What do you think of Outlet deals?

Are they okay to go with or should you always buy new from Dell? Yeah I know I still haven't gotten myself a laptop, but I am getting one in the spring for sure this time. And I have been eyeing the outlet on Inspiron 17R's and other 17" lappy's. Do you need to worry about the refurbished computers breaking down easier then a new one would? I figure buying the complete care warranty is a MUST HAVE with a outlet deal, so what are your thoughts on this subject? Thanks in advance!

 

Haven't purchased a "new" Dell for years now. Given that the Outlet units usually carry the same warranty as their "new" counterparts, I don't see any reason to pay more for "new".

Four out of the five E6400s in my family outlet. Oldest is like two years and a few months now; we've never had any problems with them.

 

I have to ask Commander Wolf, what kind of units did you purchase? Scratch & Dent? Certified Refurb? Or the other kind? My hubby thinks that they are like underwear, you only get problems if you buy used. BUt I think with a good warranty it will be fine.

 

I recently purchased a Dell Latitude 13 from the outlet. No problems whatsoever. A pleasant experience from Dell though the packaging did worry me.

I purchased a certified refurbished and not a scratch and dent cause the certified refurbished was cheaper...lol

 

Cool! How long ago was it? And did you upgrade the warranty to be safe?

 

Late November, the entire review is in a link in my signature.

I will upgrade the warranty when I get some more funds in.

 

Awesome review! Thanks for the replies Tsunade!

 

I purchased a Dell SXPS from the Outlet last August. It was about 650$ at the time about, 600$ less than new because of coupon. I would highly recommend using the outlet, but wait for coupons. And upgrade the warranty

 

I usually stick with Certified Refurb. Scratch and Dent seems to be more a crapshot; I've heard of people getting "perfect" units and I've heard of people getting units with giant paint chips, etc. There's also "unopened", which should be just as good as CR.

 

Thanks for the info on the deal you got burkle25, sounds like you got a great deal on that laptop. I definitely want to get the extended and upgraded warranty on a laptop because I have heard of people having trouble with Dell when they don't have the upgraded warranty.

Thanks CommanderWolf for the comments on the conditions on the outlet laptops. I guess scratch & dent's don't make fiscal sense in the end. CR sounds like the best or previously ordered new. Thanks again everyone for the replies!

 

^^Here is a 15% Coupon Code: JC?NKXTJ0X1?WR, for the Outlet you can use.
**Valid thru 1/12 or 10K redemptions, whichever one is first.

You might want to sign up at the Outlet to have coupons e-mailed to you. And/or check the Outlets Facebook/ Twitter pages for any other applicable discounts you can use

Cin...

 

Hey thanks Cin'!

 

^^
When you sign up for the e-mail subscription it works out pretty fast to be added to their list.
Good luck on your lappy' search!

Cin...

 

Thanks Cin'! I still haven't decided for sure, it's going to be the Inspiron 15R or 17R. How is your gorgeous red XPS and your cool red Mini working out these days?

 

I think if I had a choice bet. either I would go with the 15R, I just like 15"-15.6" lappy's. You will know what will work for you.

Cin...

Ps. My lappy is doing just great & the netbook is doing fine also..though I don't use it as much as I used to..

 

Glad to hear the XPS is still kicking tail! I am leaning towards the 15R for myself and the 17R for my mother, she wants a bigger desktop replacement laptop. It won't be until summer before I order hers, but we're definitely looking for two laptops this year. She also wants a full sized keyboard so that is one deciding factor for her. I have looked at 17" lappys in Walmart's local BM Store and feel they are just too big for me considering I will most likely be using it on a laptop cart/stand thing. 17" might overwhelm a little cart/stand thing. She'll use it on her dinning room table.

 

Thanks! : ) You could get your Mom a laptop stand for when she is sitting via chair, couch or even bed, if you wanted. Something like this may work for her. Note I believe you can find them for a lesser price. This one just has the capability of up to a 18.4" lappy. There are many brands/models out there.

Cin...

 

Thanks Cin! I am really impressed with that stand, We are going out for lunch next week and I am going to take her to Walmart to look at a 17" to make sure she thinks that is really what she needs. Thanks again for replying Cin! And for the link to that lappy stand!

 

How often do they put out outlet coupons? I missed out on using the one from last week, just wasn't quite ready to buy, soon though.

 

Seem to be every few weeks.

Did you sign up to receive the e-mails from them? The turnaround is pretty quick to get entered into their system to receive them.

Also the other resources to check for discounts are pretty helpful..(ie twitter & facebook). : )

Cin...

 

I did update my account to be included in the mailings, so I hope to get in on the next one. I also 'liked' it on facebook, and followed them on twitter so thanks again for the suggestions Cin! It all depends, we need a new TV right now and I am hoping to score a good superbowl sale on a 3D TV in the next couple weeks. So if that happens the lappy will have to wait.

