New computer has finally arrived

Bob Jefferson · Post by **Bob Jefferson** » 16 Jun 2005, 21:05

Bit of a saga getting it here, but I won't bore you with the details.

So, I took out the network cable, plugged it in the new machine and incredibly I have an internet connection.

My son's machine has been moved to my daughter's room. It was already connected wirelessly so that was no problem.

Now I just have to install the PCI adaptor on my old machine and set it up, which could be the tricky bit.

Email accounts successfully transferred and all going smoothly so far.

Dadaist · Post by **Dadaist** » 16 Jun 2005, 21:07

*Very* nice. Fingers crossed etc.

Poppy · Post by **Poppy** » 16 Jun 2005, 21:17

More "baffle" than "bore" chez Poppy when it comes to computers!

Good luck with whatever it is you are trying to do!!

Bob Jefferson · Post by **Bob Jefferson** » 17 Jun 2005, 19:18

I'm sorry, did I say my new computer had arrived? Let me re-phrase that. A computer has arrived. Not the build I ordered, it arrived not on the first advised delivery date, nor the second but the third. Unexpectedly, since I had been further advised that it would not be arriving on the third advised delivery date, but a fourth - next Tuesday.

Naturally, it was delivered to the wrong address. It arrived without a power lead to connect the base unit. On further examination, once I had wasted a considerable amount of time transferring files and settings from my old computer, I realised that it was the wrong processor, the wrong graphics card, the wrong speakers and in fact entirely the wrong order.

I spent around 2 hours queuing on the 'help' line to finally be advised that as they would be closing soon I should call back on Monday and wait a further period of time to speak to someone who will ask me for a reference number and then require me to explain the whole thing over again.

I would like to tell you exactly what I think of the company concerned, but it would just be a long line of asterisks.

AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAARGH!!!!!!

Dadaist · Post by **Dadaist** » 17 Jun 2005, 19:33

Which company? PM if you want.

I guess you could get pseudo legalistic and say something like "if I were to choose a computer company, it wouldn't be Shoddy Inc"

But I guess you are reporting facts as opposed to saying "I'm sure that Shoddy Inc use slave labour to manufacture their PCs" so maybe you can just tell us.

If you want to.

Bob Jefferson · Post by **Bob Jefferson** » 17 Jun 2005, 19:45

It's a Dell computer, and I don't have a problem with Dell. In fact I have bought several computers from them recently on behalf of other people.

However, it was bought through a third party - my wife's employer. I have a big problem with this major telecommunications company.

As my wife puts it, 'maybe we should just have stuck to telephones.'

Novastar · Post by **Novastar** » 20 Jun 2005, 16:23

IMHO Dell build good machines (although the technology can be a little to up to date sometimes and requires users to learn about non-standard stuff). Build quality is quite good and all cables seem to be neat and tidy which is always a good thing.

However.....

the support is rubbish. Don't deal with them often (thank God!) but generally after half an hour or so of holding you get put through to someone with a suspeciously Indian accent (do I hear foreign call centre anyone?) who takes you through his script (very annoying for a techy like me who knows what the problem is and just wants a part or engineer). It generally takes a day or so to be passed back to a third party company in the UK who can sort things out and send the part/fix the problem/etc.

Seems to be good PCs, providing they don't go wrong.

Have always been a fan on local companies (apart from Gemini computing as they've ripped me off in the past). Most seem to give you a more one to one service and their was one place I used to go in so much they would even give me a coffee while I was waiting. Also deal with Evesham through work who seem OK although they have a habit of flattening your machine to sort out any problem.

My advice would be to look in MicroMart (looks like a newspaper with pictures of PCs on the front - you can get it from loads of newsagents) and look for any experiences (go to google and type the name of the company in - you generally get a lot of good/bad comments).