No More Dell Computers for Me

So after a mere 4 years, my Dell desktop has decided to go haywire. In the short span I've had this goofy box, I've had to reinstall the OS a couple times and swap out the CD-ROM drive. Both of my USB ports don't work anymore, and I can no longer get the Dell to communicate with the Printer (and I'm usually pretty good at this sort of thing, digging around online to find answers to common problems like this.)

The Dell just seems to be prematurely dying for no apparent reason (and I don't even do that much with it: internet, word processing, Photoshop and the occasional video game, but nothing that should be giving this computer such a heart attack like this!) What's even more frustrating about this Dell is their customer support. Dell apparently has this all done 100% in India now, and, with respect to my Indian pals overseas, let me just say that, you are some nice people on the phone, but I just have a very hard time understanding that heavy Hindi accent, that critically missing English nuance and inflection, that strange tendency to inter-swap "D" sounds with "Z" sounds, etc, etc. Nice folks I'm sure, but I spend a half hour explaining to you that the network card in the Dell isn't working and I really don't think you have a clue what I'm talking about.

There's also, I don't know, a condescending edge to the responses. With the Indian person it's like, "Oh, you silly person, don't you know how to do anything?" Well, yeah, I do, but do you think I'd be calling if I hadn't already done most of the leg-work myself? Just send me a replacement part and let's end this call, kay?

As an aside, I love 100% American call centers. No matter how surly the person on the phone is, at least I feel like they understand what I'm saying, even if they don't care one way or the other. Some of the best call center folks I know of are at Discover card (and friendly they should be, as I've likely paid all of their income with my credit card interest!) There are some not-so-friendly call centers in the US, sure, and I could go off on that in another post, but I'd prefer to get this any day of the week instead of my call getting shipped offshore.



With the US, if you get a grouchy person, you can always ask for a manager, and generally (not always) get a more sympathetic manager to straighten things out. With India, if you ask for a manager, you get someone equally as muddled and just as difficult to communicate with (I'm speaking from experience here, sadly.)

Anyhow, no more Dells for me. If Dell's are anything like the one I bought, they drop parts and fall apart with the tenacity of a 1985 Ford LTD.