Dell also blames Inspiron delays on inability to paint stuff

We're not really sure how a company like Dell hasn't been able to track down anyone with some laptop coloring chops to fulfill its backlog of XPS M1330 and Inspiron orders, but whatever their reason might be for not figuring things out by now, Dell is pinning colored Inspiron delays on that exact same paint job problem they detailed for the M1330. As has been the case from the start, your best shot at getting a laptop in a timely manner from the big D is to completely disregard those ads of theirs and order a boring old black or white model -- individuality is overrated anyways.

[nerdtalker @ Aug 26th 2007 1:12AM]

Only black and white ship fast? Wow, that's a blatant affront to individuality and personalization.

Wait, how many colors does the MacBook come in? MacBook Pro? Oh wait... /smacks forehead

[Michael La Framboise @ Aug 26th 2007 1:42AM]

The difference is that the MacBooks can actually look good while being black/white ;)


And why are you even mentioning the MBP? I mean ffs, its a pro model; why the hell would there be a rainbow of colours?

[Samo @ Aug 26th 2007 7:13AM]

@Michael La Frambois: The M1330 IS a pro version lappie too, and it has colour options. Just because it's a pro model, doesn't mean it HAS to be a business only lappie... No execs can have lots of expendable money too (alas, sadly not this graduate), and maybe they like a lappie that coordinates with their shoes, shirt, bag, etc?

Personally, more choice = good. Need it for biz? black then. If not, here's more lovely colours!

[Ed @ Aug 26th 2007 11:16AM]

Ok, if a company can't even paint their products as advertised, I can't even imagine about the quality of the actual product. Poor Dell.

[Neebs @ Aug 26th 2007 2:19PM]

Wow, I'd love to have logic like that, Ed, that somehow paint is related to the actual computer hardware quality.

[derek @ Aug 26th 2007 1:15AM]

A major computer manufacturer can't paint a computer? Sad

[John Doe @ Aug 26th 2007 1:44AM]

Yes because you are an authority right? You know that the problem doesn't lie in the thickness used? Or if it’s flaking off? Or that the bond on the bottom is better then on top? Or or or. Oh and the fact that it’s probably due to some third party vendor in China or Taiwan who screwed up not Dell.
Please do us all a favor and STFU. I truly am getting sick of people coming onto this board as the supreme authority on a subject when they are in all likelihood some high school a-hole who can't even spell authority let alone comprehend how difficult it can be to apply a paint job on a surface that can very in plastic type, material, amount of ware, heat ruggedness (What you think the heat from a CPU can't bake off the paint?), etc. Drop dread you couch surfing loosers.

[derek @ Aug 26th 2007 1:50AM]

Jesus! Chill out. You are the one going insane over a post on a technology blog. That sure makes you look intelligent, doesn't it?

[jbstingray @ Aug 26th 2007 1:49AM]

@ John Doe.

And you are? Ah, yes, the biggest hypocrite in the world. I am sure he is insinuating that it is sad that Dell has to have a third party paint its products rather than doing it in-house.

If he doesn't have the authority to comment on it, neither do you. Regardless of that fact, you behave like a seven year old and could only wish to display the maturity of a "high-school a-hole" as you put it.

Learn some manners and some inference skills, John.

-jb

[Bloobie @ Aug 26th 2007 3:04AM]

John Doe: learn how to spell 'loser', 'wear', and 'vary' before running your mouth off and calling someone a "high school a-hole who can't even spell authority".

[mattclarkie @ Aug 26th 2007 7:38AM]

A car company had a problem a few years back that several colour options were vulnerable to UV or some other environmental factor and they had to re-formulate certain colours.

Maybe that is the problem. But being a laptop it is more likely caused by the heat of the screen/casing causing imperfections in the dies in the plastic.

Or maybe they just proved more popular than they expected.

[Tristan @ Aug 26th 2007 2:22PM]

My brother, just entering college order his dell 4 weeks ago, we were told it was delayed becuase in the painting process Dell is having trouble keeping the dust from landing on the fresh paint


seriously.

[waiownsyou @ Aug 26th 2007 1:18AM]

lol, all those customers on the page who left a comment sound pretty pissed... except for that one random guy that seems to want to have buttseckz with Dell but the general consensus is that Dell should jump off a bridge

[Scott @ Aug 26th 2007 1:28AM]

I just bought a Dell laptop with the Spring Green cover... it took about two weeks less than they claimed it would. I think they are just covering their bases in the event they get swamped by orders.

I think most people are getting their new Inspirons in good time... this was one of the first truly bad posts I have seen on this site.

[Tavis Veighey @ Aug 26th 2007 1:48AM]

Before expanding the color options to other models, they should have FIXED THE ISSUES FIRST!!!!!!!

[jjberrgy14 @ Aug 26th 2007 2:13AM]

I don't want to be a grammar nerd or jerk, but "anyways" isn't a real word. Sorry, I don't know why I felt compelled to point that out.

