Dell is replacing my dead e1705 laptop

My Inspiron e1705 laptop would not boot. Turns out it is a bad graphics card. Dell no longer has the graphics card in stock to ship a new one to me, so they are sending me a whole new laptop. The support guy said all of the components will be the same or better.

Anyone have any idea what I should expect to get? Will it be a new laptop or refurbished? I really liked the laptop I have now, and wish I did not have to replace it, but if I truly get something better, then I guess it is ok.

I guess I should have asked Dell this, but does anyone also know if my warranty (which has 1.5 years out of 4 left) will still be good on the new laptop?

 

The warranty should carry over to your new laptop.

Try to find out about the details of the laptop they're sending over.

 

I think it would be a refurbished Studio 1737. The warranty is your original one carried over to the replacement. I just got a refurbished Studio 1537 for my disfunctioning Inspiron E1505.

Sean

 

It will almost certainly be refurb, as they are upgrading you to a better model anyway. Expect the Studio 17.

The warranty situation depends on who you dealt with - I've heard it happen both ways at Dell - try contacting them to find out for sure.

 

So far, the only information I have been able to get out of Dell is that the warranty coverage will carry over to the new laptop. What Dell is apparently unable to tell me is what type of laptop they are going to send to replace the e1705 I currently have.

They have also been slowly increasing the expected turn-around time. When they first said they would replace it, they said to expect it in 7 to 10 days. When I called to find out what they are sending, they said expect it in 7 to 14 days. The last I heard, they said expect it in 15 to 21 days.

Apparently the customer service people are not able to get information from the department that will put together my replacement system, so they are not going to tell me what it will be. It will just be a surprise, when it finally arrives.

I hope whatever they send is a nice system, and worth the wait.

 

Does your e1705 have the 7900 GS in it? My does and it has been replaced twice (along with the motherboard, speaker, and battery).
I looked up the video card options for the Studio 17 and the best it has to offer was a 126 bit video card.
If you have been waiting 15 days already, I can't say I am too eager the way my may come out as I only reported my a few days ago.
On the side note: does anyone know if the AC adapter for the e1705 will work with the Studio 17?

 

Yes, I have the 7900 GS video card. It was replaced once already, and now Dell is out of them.

I was wondering about the AC adapter as well. When I bought my e1705, I purchased an additional adapter. I am guessing that when they finally send me a new laptop, they will not provide two adapters for it. If so, I will be sure to complain about it, unless the adapter I have fits the new laptop.

 

ya the adapters work. Ihave the studio 15 and it works with my brother e 1505.

 

Look reeeeeaaaaal close at what they send you.
Most people who have had an e1705 replaced have first received something laughably under-spec'd.

 

I received my e1705 replacement the morning of (3/4). DELL sent me a refurbished m1730 with T8300, 8700 SLI, 4 Gig RAM, 2 200 Gig hard drive, Physx, Intel wireless, and bluetooth. I already owned a loaded m1730. I am not sure I want another one. I am seriously considering calling DELL and tell them I to take it back.
The only problem I have right now is I can't find which DELL notebook offers a 256 bit video card.
If someone know, please advise.
Thank you.

 

Why ? Isnt the M1730 you got much better spec'd than the e1705 ?

 

At wearetheborg:
Yes. The M1730 got better specs. than my e1705. But that thing is also almost twice as big and heavy. The power supply itself is 230 Watt; it's almost three times as big as the power supply for the e1705.
I already have one m1730 with extreme CPU, 8800m GTX SLI, among other things.
I just want something a little more portable, decent battery life, and a decent graphic card (with its own cooling fan) for occational gaming.
One option is I can keep the replacement m1730 and buy an Inspiron 12 for portable computing.
Thanks for your reply though.

 

man!!!you could sell it and buy a brand new dell with 3 year warranty. i say don't bother phoning dell. just put this laptop on ebay and you'll get a nice amount of money with which you can buy yourself a brand new machine.

 

Agreed. Why get a lesser laptop when you can sell this for a nice amount and have enough money left over for a small laptop and some other nice toys?

 

Good suggestions.
I appreciate the inputs.
Thank you much.

 

I contacted Dell on Friday morning (March 6) to check on the status of my replacement laptop. They told me it was still being built, and to allow another 7 days. A few hours later, FedEx delivered a new laptop to me!

I had an e1705, dual core 2.0 GHz proc, 1900x1200 glossy screen, 100 GB HDD, 2GB RAM, 256 MB nVidia graphics card, bluetooth, a/b/g wireless.

As a replacement, I got a new Studio 1737 with core 2 duo 2.66 GHZ proc, 1900x1200 glossy screen, 250 GB HDD, 4 GB RAM, 256 MB ATI graphics card, bluetooth, a/g/n wireless, 2.0 mp webcam, fingerprint reader, and some software (Roxio, Office) that I did not have before.

I have found no indication that this laptop was refurbished. It was still wrapped up, including plastic covering the fingerprint reader and IR port. No scratched, dents, or any indication that human hands had ever touched the thing. The paperwork says it was "ordered" by me. Paperwork also does not indicate anywhere that it is a refurb.

I am very happy with the laptop so far. It is a much better replacement then I expected to receive.

 

Congrats
It really is a very nice upgrade

Dell FTW !!!!

 

Good to know you are happy with the replacement.
I don't know if Dell's recent lawsuit about warranty work and customer service has anything to do with their change in attitude. I've been getting really helpful replies.
If they keep this up, I will stay with them for many more years.

 

Don't mean to bring this topic out of the past; just want to update my case.
After a few more conversations (and a few laptops at the house) explaining what I am looking for specifically to Dell, my final (which I will settle with) laptop is a Precision M6400 which has the QX9300, 4Gig DDR3 Ram, dual 320 Gig hard drive, Wifi, bluetooth, bluetooth mouse, webcam, and Quadro FX 3700M video card.
Now, all I need to do is send the other 3 laptops back to Dell.
I want to thank all who contributed ideas in my case.

 

Wow. You better be satisifed