We're not sure who or what is putting these
XPS M1330 laptops together for
Dell, but not only are they having a horrible time of it even getting the laptops out the door, but this particular man's shipment was just a little lacking in the quality department when it arrived two weeks
ahead of the estimated ship date. The $2k+ laptop looked fine at first glance, but when Pradeep popped it open and hit the power button, it immediately booted to a blank, white, flickering screen. After 10 minutes, nothing had changed, no Dell logo, Vista boot screen or anything -- not only had Dell forgotten an OS, they didn't even manage to squeeze in a system BIOS before they shipped this one. That wasn't all that Dell screwed up on this M1330, the power button is defective, the Microsoft seal underneath the machine is partially ripped and burned, there's a problem with a grill cover protruding, and the WiFi radio switch is so loose it almost falls off when pushed back and forth. Sure, this is just one guy's experience with one M1330, and his mom got a similar computer -- after a much longer shipment wait -- that worked just fine, but we're still thinking Dell might try and shore up quality control just a little bit before somebody manages to get something shoddier than this out the door. Dell's giving Pradeep a new laptop, labeled "priority" in the build queue, and offered him a $50 gift certificate for his trouble.
Update: After spotting this article, Dell contacted us for help getting a hold of Pradeep, and is currently helping expedite his new system. Pradeep did say his replacement was already "priority" before this article went up, but we're sure the PR people are going to speed things up considerably for him. Of course, this is just one person's experience, and we hope Dell will show the same courtesy to everyone involved in the M1330 fiasco -- or better yet, start shipping these things intact and on time!
Update 2: Dell hit us up, apparently after doing some diags on Pradeep's machine, they claim to have discovered that while the M1330 in question did have Windows installed on its drive, just so happens that whomever assembled the system didn't connect the LCD's LVDS to the motherboard. Not that that's much better or anything. Anyway, it seems like all's well that ends well for Pradeep, but we aren't sure we can say the same for the rest of Dell's M1330 customers.
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 2)
Dan @ Aug 23rd 2007 1:58PM
So? It's Dell, what did you expect?
m @ Aug 23rd 2007 5:15PM
i expect that it would have crappy battery life and that the mouse button would wear out after 11 months, just like mine.
itguy07 @ Aug 23rd 2007 7:33PM
Like I've been saying for years, DELL = GARBAGE.
DELL is not worth the box it ships in.
James @ Aug 23rd 2007 1:59PM
Isn' it a bit stupid to show his product key number in the photo?! OK maybe it was for a defunct OS but still... it could be abused.
Nerdtalker @ Aug 23rd 2007 2:43PM
Leave it to Engadget (whose editors probably haven't touched an "M$" OS since 1995) to not know that basically all Vista/Microsoft product key stickers are routinely scratched through to see the security strips inside. I can show you about 30 that I have that all come with that, they do it to combat piracy.
There's nothing with the one pictured. A little bowed, perhaps, but seriously, stop splitting hairs with this sensationalist nonsense.
I love how one XPS M1330 merits an article, but the countless MBPs with bloating, bulging batteries or loose aluminum seams at the edges never get any attention. http://www.appledefects.com/
mark @ Aug 23rd 2007 3:33PM
Wow Engadget--your bias is past the point of being pathetic now. What ever happened to you guys? You now pander to the totally uninformed and inexperienced; you're either a bunch of sellouts or truly hiring random people off the street. Perhaps this is why g^izmondo is gaining on you and for the first time achieved higher page hits (although briefly, but still unprecedented) twice in the last month.
Ya used to be so cool.
Adios
http://www.alexa.com/data/details/traffic_details?site0=www.engadget.com&site1=gizmodo.com%2F&site2=&site3=&site4=&x=59&y=11&h=300&w=610&h=400&w=700&z=3&range=6m&size=Medium&y=r&z=3&url=www.engadget.com
John @ Aug 23rd 2007 5:44PM
http://www.engadget.com/2007/04/30/bloated-17-inch-macbook-pro-battery-part-4/
Shutup Nerdtalker. You lose.
James @ Aug 24th 2007 9:31AM
Tbh I think Gizmodo sucks. They split the site between countries (Britain and America which is STUPID as it's just about the same content on both), the US site design is awful and you miss half of the posts due to the fact that some of them are only two lines tall and surrounded by adverts.
Engadget rules; simple, nice design and good content.
t3hnub @ Aug 23rd 2007 2:00PM
it cant be a good idea to post a pic of the guys vista CD key ...
buzzo @ Aug 23rd 2007 2:04PM
I've seen 2 Quanta made HP laptops with the same hole in the COA sticker.
