What Should a Non-Tech Savy Person Do About Support?

[Pluto1618]

I have a question for you guys...

My step-daughter is in the market for a new laptop. She has owned an Alienware laptop for about 5 years and she really liked it. She said that they gave her great tech support. She is aware, however, that Dell bought AW and she is concerned that if she buys another AW laptop she will not get, (a) the same quality laptop, and/or (b) the same quality tech support.

I have told her that she can get way more bang for her buck if she has the PC assembled for her (she isn't going to build it herself). But she is concerned about what she might do for tech support under such a scenario.

She is good with software but is definitely not a hardware geek. She doesn't want to build her own machine.

Is AW's tech support even a shadow of what it once was? Should she avoid buying AW? If so, what SHOULD she buy (again, she ain't building it herself)? And most importantly, do you have any advice for her on where she should go to get tech support if she bought a machine through an online builder?

Thanks very much for any insights you might be willing to share. I appreciate it.

Pluto1618

 

[EnderWiggin]

First of all, I would not trust answers about a company's support or sale track record in a public forum, for every 1 complainer posting , there might be 9 happy users not posting, so you will end up with a slanted opinion. You should look for a poll based on a larger population like the ones PC World magazine compile every year about computer, HDTV and other electronic vendors.

Next, you say she wants a laptop so building it herself is out of the question. Laptop kits are few and very limited, so if she doesn't want a desktop, she will need to stick with a major vendor like DELL, Gatway, Toshiba, or HP. If she wants a gaming laptop, then she will need to consider the more expensive Alienware (DELL), Sager, CyberPower, IBuyPower, Falcon Northwest, Gateway, etc.

If she had a good experience with Alienware, I would stick with them. If she is concerned about support, or hardware failure, she should consider extending her guarantee beyond the 1 year period. Don't forget there is not much to do (change) with a laptop, you can only upgrade the hard drive and RAM so any other hardware issues will need to be fixed by vendor.

 

[Pluto1618]

Thanks, guys! She does want a gamer's machine. And she definitely does not want to build it herself.

I hear what you're saying about needing to take what you read about support from various companies with a large grain of salt.

 

[WR2]

Back before Dell bought Alienware it was known as a boutique builder. And they were renown for supporting what they sold.
There are still plenty of boutique builders out there that have much the same reputation.
And they do more than just 'gamer' builds.

Case in point would be XoticPC who do custom laptop builds for business and home office users. And yes, they build for gamers too.
An example would be: ASUS U43JC-A1

If you're curious what some of the former Alienware guys are up to these days visit http/www.originpc.com/

 

[Pluto1618]

Thanks, WR2. Great info. I appreciate your taking the time to post.

 

[Pluto1618]

Best answer selected by Pluto1618.