On December 9 I ordered a Dell Inspiron 1545 Laptop with Windows 7. Unbeknownst to me, Dell has this ridiculous return policy where you have only 21 days from the order date. Of course, it takes over two weeks from the order date to receive your computer and then there are only a few days left if anything major goes wrong. A real scam, if you ask me; and, had I known about this horrible policy, I absolutely positively would not have ordered from this company.
Anyway, four days out of the box I am online and the screen freezes. After a few minutes, the computer shuts down and begins to reboot. All of a sudden, I hear a ticking sound coming from inside the computer. Needless to say, Windows 7 never reappears, instead only a message that the machine is not reading any hard drive and suggests that I reseat the hard drive. Can you imagine? This after only four days!
I immediately contact Customer Service (in India, of course) and their help is to send me a link on how to remove the hard drive from the laptop! Can you imagine your doctor E-mailing instructions on how to remove your own appendix??? This is exactly how I was made to feel. My intention was to use this laptop for a small photo business, using editing programs like Photoshop, etc. I decided that there was no way I could depend upon a computer like this and now that I had found out about this 21 day policy and not to mention the pitiful customer service, I felt the only recourse I had was to return the computer. I mean, who knows what mght happen next. Again: I need a computer that I can depend on.
Each time on the phone with Customer Service was like pulling teeth. First, going through all the automated messages to get to a live person and then being placed on hold each time the agent needed to confer with his supervisor. They practically begged me not to return the laptop, but finally conceded after I insisted for what seemed like the one hundredth time. The supervisor said that I would receive an E-mail with an ACR number (some kind of return authorization number) and explicit return instructions. Now, over one week later, I have received no E-mail nor do they even respond to my requests for assistance any more.
I cannot tell you how upset I am at this horrible experience with Dell. I would not recommend Dell to anyone for any reason at all. It seems now with all the delays from their customer service that I have gone beyond this 21 days limit and am now stuck with a piece of garbage. It's been in the box now for about two weeks waiting for them to get back to me, but somehow I feel that this is not going to happen and that their answer is that I have exceeded the 21 day limit for returns.
Now my life will be dedicated to getting this word out to as many people as possible. To be scammed by some fly by night company is one thing, but to be ripped off and sold a piece of junk by a major player in the computer industry is unconscionable. Fortunately, I've been writing magazine articles for some time now; mostly about travel and photography, but guess what my new topic will be now?
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