[waiownsyou @ Aug 26th 2007 2:32AM]

Oh ANYWAYS is a word but just non-standard— slang, if you will. Besides, the tone of the article is clearly on a personal rather than professional, so it's all good.

[Xavier Gill @ Aug 26th 2007 6:41AM]

All words are made up at some point, if you understand what it means they you can go ahead and accept it as a word.

[jjberrgy14 @ Aug 26th 2007 5:53PM]

good point

[painty @ Aug 26th 2007 2:17AM]

heh..i was thinking about ordering one of these, good thing saw this article first...anyway if its delayed, its delayed.....no fault of dells as long as they warn potential buyers beforehand

[calvin @ Aug 26th 2007 2:34AM]

that is not rite, they should have it in stock or so by now.

[LTM @ Aug 26th 2007 2:34AM]

Ordered an XPS M1330 a week ago with the tuxedo black and they've given me a September 26th shipping date.....hate to think how long it would have taken if I'd have gone for the red one.

[ChrisG @ Aug 26th 2007 2:36AM]

Well it kind of doesn't make sense that Dell would put out this model for sale with out fixing the color issues and advertisements that keep saying you can get it in different colors. Anyway if you just can't wait to get it in the oh so favorite color scheme that you want and will do anything for a painted version, you could try ordering it and them getting it colored by Colorware (colorware-pc.com). They do have a few services for Dell, so it's not like your getting it spray painted lol. However, it would probably cost less if you just wait.

[William Dowell @ Aug 26th 2007 5:02AM]

I get the impression everyone seems to think this is Dell's first time with colours on the back of laptops. Not true! I had an inspiron 3800 - I had it in maroon! It came in about 5 colours i think (white, if i recollect correctly, wasnt an option though). They were "clip on" and you could change them. Anyone remember this?

[MRCUR @ Aug 26th 2007 10:35AM]

I remember those. The few remaining Dell laptops at my school all have the blue clip on lid.

[LTM @ Aug 26th 2007 4:38PM]

I still have one of the 3800's running and I bought that in December 2000 and I've never had a problem with it which is the reason I decided to upgrade to the M1330 ( In between were Gateway's and Compaq's ). I'm hoping the reliability side is still intact with Dell. I'm hearing too many alarmist views and I'd rather judge my own experience than listen to everyone complaining about time delays, color issues and customer service problems. Granted, I think September 26th is a long time to wait for a laptop, but the reviews on the M1330 have been positive; it's just a matter of actually getting it seems to be the huge stumbling block.

[Chris McGuire @ Aug 26th 2007 6:15AM]

I just went for the black one. Shows up finger prints like crazy!

[Darren @ Aug 26th 2007 7:17AM]

white is one of the worst delay colors from what ive seen on the website. The pearl white anyway. I ordered a yellow inspiron 1520, got a sept 10 delay date but actually got it in about a week so its not so bad.

[Laura @ Sep 12th 2007 12:18AM]

Maybe you got mine! I ordered a yellow one and got a Sept 10 ship date, and there's no sign of it yet.

[Mitch @ Aug 26th 2007 8:08AM]

They should just ship the laptop in white with a can of Krylon and some tape :)

[Rick Lobrecht @ Aug 26th 2007 8:37AM]

My company uses Dell PCs, and purchasing is telling me that they're having trouble getting LCDs for the Latitudes we buy.

No painting involved.

[JeffDM @ Aug 26th 2007 12:34PM]

I really don't even think it matters. Delays happen for a multitude of possible legitimate reasons. This is hypothetical, but if you got your notebook right away but found that it was lead paint, or it blistered, cracked or faded prematurely, I think you'd be more upset.

[Matt @ Aug 26th 2007 12:56PM]

My father ordered a red one at the beginning of July. By the second week of July, the status said it was on a truck/in transit. After waiting a full month, the Dell rep said the latest it would arrive would be August 15th. Anyway, he canceled his order last week and bought a Toshiba.

[Dell is the worst @ Aug 26th 2007 4:22PM]

I had the same experience with Dell, bought one, they screwed around for months, I cancelled the order (which took many tries) and bought an IBM instead. Dell was once a decent company but their quality of everything has taken a complete crap in recent years, I hope they fold.

[hpfanboi @ Aug 26th 2007 5:43PM]

why would you hope they fold? They employ about 70,000 employees.

[_V3ndetta_ @ Aug 26th 2007 1:16PM]

Sorry, Dell, but http://www.colorwarepc.com/ does a better job of painting YOUR laptops than you do. Or they used to, I haven't checked their site in a while.

[Deepkeeper @ Aug 27th 2007 1:53AM]

But 400$ for colorware color - against (first free) and now 50$ from Dell... Feel the difference?

[eric cumbee @ Aug 26th 2007 2:23PM]

where has engadget been, this is old news. sounds like nothing but weekend filler.

[chris @ Aug 26th 2007 2:23PM]

Canceling my m1330 order was like dodging a bullet. My Sony SZ680 runs great and there is no reason to paint Carbon Fiber.

