Just a little update on L501x service call...

I posted this in another member's thread where we were discussing the temps and fan spin up/down annoyances of the L501 and L502, didn't want to hijack his thread again so I'll just put it here. (oh, and a member asked if I would still recommend this laptop in that thread, I said yes there, now I'm adamantly saying no way in heck, at least if you need a computer with 100% uptime).

Two and a half weeks ago the laptop completely died, no POST, loud beeps on startup.
They sent a tech out to replace RAM, motherboard, and AC adapter. It booted for about 5 minutes, then died again, doing the exact same no-POST.
They then sent it to the Houston repair facility for techs to test it, and ended up replacing the LCD.
Got it back yesterday afternoon, and I'm about to chuck this thing through a window. Computer is completely unstable. The initial Windows install would not sleep properly, as in closing the lid would shut off the display (keep in mind power settings make it set to 'sleep'), and the computer would not sleep, the LEDs all stay lit and the fan keeps pushing out hot air. Also, when shutting down Windows, Windows itself would close, but the computer does the same thing, LEDs stay on and fan keeps pushing out hot air, but the computer doesn't fully turn off.

So I figure maybe a driver is messed up or something like that, go to reinstall Windows with all the latest XPS stuff from Dell. When booting one of the times, get 3 loud, repeating beeps, which indicate from this quote from XPS guide, "Possible system board failure - Chipset error". Did this once, and then successfully booted out of BIOS and into installing Windows 7 fresh. While installing Windows the stupid thing would just turn off on its own.
Successfully (and finally) booted into Windows 7 fresh install to start putting the latest drivers on there, and it still shuts itself off automatically (every now and then) when rebooting after driver installs.

Being a grad student with constant homework, this just isn't working. So to all you students out there, I urge caution if you are considering the XPS 15 and need it with you all the time.

Wish I would have bought a Latitude or Thinkpad with Pro-support at this point.

 

Dang man that sucks. I thought XPS support was somewhat near business support? Maybe your next laptop might be a Latitude or a ThinkPad...come to the dark side.

 

Nope, nowhere near business support. I even paid for the upgraded support/extended warranty. What a ripoff.

They're now sending out a tech next business day with a new motherboard, new CPU, and new RAM. Again.

 

Whoa - that sounds like a lemon through-and-through, I hope it's not a synonymous XPS 15 situation! Considering i'll be depending on this rig as a primary location photo editing machine, if that happened to me - I would be hopping mad.

 

So why have you not got a replacement? Ok maybe not a L501x but something similar and considering what you have been through I am surprised not an L502x.

 

Next business day repair would be faster, I need my computer and a new laptop would be several weeks out considering their backlog.

 

Fair enough but I would still go down the replacement route when this one is working adequately and you have something to use while waiting a replacement.

Your laptop is hardly new now the tech has been dismantling it on numerous occasions. Gaza Strip comes to mind.

 

yeah request a replacement, and while the wait, ask for parts replacement. i did it last time i got my replacement. i needed it fast, but the system never responded, and got both.

 

No offense but don't you think you screwed it up by doing all the re-paste and taking apart many times. That actually voids the warranty and you should be glad that DELL is still repairing it.

 

You did overclock your GT 435 quite a bit as well =P

But in seriousness that sucks big. I did what billy5252 said when I was getting a replacement for my Studio XPS 16. Just request in some new parts while awaiting the replacement.

Good luck to you!

 

it doesn't void the warranty unless you break it during the process. It's possible the repaste of liquid ultra contributed to the failure though. Mine has been apart several times (A Plus Certified, along with several other certs, and in the business for 15 years) and I've had no failures.

 

That makes a real difference.

A Plus Certified vs Newbie
A Master Surgeon vs Apprentice

I am quiet happy with mine. No surgery done. Running 4 VMs for 12hrs a day without any overheat.

 

I have had the same problem for a few times, all in 2days. Windows turns off but the power button stays lit and fan keeps pushing out hot air, had to force shut down. Though when I rebooted it doesn't say windows shut down incorrectly. I'm not sure why that happened but I believe it's caused by GPU failure(by OC too high), that's the only suspicious thing I have done in those 2 days and now I have a stable clock and this problem never presented again.

 

You dont need to be certified to do thermal paste, been building performance PCs and doing the OC thing for over a decade.
My XPS was only OC'ed to test the paste, turned it to stock after that as I didnt game ebough to care.
Anyways, the current hardware (round 3) is unmodified and Dell tech placed, and still dead. Tomorrow will be the 4th service on it.
Pasting your laptop only voids the warranty if you caused the fault, the hardware I modified had the LCD die, which isnt a part I ever touched. And its been downhill from there...

 

sprtnbsblplya keep us posted on how well Dell takes care of your issue. I thought that XPS support was at least better than normal consumer support, but hey maybe I was wrong about that.

Next time opt for a business model with on site service. It's worth the extra money.

 

I have a classmate with an XPS 1530 and he said when he bought his the tech support was amazing, years ago.
I've had 4 service calls on mine since I got it in Nov, and everytime they connect me to "XPS dept", but they seem identical to the same folks I've talked to when my wife had her old Inspiron. India, decent English but not oustanding (can make for a loooong conversation), reading off scripts offering some solutions that don't make sense, ya know, typical overseas support.

I'm going with business models from here on out. The D610 I'm using now is more solid/reliable and is 5 years old than a brand new XPS, ugh.

 

Those techs that come to your house? They're lucky if they have any training at all.

When this one comes out, ask him about his training and his certs. And ask him what the training consisted of. If he doesn't lie, you'll be surprised at his answers.

 

You're totally right!
I actually asked the last guy that came out and he was complaining Dell expects them to repair these new high powered, flashy laptops and they get no more than the .pdf of the assembly guide that consumers can download themselves.

 

Yeah, and most of those techs get paid 20-30 per job, instead of being paid per hour. So it's in their interest to rush through the repairs and move on to the next.

 

Hmm, how good are Dell refurbished laptops?
They have some smokin deals on E6410s...

 

I got my base base E6410 for 458 with Core i3-380M, 1 GB RAM, 160 GB 5400 rpm w/ 6 cell and WXGA screen with 3 year warranty depot with an Outlet coupon. They just had one the past weekend so you might want to wait. And the newly released E6420 will further drop the prices of the E6410. Though mine had issues with AHCI mode and the bottom cover screw was badly stripped, Dell return was very very easy. My Latitude 13 from the Outlet store has been going strong for 4 months now.