JJ @ Aug 23rd 2007 2:13PM
Let's time ourselves how fast that CD Key gets posted on the internet in other websites........
(Already saved the image... XD)
Andrei Vassiliev @ Aug 23rd 2007 3:42PM
It's an OEM key which will only work if you have a special certificate pre-installed in Windows, and this works in conjunction with a signature in the BIOS. NO you can't use this on just any copy of Vista Ultimate you dolts.
Evan @ Aug 23rd 2007 4:13PM
Andrei... I have a feeling someone will figure out how to use that. That certainly wasn't the case with XP either.
t3hnub @ Aug 23rd 2007 5:06PM
your right it wont activate over the net, but you can call MS and they will activate OEM keys for non OEM hardware
PG @ Aug 23rd 2007 2:00PM
Tell that idiot I said "thanks" for posting a Vista Ultimate key, I can use one.
r0fl @ Aug 23rd 2007 2:02PM
there's nothing wrong with the microsoft seal... it's supposed to look like that
Nathan @ Sep 17th 2007 5:53AM
Uhu. Same with the twelve copies of Vista Ultimate I bought for my business, they all have the same rip and burn. It's meant to be there peeps.
ryantrevisol @ Aug 23rd 2007 2:04PM
That's a shame, because the M1330's design had so much potential. It was a contender for my next laptop purchase (along with a macbook, thinkpad x), but given the latest financial news about dell, and the woes of quality with this thing, I think I'll be giving my money to someone else.
AdvWar @ Aug 23rd 2007 5:21PM
What has "financial news" at Dell got to do with making a laptop purchase?
ark_v2 @ Aug 24th 2007 12:20AM
Because one unit had defects? WTF?!
ryantrevisol @ Aug 24th 2007 7:45AM
Yes, I actually do consider what kind of company I'm buying from when i make a purchase.
When Dell was caught falsifying sales numbers for the last three years, not only does it look like it could be the beginning of the end for Dell, which wouldn't be
I own two dells. A Dimension E510, which I got refurbished for a great price, and an aging Inspiron 8600.
I used to have confidence in dell based on my good experiences with them, but not any more.
Does that mean I have more confidence in Lenovo or Apple? No, maybe just more respect. I can respect Apple's design ideology, and their overall philosophy. And, being that I work at a school stocked with over 90% Apples, I've seen their quality. Lenovo I can respect for what they did buying out IBM's laptop division, which they were making anyway. I mean, everything's made in China anyway, but at least this company has a reason to take pride in their product. And I was really impressed by the solidity and features of the Thinkpad X and T that I was able to demo at a store.
Which brings me to the real reason I would go with Lenovo, or Apple, or even Sony above Dell nowadays.
At the very least, you can go to a store and actually buy the computer. And you can take it right back without waiting if you get a lemon like this, instead of having to send it back to never-never land and wait 3 weeks.
So from a consumer's point of view, there are a lot of games in town looking a lot more attractive than Dell right now, from my perspective.
Jon @ Aug 23rd 2007 2:05PM
Sounds like a Lemon to me.
Do Lemon Laws cover Personal Computers?
Homeboy @ Aug 23rd 2007 4:25PM
It's a lemon but at the same time it isn't. I've been reading around at various big notebook forums and quality problems with the m1330 are quite widespread even though the design flaws are minor.
That is quite sad because it is a very attractive and desirable laptop.
dixonij @ Aug 23rd 2007 2:08PM
Just $50 off? Sheesh.. for such trouble like that I'd have expected a little more...
Juaquin @ Aug 23rd 2007 2:27PM
Yeah, they should give him all the upgrades on that computer, if he hadn't already selected them.
David McGraw @ Aug 23rd 2007 2:09PM
Considering that the OS was never installed/activated, somebody just got a free CD key.
Just a note: The windows sticker always looks like that to verify its authenticity.
Kas @ Aug 23rd 2007 2:11PM
The tear in the COA is sometimes done intentionally by the OEM to expose the holographic strips inside, I've seen tons like that on many computers, it's to show the Certificate of Authenticity is truly authentic.
Lucas Couvreur @ Aug 23rd 2007 2:16PM
Hey, this Dell looks nice but,
maybe it's time to get A Mac?
Thanks for the key btw :) I'll use it when I need it..
Ellianth @ Aug 23rd 2007 2:26PM
...Because apple computers never ship with defects...
So, why exactly would you need a vista CD key if you're so happy with OS X? Hopefully by the time I save up enough pennies to buy an m1330 Dell will have solved their delay problems and ship laptops that actually work.
