Which Alienware Warranty option is worth getting??!

Hardware+Software support (Enhanced)

1year +$100
2year +$250
3year +$390
4year +$500

Accidental Damage Service

1year +$99
2year +$159
3year +$199
4year +$249

What is worth getting? Or should I just keep 1 year basic (free)

 

The "2 Year Enhanced Support Warranty" is the minimum I recommend for these new systems. Only purchase "accidental" if you take your PC with you everywhere. Everything is soldered, so the basic warranty will cover all components inside the machine for that time. And by the end of two years, your system will be obsolete in pretty much every aspect.

There have been a lot of issues with the AW 13 thus far. So, I definitely recommend at least two years of "Enhanced Support Warranty."

 

theres been alot of issues? Like what, the graphics adapter requiring a power cycle ?

 

Screen issues, scratches, etc.

 

Seems like you know alot about Alienware.. the only thing that worries me is the cooling. I had a 2013 Alienware 17 (860M) that would get warm/hot even using it only my lap.

The one I want is just standard i7 4710HQ/8GB RAM/1TB/970M + 2 year enhanced warranty = $1749
I'm also considering getting MS Office 2013 which is $149. Not to mention adding tax!

I'm closing in on 2K for this system... far beyond my budget. What can I do!

 

If it's too much money now, there's always the option of extending it later. It will be more money, though.

The system comes with a 1 year standard warranty. That's what you would get if you ordered any other brand. It's only a recommendation purchase more.

 

Do you think I got unlucky with the cooling thing? It was 2013 A17.. maybe they improved on this 2015 15" model? I was confused cuz I didnt think any computer should be running hot when just browsing, even if on lap.

 

I've said this before to you too.. You need to repaste your CPU+GPU... Honestly, it will fix all your issues.. If you do have the 2013 model, why not spend about $500-600 for a 970M and upgrade that instead of buying a new laptop? It would be much cheaper and better..

 

Where are you buying? USA, Europe, Canada...?

 

I'd always advise getting as long a warranty as your pocket can afford. You should also bear in mind how long you intend to keep the machine before changing it - if you think you'll keep it for 3 years, obviously 3 years warranty is recommended so you don't have any unforseen out-of-your-own-pocket expenses should you fall outside of warranty. Also, if you do decide to sell before the warranty expires, having a healthy balance remaining will make your machine more attractive to prospective buyers than a machine that has no warranty at all.

It might seem expensive, but trust me....if it goes wrong outside of your warranty (and especially now as BGA components for CPU & GPU would require a new board) it could run VERY expensive to put right yourself if it went wrong.

I always say that warranty is like having good brakes on your car - you will miss them most when they are not there!

 

Everything he said is hideously accurate. On my old R1, I think I racked up about $3K of repairs in parts alone, to say nothing of the tech guy coming to my house and installing it for me. To be honest, I would sacrifice parts upgrades over warranty protection when ordering my system, especially given that everything is soldered now as has been mentioned. Also, these systems are not for the financially faint of heart, or on knowledge of the product. Your warranty is your best friend, especially when starting out on your first gaming system.

 

Ram and SSD is not soldered right? lol. There's nothing else to upgrade besides those. 970m is perfect for me

 

I just ordered the 15 with the basic 1 year warranty, does anyone know how long I have to extend that warranty?

 

Before it expires. But you should also be able to extend it while it's in production for the same price as the website.

 

Correct. Ram and hard drives are user replaceable and are not soldered onto the motherboard.

One should also bear in mind that extending warranty AFTER receiving an order IS a lot more expensive if you want to extend before the basic 1yr expires.......buying as much warranty at the outset of ordering is by far the most economical way of doing it. If you wish to - and can afford to do so - I'd probably look at cancelling and re-ordering with the desired warranty at the start. If you can amend your order before production, great.......

 

What do you guys think about SquareTrade?

 

So do people here think the Alienware 15 is a solid notebook for its price?

 

It's good. There are other products that will outperform it, but it's probably right in the middle of the better stuff around that form factor.

@Steve: Yeah, bro. I know all about extending. It can be expensive. I've done it myself for my Alienware 17. I'm just saying, since he can't afford it now, it's always an option later.

 

unless you get an MSI which has a 2 year standard warranty.

 

How can I repaste? I'm not confident enough to do it by myself.. local shop just told me worst case 150$ to repaste??!! .

 

Is there a big difference in buying from Alienware and XoticPC a big difference? They offer diamond pasting and other things

 

I think it's definitely a pretty decent laptop for the price. More expensive than some, but it also has some niceties like multiple m.2 sockets, a nice GPU and some pretty decent engineering. Having had my hands on a 13 as well I can say the construction is different but VERY solid... the keyboard in particular is very good and sturdy. Hopefully that follows into the 15.

As to the answer to the original question; buy as much warranty as you're comfortable with both financially and "coverage-wise". Myself I got the 3 years and 3 years of accidental. Why? Because mine is going to be mobile... and I've been burned out of warranty before on laptops (though oddly never Alienware). I can afford it, and this is already closing in on a $2,000 investment... seems to me it only makes sense to protect it. I did the same with my Apple laptops I had previously.

