The story of my locked laptop

I'm writing this thread for two reason, first is to maybe find a way to unlock my laptop that had a BIOS password set by a child, and second is to warn people about purchasing expensive equipment from amazon.


I bought my laptop, Alienware 17 R4 with 7820hk 4k GTX 1080, in July of 2017. Registered it with Dell and even though the laptop is mysteriously missing from the "My Products" tab on the Dell webpage, I still have the emails they sent me when It happened the day I received my laptop.

I repasted it the first month I had it and had no problems, other then light bleed that was semi fixed by shoving paper in between the bezels, until last week. Someone was messing with my laptop while I wasn't there and they can not tell me the password for it.

"No problem, I'll just call Dell and they will have an answer"

Well I called Dell and that is when they told me that my laptop was supposed to have been returned under warrant in June '17. "But I purchased it off of Amazon from Mastertronics as a new laptop in July" I say . At that point I get the run around between Amazon and Dell and the seller.

The first night the person from Amazon was very helpful, and told me not to fret and that the seller would make it right and if they didn't their A to Z program would fix it.

So then I waited two days, with my beloved laptop locked, and heard nothing back. I called Amazon again and that is when they changed their story. Saying that since it had been over 180 days, their policy states that I can't do an A to Z claim and that I'm pretty much SOL unless the seller does something about it, but offers no real help.

So at this point, three days ago, I call Dell and procede to explain my situation to 4-5 different techs, until I finaly get a supervisor on the phone and they say to send in my invoices and anything else I have (Including the email from them for my registering my laptop)

Now I'm writing this here because I know this place was where I came when I needed advice on what laptop to buy and I'm hoping somone here can help me either unlock my BIOS or maybe if enough people are outraged by this story Amazon or Dell or the Seller
(Mastertronics) https://www.amazon.com/sp?seller=A19N59FKNWHX7C
will change their tune about helping me with this 3000$ laptop that is pretty much a paperweight right now because Dell considers it their property.

If any mods want to see my proof of this story I understand, just message me and I'll send it, I'm not trying to bypass security for any criminal reasons.


thanks

 

That's indeed pretty unfortunate.

There's methods for unlocking, of course, but per forum rules you're not allowed to discuss them here, sorry . Can tell you this; a simple cmos reset or regular flash won't do. The seller may, but certainly Dell will be able to help you, though in all fairness; it was not their fault, so expect a service fee. Even within the warranty/return period it'd still be deemed ' user error' unless they happen to be in a good mood. It shouldn't be an expensive fix, unless they're incompetent and will charge you for a motherboard swap.

 

Sorry to hear that.

Dell's customer service is hit or miss but you can keep harassing them (by email, phone IM) and keep asking to escalate the matter. If you purchased directly from Dell, you could threaten a credit card chargeback, an option that has real teeth. Regardless, keep harassing Dell.

Amazon and eBay are terrible retail platforms, particularly when things go wrong for the buyer on complex, large-ticket items.

Next time I would find a more trustworthy retailer; Dell direct is OK (particularly with chargeback threat) and if you are looking at $3,000 gaming rigs, there are some well rated botique suppliers that are active hare at nbr.

Not sure BestBuy will be around for the long-run or how good their service is. For sure, they will scan your system under a contract from one of the secret government agencies (see recent news reports) so that might be more "service" than you are interested in.

 

If you want a DELL / Alienware that'll work really nicely, go to @Donald@HIDevolution. The alienware custom work / QA they do is amazing, and their tech support is US-Based, second to none, and quick. I've never had a problem with Donald between 3 Sagers and an Alien, and I recommend his work.

 

I can help you in removing the Bios lock but not here, send me a PM.