L. M. Lloyd @ Aug 23rd 2007 2:41PM
Funny, when my wife got an iPod that came out of the box completely bricked, all my Machead friends excoriated me for implying it was anything but an isolated incident, that is unavoidable for any company no matter how high their quality controls are. Yet when Dell ships a bricked unit, it is a clear sign of how everybody should buy an Apple product instead, because Apple has such impeccable quality control.
Jacob @ Aug 23rd 2007 2:18PM
lol anyone tried using that key to see if it works?
DarkAardvark @ Aug 23rd 2007 9:21PM
even if the key does work, vista never will....
Max @ Aug 23rd 2007 2:18PM
+1 on the Vista COA lable hole. Microsoft designs that label with a hole to prevent people from removing the labels and transferring to another system. Probably spent $1million bucks and a room full of lawyers to design a tamper-proof piece of paper :-)
Paris K @ Aug 23rd 2007 2:29PM
Will you stop it already with the key. Dell keys work only on an OEM version of Vista which can rarely be installed on anything else other than a DELL system.
David McGraw @ Aug 23rd 2007 3:02PM
Uh... Go to newegg.com and type OEM Windows. SURPRISE!
jps @ Aug 23rd 2007 3:52PM
pwned
Paris K @ Aug 23rd 2007 4:20PM
Look up at Andrei Vassiliev post. He's explaining it nicely.
Dave @ Aug 23rd 2007 9:19PM
Not true. I am using my OEM copy of Vista Ultimate that came with my Dell on my iMac as we speak, down to the Dell logo in the Welcome Center. I'm running XP on the Dell now, but it is perfectly feasible to install it on a non-dell.
Rick @ Aug 23rd 2007 2:32PM
Made in China. Enough said.
Pradeep Giri @ Aug 23rd 2007 2:41PM
Actually, surprisingly enough, it was Made in Malaysia - at least that's what the box said. And, just to ask, is getting a free ticket to Vista REALLY that exciting? I mean let's be honest - having the penthouse suite in hell may be nice, but you're still in hell.
TJ @ Aug 23rd 2007 3:19PM
You know what they said, for some people its better to rule in hell than to serve in heaven.
jimbo @ Aug 23rd 2007 2:42PM
Hello, that Vista tag is JUST FINE. They all ship like that. Every new machine our school has received for the past 2 years (400+) has had a tag similar. Machines 4 years old have small wears on them stock, its to show of the security bands.
Jimbo
L. M. Lloyd @ Aug 23rd 2007 2:45PM
Just out of curiosity, how can you tell if the power button is defective, if there is no BIOS? On modern PCs, the power button is controlled through the BIOS, so without one, I wouldn't expect the power button to be able to do much of anything.
Pradeep Giri @ Aug 23rd 2007 3:04PM
They cut out my explanation, but basically the power button was recessed too far into the machine. Thus, instead of being able to simply push the button and have it “pop” back up in response, you had to jam your finger into the hole and push hard for the machine to turn on. There was no physical/tactile feedback. This is NOT how our other properly built/functioning m1330 power button behaves.
adam @ Aug 23rd 2007 2:50PM
I have just bought a dell laptop with the same quality issues. It's been a month and Dell has yet to resolve my problems. I keep sending it back for a repairs and I end up with more problems. I even got my laptop back with hair and garbage falling out of the expansion slots. then somebody actually cleaned the screen with a cleaner that ruined the screen. It's insane! All in all whoever is putting these things together and repairing them is doing a terrible job. I would avoid Dell until they fix these issues.
waiownsyou @ Aug 23rd 2007 2:52PM
LMAO, shipping without BIOS? What happened to hand-built Dells that we've come to expect? And burned Microsoft stickers? ROFL!
Drakin @ Aug 23rd 2007 3:01PM
@waiownsyou
That last part of the statement just proves how stupid you really are.
I use Dell servers and I think Dell is the best at large corporations. Yeah they will have some shotty stuff come out from time to time but hey, as long as they take care of the customer and fix their mistakes, then they will keep at least me as a customer.
David McGraw @ Aug 23rd 2007 3:06PM
Dell has some outstanding customer support. Any problems that 'I' have had with my two dell laptops, I've got a replacement for hardware in a couple of days, and a replacement of CDs or Cables the next day.
They try incredibly hard to keep their customers happy. This is just a crappy situation.
adam @ Aug 23rd 2007 3:09PM
@waiownsyou I'm also haveing the same problems and I don't think these are just isolated instances. Dell has got a serious problem with who's putting these things together. And their repair hub is no better. I will only be satisfied once my problem is fixed. 1month and counting.
Khris @ Aug 23rd 2007 3:15PM
Man's XPS M1330 arrives sans OS, quality.....
Engadget staff "burned" by new MS Security sticker!