How are people getting these great deals when they buy Alienware? What advice do you have?

So I'm in between buying an MBP which I know I can get for about $2200-2300 total w/ applecare. This is with a student discount from my college. My other choice is an Alienware m18x. When I have it fully configured the price comes out to ~$2900. If I could actually get this down to the price of an MBP or so I'd snatch it up in a heartbeat. I was told that you should configure it online and then order by phone. I did just that but the Dell rep told me he'd knock off about $60 because it's their student discount(terrible discount imo since apple and other brands knock of at the very least 10%+) And then another coupon for $50 since my purchase is over $1299. I know Alienware is an expensive brand but I keep hearing people getting these epic deals like Xfire 6990s and the $900 i7 extreme cpu. I didn't even upgrade my cpu because I know that my Xfire cards will bottleneck my system before my i7-2630qm will.

So my question is how exactly are you guys trying this and making it work?

 

Watch the website for online errors. That's how I got my deal. It was just dumb luck for me though.

 

Patience and persistence. Configure what you want online, then call in every so often to different reps until you find one who wants to sell it to you.

If you set a price you are willing to pay, and stick to it, you can get a deal if you have the time and patience to hold out until you find a rep willing to give you the deal you want.

Dell/Alienware know that most students are going to be purchasing a laptop in time for school and will need to purchase soon. Don't let them use this against you by making you think that you'd better purchase ASAP to get it in time for school. Instead, when you talk with reps, let them know that you will only be buying the AW if you get the price down to your other choice, a MBP. Any rep who wants the commission will discount it and make the sale, and it's in Dell/Alienware's interest to be the one you buy from.

 

Ask for the student discount, google for dell/alienware coupons. They pop up from time to time up to 20% off. Check out the Dell Outlet same as new refurb system's many here have bought there, great deals at times google Dell Outlet coupons 10 to 20% off are to be found. Just a few things to check for. Good luck!

 

When I was looking at checking the price of an Sony Vaio F series laptop I spoke to a rep and told her my set price which was like $1800 and the laptop was about $2000. The rep became very rude and snobby with me saying stuff like, "I can't just break my back for you. The price IS the price, so either buy it or don't." And when I demanded to speak to her manager because she was being so rude she ended up telling me that the manager will not change the price for me. So I basically told her to screw off and hung up. I did get her employee ID number, name, and where she worked and I did file a formal complaint against her. But my point is I've had a bad experience with sales reps on the phone whenever I ask them, "Is there anything better we can do on the price because it's a little out of my range."

 

You'll get some reps who are like that and won't budge. It'll probably be a waste of time trying to get back at them for being rude, Dell has thousands of reps and they care more about their performance in sales and numbers than if they were rude to a customer.

Make the system work for you and just contact reps until you get one who will work with you. Beating around the bush works sometimes, but reps might be more willing to give the big discounts if you're ready to buy and already know what you want. Being timid and haggling with them to keep taking a few bucks off and guess your price might not work as good as just stating the price you're willing to pay. It's not backbreaking for them to spend a few minutes on a sure sale, and they often get commission based on whether they sell or not, not how much they sell a notebook for.

 

Send me a PM and I'll shoot you my Dell/AW rep info

(he's helped over a 100 ppl on these boards)

Edit: You need 10 posts before PM's work

 

Voodooi, please pm me your rep info. Thanks alot.

 

I got my M11x R2 for over 400 dollars off a month after they released because of website error that was only there for 10min. It's luck and coupons. keep your eyes peeled

 

Review this thread - follow up q's there please.

http://forum.notebookreview.com/alienware/456885-aw-dell-ordering-advice-how-save.html

Thanks.