 

They have a 20% coupon posted at outlet right now.
BP6SM900JMH74L

 

What's the most substantial discount that you guys have seen on the Dell Business Outlet?

 

Thanks ericpol, I didn't get an email with that code in it but wow, 20% is awesome!

Edited: Just tested it and it's good until Jan. 28th! Thanks again ericpol! If I can swing it I might end up with a 17R sooner rather then later.

Edited again: I just saw the coupon go live on facebook. I sure hope hubby lets me use it this time. *big grin*

 

Pamster,

Or first 10,000 redemptions according to my email. Free 3-5 day shipping as well.

pianowizard, I have never seen a coupon for more than 20% off.

FWIW, my Dell Mini 9 was from the Outlet and was listed as "previously ordered new". My current laptop was a refurb and it had a fan that seemed stuck on. Even though I do not have in-home warranty service they swapped out the motherboard which did not rectify it. They replaced it with a brand new, better one. It wasn't an Outlet problem, it was some of the Studio 1558's fan running on high so much.

My suggestion is to make sure everything works well within the 30 day return policy like every key and USB port, burning a DVD, etc. But I would do the same with a new one. I did have an SSD drive replaced after several months on my Mini and there seemed to be a bad batch as it happened more than it should. Dell overnighted it and it was easy to replace. I can't recall if I insisted they send it overnight or if they offered.

 

Thanks MoInSTL! I feel better about ordering from the outlet thanks to your post. I definitely will test any machine I end up with and put it through its paces when I get one. Thanks so much for your reply!

 

You're welcome. I do recall my original laptop which is black, had a slight scratch on the lid. I called Dell and said I did not order a scratch and dent and they took $50 off. On another forum I read that most refurbs arrive in mint condition so when it came time to order this one, I knew it was going to be from the Outlet.

If you find one at the Outlet that you want, add it to your cart quick! You would be surprised at how quickly they go! Also keep refreshing your page.

 

Good advice! I really appreciate you taking time to share your experiences with the outlet with me. Did you get the Complete Care warranties on your purchases? Just curious as to if you've had to use them or the warranty they came with at all.

 

Just regular warranty. Good luck!

 

Awesome!

 

I got to use the coupon! I got a Dell Mini 1018! So now I own a netbook! WOO HOO!! It will hold me over until I am ready to buy that 17R I really want. Can't wait for it to arrive this week, should be here by THursday, they threw in 3-5 day delivery for free! It's not that good of a deal at $219 shipped because it only has a 160 GB HD and a 3 cell battery, but I am pleased as punch to have it coming.

 

Well just to update everyone, I cancelled the original mini 1018 and reordered a 1012 because the original machine was delayed, they gave me a $25 discount on the new order, and I am pleased as punch with my new machine. It arrived today and it's awesome! So there are some things I wanted to post about, I got a OS DVD and that was it, NO drivers and utilities disc, I was surprised and am now on hold for 15 minutes so far waiting to get this and one other aspect resolved. I noticed the power plug part of the adapter has a crack in it, the crack is bad enough that it might break entirely and get stuck in an outlet, so I am going to ask for a replacement of it. It should have had a drivers and utilities disc right?

EDIT:

They took care of it, after 30 minutes on hold I finally got tech support live chat to work and the agent took care of me, they will send out replacement to me next week. Very pleased.

 

Just the adapter or the whole thing? Make sure what they send you is as good or better than your original order. I would print it out. Did you get a copy of the chat? Yes, it should include the driver disks but enter your service tag and grab the latest drivers at Dell's site and burn those or store them elsewhere.

I don't know how they handle replacements but I went from a Core i3 to an i5 and integrated video to an entry level video card. It was also brand new and shipped in the brand new box instead of the refurb box. So bottom line is YMMV.

Since it's going back, locate the RAM in it as 2GB will really help it.

 

I'm keeping the 1012, the 1018 never shipped which is why I was irked and cancelled it. I am pleased with how well its running on 1 GB of RAM. I plan on upgrading it myself though since hubby still refuses to do it for me. I got through to a n\ice rep at Dell last night who said they would replace the power plu, its the thing that goes into the wall not the part of the computer thankfully. The computer seems fine. I definitely got a refurb box with it though, very cool that its in such good shape.

I definitely have the chat transcript in my email so if they give me trouble I have it in there that they wil send out the drivers disc and the replacement plug, so I hope I don't have any trouble with them over it. He said it would go in the mail and be to me within 2-3 business days, doesn't get any better then that if you ask me.

 

I purchased a 15R for my gf with no problems. It was suppose to be a scratch and dent but we couldnt find anything. I highly recommend them.

 

Yeah I am pleased as punch with my purchase, I couldn't find anything wrong except the plug had a crack near the prongs and they're replacing that so I am cool with it! Very excited to have my new dell mini 1012.