[karmaghost @ Aug 26th 2007 4:00PM]

$50 for the pain job? Really? I would have thought it was just a matter of popping a different faceplate/bezel/whatever on there. I think it's a good idea to add color, but I dunno if I'd shell out $50 for the privilege.

[Court Kizer @ Aug 26th 2007 6:27PM]

Why not just order and get colorware to paint it? (I'm assuming it's more expensive) You can get any model computer painted by them.

If you have a MacBook Pro and are feeling left out, there is a company selling hard-shell 'skins' for the MacBook Pro that come in assorted colors. I got mine in black and it looks like I just have a black MacBook Pro, you can't tell the shell is on it.

It's cool that Dell is offering colors, wonder if it's just painted or if it's anodized aluminum?

[Jennifer @ Aug 26th 2007 7:21PM]

If you want an Inspiron in color fast, check out the Dell outlet. I ordered an Inspiron 1521 in white and received it three days later. It looks brand new and the same configuration on a new laptop would have been $200 more. I love it! Its a great deal and they have all colors on there. I originally wanted Flamingo Pink, but the ones on the website were more expensive than I had in mind. It's worth checking out - if you don't like it when you get it, you have 21 days to return.

[mks7800 @ Aug 26th 2007 10:23PM]

Everyone here has made valid points. I don't make myself out to be an expert either but have any of us ever ramped up a product from small scale testing to mass production? Maybe some, but the majority of us have no clue what causes these problems exactly. Dell employee here saying...

White was delayed(and completely pulled on the 1330) because dust contamination caused the white clear coat to crack in an unacceptable percentage of backplates. .1% of 1000 people that buy one(with a cracked backplate) means that 1 person will be really pissed they got a bad paint job. Why does wanting to give equal quality make a company evil? Higher qualities longer wait.

Other colors were in very high demand. Price was 0$ at first. 30$ a week later. Now 50$ Why did it go up? Supply/Demand, and the fact that a cost lowers demand meaning the people that paid good money for it got it SUPPLIED sooner.

Several other factors increased waits. LCD shortage at the end of July into august on higher quality higher resolution panels, The fact that the ramp up issues took place at the busiest OEM time of year for laptops, and most importantly the fact that dell wanted to make sure that customers got what they were paying for in colors 100% of the time.

Several catalog configurations give you free color choice currently. However, the drawback is you don't get the Dell Care Packages. If you are looking for a base warranty or peicemeal warranty those are the systems for you.

@Court Kizer
White is clear coated white painted aluminum. Black is a powder coat basically. Other colors are a Microsatin coating on the aluminum. Only black and white have a hard feel others are almost silky.


As an overall note, things can't always be anticipated in small scale production tests. If something is a limited problem(small %) statistically there is a chance it can be completely missed in small scale tests. Also, the latitudes don't get custom paint jobs. LCDs are their only real delay at the moment.

[kps4600 @ Aug 27th 2007 12:28AM]

i agree wholeheartedly, mks

[Mark @ Aug 27th 2007 11:01AM]

I agree with your perspective mks. I have no doubt these delays may be unavoidable and will result in a better product but in a world where you can order from several places and overnight shipping these types of things need to be addressed before going live. Bottom line is my friend was told to wait two weeks and then again told to wait another two weeks. He cancelled and went to Best Buy. It would have taken 34 days (if they came through after the second delay) to get a Dell. A trip to best buy took 1/2 hour, he saved a bit of money and is very happy with what he bought! It is a very competitive world and I think Dell is going to be in big trouble if they don't fix this fast!

[Nancy @ Aug 28th 2007 4:33PM]

I ordered a pink Inspiron 1721 on 7/18. My order has been delayed 3 times. My new anticipated ship date is 9/5. I have been told that they were out of LCD screens and have trouble with the paint. Today I was told that they don't have notebook covers in any color including basic black. I ordered the computer for my daughter to use at college. I have been a loyal customer of Dell for 10 years. I am tired of their excuses. I'm going to Best Buy this weekend to buy something else. I think Dell has the worst customer service in the world. They don't even employ any English speaking people. I have a hard time understanding them. Dell has lost me as a customer.

[elektrik @ Aug 28th 2007 8:32PM]

I ordered a green dell laptop on the 10th of July, still hadn't received it. Called them when my online order number said it would arrive. Everytime i called they added another 4 business days to the shipment date. Kept calling, kept getting delayed, because they didn't have the colour. But they offered a black one....no thanks. I went with dell for the coloured option, if i wanted black i would have went into a store and bought one. Needless to say they weren't helpful, sorry or cared about me or my order, so i cancelled the order on august 27th (still hadn't arrived) Grrrr...first time Dell shopper...and last time!

[WMS @ Aug 31st 2007 10:50AM]

Ordered an Inspiron for my niece to start college this semester. Evidently ordering a month in advance isn't enough lead time for Dell. She's been in school for a week and no computer. My ship date still shows as the 28th...hello, it's the 31st already! Probably will cancel and order something else---not a Dell. Can't wait to see their next quarter earnings after all the refunds.