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Rocke_T_Sinetist
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 Posted: Sun Apr 09, 2006 8:13 pm Post subject: Dell tech support customers: Here's what you're up against. |
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This is extracted from another thread, an actual problem a customer encountered, and Dell's handling of it was so blatantly WRONG, I felt you should know what you're getting into when you deal with Dell and need to access their tech support/warranty fulfillment.
| Quote: | | Dell's L3's have determined that just because a system gives you an error code 7 in diags, that doesn't mean the hard drive has failed. |
All potential Dell customers: 'L3' is the 'highest' level of technical 'knowledge' in Dell 'tech support'. If the above assertion is correct (evidence suggests that it is), you're dealing with idiots being led by imbeciles.
There is no HDD diag that registers a false positive. If the diag says it's bad, IT REALLY IS. Apparently, Dell's highest level of 'technical expertise' to which customers have access, cannot discern their poop-chute from a golf course.
I didn't know it was THAT BAD--it wasn't when I was there--ain't progress grand?
To follow the entire thread, click http://www.ihatedell.net/forum/phpBB2/viewtopic.php?t=3282
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Rocke T Sinetist
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rustyboots
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Joined: 06 Jul 2005
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Location: Round Rock
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| Posted: Sun Apr 09, 2006 8:41 pm Post subject: |
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Rocke,
Have you been there long enough to remember when L2s were about as high as an L1 needed to go for advice? (If he couldnt get good advice/answers from team mates) I was there that long and then I was an L2 and I knew that I didnt know everything, but I knew more than some. Writing code does not make one an L2, though I saw that as a prime requirement toward the end. You needed to know hardware.
The L3s that were there before I left were the biggest bunch of duds and A** kissers I have seen in a long time. And they use to be the L2s! It seemed their main puprose was to exist so they could get new Dell systems and hardware and play with it. And whatever short falls they found with new systems sure as hell was not published so they rest of Dell tech support would know how to fix a problem. Dead weight and oxygen thieves would be the best description for them.
While Dell diags isnt the best (far from it), a Code 7 return is a HDD failure and no amount of playing with software will change that.
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Rocke_T_Sinetist
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| Posted: Sun Apr 09, 2006 10:17 pm Post subject: |
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| Quote: | While Dell diags isnt the best (far from it), a Code 7 return is a HDD failure and no amount of playing with software will change that.
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There ya go, Rusty. Anybody who's played with more than a half dozen HDDs knows that, but Dell's current crop of L3s evidently doesn't. And both Dell diags and '9090' are tolerant of multiple read errors, as long as the read eventually succeeds. (So is software, except WXP during boot.)
I wasn't an L-anything, I was a C2 engineer. (It only goes to C3.) I was the second most-knowledgeable on HDD internals in the company, and my close friend of 20 years was the MOST. We had some guest L2s come for training. They didn't know 'everything' but they could at least catch on when it was explained. (This was 5-6 years ago.)
Dell's 'tech support' now knows about as much about computers as a Radio Shack clerk knows about radio--which button in their car plays headbanger music.
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Rocke T Sinetist
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JodyAnn
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| Posted: Mon Apr 10, 2006 9:38 pm Post subject: |
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| "IT" is always a software problem.... couldn't be hardware... |
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FallenAngel
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| Posted: Mon Apr 10, 2006 10:12 pm Post subject: |
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| Rocke wrote: | | Dell's 'tech support' now knows about as much about computers as a Radio Shack clerk knows about radio--which button in their car plays headbanger music. |
That falls back to my ongoing banter about how THEN the staff was comprised of a lot of actual techs 
NOW the staff is comprised mainly of people who can read from a script based on "conclusions" from a database tool that rips most of the ideas from the web and have no practical application in today's engineering.
But they CAN read a script when it's placed in front of them. Automatons that couldn't form a genuine thought if it meant a Million dollars...
You know the type - the type that would say, "Your hard drive is clicking? Well my tool says to reinstall the OS because the diagnostics passed. Hmm. Well, my tool is WRONG then and we'll need to replace that drive!" |
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Rocke_T_Sinetist
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| Posted: Tue Apr 11, 2006 9:52 am Post subject: |
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| Quote: | | Well my tool says... |
We've zoomed in on the problem. These people are talking to their tools. 
Geezus! Why even bother with people? Why not touchtone the whole process? To get hung-up on, press 1. To get put on hold for 45 minutes, press 2. To get charged $100, press 3. To repeat this menu in a dialect you can't understand, press 4. Para mejor servicio, marque el 'H-P'. (O el J-K.)