 

I hear ya, Bro......been there myself. It is expensive. I managed to negotiate a free 1 yr warranty extension on my 14 (in lieu of my M18x debacle a while back, if you recall) but the price to do it otherwise was exorbitant, to say the least. I guess if you can't afford it at the outset, extending later on is your only choice, and a wise choice regardless of cost. It appears that long gone are the times (due to BGA) that one could hold back on an upgrade in favour of warranty.....something I did more than once regarding several different components - mainly ram and HDD's........I'd still recommend getting the lowest config on those from Dell and buying them on an 'as and when' basis from third party resellers. We know that Dell charge through the nose for ram and hdd's, don't we? - with those savings, if applicable, I'd toss that at warranty and keep the base ram and hdd in a drawer for warranty purposes and upgrade my own when I could afford to do so.......it'll be cheaper to buy ram and hdd's/ssd's afterwards and makes the warranty more affordable at the outset, too.

 

Lol they're just ripping you off.. There is a user manual and basically it's 2 screws to remove the bottom, 3 screws to remove the CPU fans... No need to unplug the fans just flip them on top of the HDD caddy... 4 screws to remove heatsink.. Get some alchhol/alchohol wipes and clean off old thermal paste.. Getting ICD to paste with (put ICD in cup of warm water to "melt" it a bit) and then once a small line is made across the CPU die, screw your heatsink down.. It's really a 10 min job.. There a videos online on how to repaste and also Dell has a user manual which you can follow to carry out the steps of removing everything..

 

Some machines are easier to repaste than others. My 14, for example, requires a complete teardown (as seen in my teardown link in my signature at around 37m in) and removal of the motherboard to access the heatsink and screws to remove it - there is no access to do this from underneath. It would not surprise me if Dell has made the same stupid layout again for the new 15 and 17. Of course, if you then look at the cost of a shop doing that, it could run fairly pricey.

 

This is why I'm thinking about XoticPC to buy the Alienware 15. They have IC diamond option for 55 and other options. What do u think about buying from them?

 

I have no experience of dealing with them personally. I'm sure they have many happy customers.

 

I don't believe the "Accidental Damage Service" is necessary unless you travel (or move around) a lot. Just be careful!

Here's what the Enhanced Support Warranty says:

Spoiler

 

Since nothing meaningful can be upgraded, I think no more than 2 years makes good sense. People that still have a valid warranty on the last two generations of Alienware's superior products will be downgraded if a system exchange is ever necessary. The way the trend is going, no telling what might replace these new systems 2 years from now... maybe an Alienware high performance tablet or gaming smartphone?

 

see I was looking at the 4 year warranty. Don't they replace the laptop with the new version if it breaks in that time, and you could always pay the difference right?

 

Dell can elect to replace your machine if it fails completely. They can also, at their discretion, elect to replace a machine that has had a history of failed repair attempts. This replacement machine may be a brand new build that is as close to the specification of the failed one as possible. It may be a refurbished model, too....if they have one in their inventory. As for paying the difference for a better machine, that is debatable. I have heard this offered, but it's not a gimme. It certainly is not offered in the UK, but the US region differs with what they can do.

If you are buying one of the new models, if it fails you are only going to get back current BGA offerings. That may or may not change in the future - who knows. The move toward soldered on is one that I personally do not think will be reverted to MXM graphics cards and socketed processors.

I'd probably advise for you to get as long a warranty as you plan on keeping the machine for before upgrading by choice - if it fails within that period, Dell should have your back for those possibly very expensive out-of-warranty repairs. Of course, a long warranty is also beneficial if you choose to sell before that time - a machine with warranty is more saleable than one without any warranty and will be worth more, too......in effect, in that respect, you could recoup some of the cost of the 4 yr warranty in a higher sale price should you sell before it expires.

 

The point I was making was in reference to the regression of performance and quality. They would need to pay you for the difference for it to be fair.

I used to be a huge advocate of extending the warranty. There was a track record of system replacements being equal or better, but the trend is such that it might result in a downgrade if the next round of products is worse than this one. It used to be that each generation got better and faster, but not any more. It could turn out to be a huge mistake for an owner of a M18xR2 or Alienware 18 with top specs to extend their warranty because a system exchange would result in a massive downgrade by replacing it with the best they can offer today. The best product they can offer today would be a really sorry replacement option. If I were in that boat, I would expect an Area-51 with dual GPU and unlocked CPU as replacement for a maxed out M18xR2 or Alienware 18, but then I would lose mobility and have to buy a monitor, at my own expense, to not take a huge downhill plunge in performance.

 

It really scares me what they would offer someone in that scenario...to go from a fully loaded 18 with SLI to a fully loaded 17? That is not even close to the same product on any level in this universe. I wonder if Alienware even considered this when phasing out the 18.

 

I can only hope they would. Mr. Azor strikes me as being completely sincere and man of his word. I have no reason to believe otherwise, and his engagement level reflects positively on him and the Alienware brand. His response to me was that they were keeping a stock of parts to fix the older models. If that is accurate, and nobody has to worry about a downgrade everything will be fine. At some point the parts are going to dry up and there is no way around that. Those (like me) that have totally exhausted their warranty options will need to fend for themselves with sources like eBay, PCHub.com and Parts-People.

 

Only time will tell unfortunately....I guess my only option would be to keep replacing parts if I didn't want to accept an upgrade...but my 3 years is up in June anyways.

I really don't blame Alienware for any of this TBH, it is the way the market is going but it sucks because people that didn't mind the larger systems and wanted the customization are losing out on that. The question in the long seems to be is it going to be worth it....are they going to get more fans then they lose.

 

Some computer manufacturers (MSI, Gigabyte) offer a 2 year warranty as standard, I'm surprised Alienware/Dell don't

 

I noticed back a few years ago 2 years was the standard. Now it seems some manufacturers are going with the 1 year.

 

yeah it is... as mentioned, there are higher spec machines available but once you get your hands on the 15, you can feel the quality. ...And the specs aren't too awfully bad either