Dealing with a Company Who Doesn’t Resolve Anything

This may be a frustrating rant for me personally, or this can be something more common than I realize.

When you make a large purchase from a well-known and reputable manufacturer, such as a desktop computer, you expect this device to last for at least a minimum of 5 years – something well beyond the 1-year warranty.

But things do happen to hardware or software over time as they are used regularly. So, there are times when you may have to rely on the manufacturer for help.

In my case, my Dell XPS 9850 desktop was working fine for the first year I owned it, but after the 14th month, I had hardware failure issues. So, I decided to purchase Dell’s Extended Warranty for $200 (one year) after my initial 1-year warranty expired, instead of dumping another $1700 for a new PC or Mac.

It makes sense, right?

My first repair was in-house. A technician was sent to my home to replace the SSD (solid state drive), and at this point I was very satisfied with how quickly my issue was addressed and resolved. All was well until the next day when I turned my PC on – again, a blue screen of death appeared within 10 minutes.

I spoke with Dell again and they sent out a second technician 2 days later. This time, they replaced everything in the PC except for the power supply. I was also instructed by the technician to install a clean copy of Windows 11 since every piece of hardware was replaced. I always keep a Windows Boot USB on hand. No problem. Done.

A few weeks later, I got another error code. My PC wouldn’t even boot up, but I had flashing Amber and white lights on my power button (this indicates that there is something wrong with the memory or graphics card). This time Dell had me send in my PC to the repair center in Texas. Little did I know that the only thing that was done was a reinstallation of the BIOS settings and Windows 11 Home.

As unfortunate as it may sound, when you’re checking the status of your repair online from Dell, there is no indication of what was replaced, fixed, etc. Dell only shows a timeline of when your PC is received, diagnosed, fixed, and shipped back to you. The only way you are made aware of what was done is from the receipt in the return box with your PC.

At this point, nothing was physically repaired and the XPS seemed to be working.

Next month, I had the same issue plus the XPS tower was completely unresponsive. No lights, no nothing. I sent in the PC for repair again. This time I was sent an email from Dell for my Windows Username and Password so they can address the issue without a secondary SSD or HHD from a technician. As uncomfortable as I was, I still gave them the information so I could have my PC back in working order. I went through the same process as I had previously and got my PC back with the resolution of Reinstalled Windows. Again, no hardware was replaced, but the PC worked.

Again, I had yet another issue with this machine. Flashing Amber and White lights again. PC would not boot. Dell insisted that I send in the PC for repair. I refused. I wanted an in-home technician. They agreed and sent out someone to replace my motherboard. The tech got my PC to turn on, but Windows 11 Home would not load. I needed a BitLocker Key (which I never set up and Dell must have) from my Microsoft account to reactivate access to my SSD and HHD. The tech said that a way to bypass this situation was to reinstall Windows and left.

I tried reinstalling Windows 11 from the bootable USB drive. The PC would not let me. So, I was able to retrieve my BitLocker key from my Microsoft account. No big deal. I used the key to unlock my PC. Then I got an error that my SSD was corrupted, and Windows couldn’t start. All hardware was showing up in BIOS, so I had no idea what was wrong now.

At this point, I was furious. I was told by an online agent that my PC would be replaced, and they needed to escalate the situation to an advanced member of the team. I would get a call back within 24-48 business hours. I didn’t get a call back. So, I called them. No one could help me, and they sent a message to the person handling the case. The next day I was able to speak with them and they advised that I would NOT be getting a replacement PC.

I was so angry and completely over the entire experience that I went to my local Best Buy and purchased a brand-new PC. This set me back $1500 – but I needed a computer that could handle video editing for my YouTube Channel and my clients.

Mind you, I bought this PC for my small business, along with another same exact model with upgraded RAM, and an Inspiron Laptop to use on the go. I even opened a Dell Business Account and line of credit.

For the 6th time within 9 months, I contacted Dell again. They said send in the PC. I sent it in again for the third time. Got it back with the indication that they updated the BIOS settings from an external hard drive. The PC started, but I wanted to reinstall Windows 11 Home. I normally reinstall Windows once a year just to get a fresh start, so I downloaded a fresh copy of Windows 11 Home directly from Microsoft and created an additional bootable USB drive.

To my surprise (not really), I encountered two new errors. The first was that the USB drive was not digitally signed, so I could not reinstall windows. So, I used my old USB bootable drive, which also had Windows 11 Home on it, and I got the same error. At this point, instead of reinstalling Windows 11 Home I was just going to use the computer as is. But as I turned my XPS on I got an error code in red, something that I have never seen before. The error indicated that my SSD and or HHD cannot be found.

At this point, Dell has officially taken $1500 for the XPS and $250 from me for the extended warranty, and I honestly feel that they’re possibly the most incompetent company I have ever dealt with. Let alone, I paid another $1500 for a new PC because Dell can’t seem to fix this one. Mind you, I have had no issues with the other Dell XPS PC or the Inspiron Laptop.