Now THERE'S a BPI just waiting to happen.
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Rocke T Sinetist
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FallenAngel
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| Posted: Tue Apr 11, 2006 11:17 am Post subject: |
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They'd automate the entire support process if they knew they could get away with it.
We all know that. |
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sickofdell
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Location: Omaha, NE
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| Posted: Tue Apr 11, 2006 12:40 pm Post subject: |
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| FallenAngel wrote: | They'd automate the entire support process if they knew they could get away with it.
We all know that. |
HAHA, yeah, i'm surprised they haven't done that yet. Probably are working on it.
Thanks for reposting what i said Rocke. To elaborate a little further on the error code 7. I don't agree with it, just went through the steps in case of audit. They tell us that if the hard drive diags were run due to a blue screen issue or a couple of other things, to first try to do a chkdsk through recovery console. About 90% of the time I tried recovery console, It would not log me in. So, the 10% that were able to get into recovery and chkdsk, it would say it fixed the failed sectors, but still not boot, so at that point, you are either supposed to run a repair reinstall (THIS NEVER WORKS) or a clean reinstall. I had maybe 1 out of every 100 customers be successful at reinstalling the OS, which probably only worked for a few weeks. I really don't see how that saves Dell time or money.
Oh well, that's probably why I took the first job offer I got to get the dHell out of there. My new job is awesome. They have been using dHell's and hired me because of that, but were already talking about going with Lenova's with the next purchase. Sounds good to me .
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FallenAngel
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| Posted: Tue Apr 11, 2006 8:50 pm Post subject: |
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Therein lies the trick. An OS reinstall *will* resolve the symptoms you're having, but will NEVER (pay close attention now engineers) resolve the issue itself, which is a hardware failure. It won't be long and you'll be calling them back for more "help".
This applies to failed RAM.
Failed hard drives.
Failed optical drives.
Failed PSU's...
etc.
So yea, how is this supposed to save time and money? Wouldn't it make more sense to get it right the first time? |
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Rocke_T_Sinetist
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| Posted: Wed Apr 12, 2006 9:59 am Post subject: |
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| Quote: | | It won't be long and you'll be calling them back for more "help". |
Yeh, that's the plan. They con you into a paid reinstall twice, total invoiced $198. Then, surprise! NOW they will dispatch hardware to actually address the problem. The dispatch costs roughly $100--just the process, the part itself is under vendor warranty.
Dell's aim is to take the liability out of 'warranty liability'. That's a reasonable goal for a business. The ethical way to do that is to put another 25 cents into the product here and there, instead of gambling that your cheap shit will (barely) outlast the warranty. The Dell way to do that is, snooker the customer for 200% of the actual warranty fulfillment cost.
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FallenAngel
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| Posted: Wed Apr 12, 2006 11:31 am Post subject: |
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This is especially true when you break down the new numbers. A 4 yr "premium" warranty with Complete Care will run you about $250 right out of the box. $250 for 4 years.
Now comes DOC that will charge you $99/incident or $249/1 yr. Base most responses off of per incident. Average caller in 1 year will call at least 6 times for issues on their system. $400 later. Now that'll be just short of double what you paid for a 4 year warranty and all this within 1 calendar year.
What about next year?
Oh, but they say that if you're not satisfied you get your money back? Uh huh, and how long will it be before they realize that the public is getting their shit fixed for free because they're not "completely satisfied" each time they call?
Or better still, they're now gearing to offer "prorated" returns nowadays. So you're not satisfied? Well, we did go out of our way to assist you for a few days so far, so we'll kindly prorate you for the time served so far.
Won't be long and the "guarantee" will be scrapped entirely I'm sure. I mean, think about it realistically -- if they had competant techs that were actual techs in DOC primarily, then yes I could see the "guarantee" enjoying a long run. But we all know that this ain't the case with them. The ratio of scriptmonkeys to actual techs is likely somewhere around 40:1. Can't make a "guarantee" stick if you know that only 1 out of 40 reps will actually get it right the first time.
So if you average the term of your 4 year warranty against the estimated amount of times you call in over that term -- you're now paying an additional $1150 approx. for 4 years worth of DOC (and that's at it's current price which I heard rumor is supposed to rise before the next big "season").
AND...that's only if you keep your amount of calls to 5 or less in any particular calendar year. Regrettably, not too many customers think about this impact. The company still makes the same amount of money on a low end system comparable to 2000-2001 prices ($2000+)...they just make it a different way. |
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