Your upgraded parts are of course not covered..

 

Thanks! I was just worried that I couldn't touch anything in the system without it affecting the Warranty. I know some companies are like that.

 

Yeah make sure your grounded etc when you open it up.. Just make sure not to short anything or you'll be in deep deep liquifeied ..

 

Looking at possibly purchasing an Alienware 17 from Amazon (link below). It only comes with a 1yr in home warranty, so i'm curious if it's able to be extended/upgraded or am I stuck with the 1yr warranty since i'm not buying direct from Dell?


Amazon.com : Alienware ALW17-8751sLV 17.3-Inch Gaming Laptop : Computers & Accessories

 

You should be able to upgrade it for at least 2-3 years....

 

I'm looking for a bit of advice, here is my situation:
My (quite expensive and very dear) m17xR3 is acting up again (BSOD 0x116, ocassional 6 Beeps at startup). I already had 3 warranty repairs in the past (motherboard+screen,motherboard+gpu and just motherboard) in response to complete system failure.

Quite frankly, i'm sick of it. As much as i like the machine while its working, there must be some kind of fundamental design flaw here as it can't go a year without disintegrating.
I vaguely remember reading about certain rights i have in this situation on this very forum. Can anyone point me to this section (as i can't seem to find it) or give me direct advice on how to get a replacement for this machine?
FYI: I'm still in the 'Premium Phone Support + NBD' warranty.

Thank you so much,
a disgruntled Customer.

---

Edit for Clarification:
I'm looking for tips on requesting a 'Whole Unit Replacement' as this machine is defective again after multiple repair attempts on Dells side.

 

Hey guys,
Brought a used Alienware 18 online, had the guys details and changed ownerships this week so the machine is now in my name.
However I am having trouble with Dell honoring the warranty. They say I need the original receipt (laptop originally purchased from America and posted to New Zealand), so I tried to contact the original seller in the US and their shop has closed down. I have the box it came in manuals ect just not the original receipt. I paid huge money for the laptop with warranty and now apparently cant claim on it. The customer service rep even said the laptop could be stolen? Anyone been through this that could help? I just want them to honor the warranty I did everything I thought I needed to do.

 

If you properly changed ownership, there shouldn't be any issue with warranty claims. You should call and make sure it's actually in your name.

 

It is in my name (tag change was successful). However they are saying because I cannot produce the original receipt that they will not honor the warranty. I have spent over two weeks calling them every day and still no help. I am thinking about going to the media.

Strainge thing is, I contacted the @Dellcares on twitter and they said I do not need the original receipt. But the warranty call center will not budge.