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Is Dell Worth it at 50% off???
- Thread starter Planner Dude
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I wouldn't get it, because I really like OSX. But if you can get your work done with it and the Apple won't cut if for the same price, then I'd get it too.
there is definite ways around full retail anywhere, it's a matter of knowing someone or knowing the game. I can get pretty much any dell system for more than half off. Some brand new, some refurbished but they are at ridiculously cheap prices. probably cheaper than some employees can get there. I can get the same spec laptops as MBP for under $1,000. If he's getting 50% off of dell he will get an awesome loaded up system for $700 at employee pricing. if he is getting 50% from a coupon on dell.com.....that's not a deal he would need to go to the dell outlet to get the real steals...
So I take it you've had good luck with dells or would recommend it if I get employee pricing?
DO you know how tech support / warranties work with Dell? Do they transfer with ownership? Would all in need to tell dell is the model and serial number to get the help / repair or does the original purchaser need to be present?
Also, do have any history about employee discount...is it off the final price from the web (like my friend says, or is he mistaken)?
Do you know if refurbs are subject to employee pricing?
i've bought close to 50 dell systems in the past 2 years mostly from the dell outlet which is refurb's. i've gotten amazing discounts so i'm sure being an employee you can get better then the ones i can get. i'm sure your friend has a employee website that they use when purchasing anything with that pricing. i'm not sure if employee discount can be used on refurbs if u can, that simply amazing bc u can get amzing deals like a MBP that goes for $1999 u can get those same specs but a dell refurb for $800 or so. So if you could get it cheaper than that then that would be sweet. As far as warranties go, you can transfer them online by just typing in the service tag of the machine and the persons address and contact information. It may look kinda weird if the person buys from dell then immediately transfers the warranty to you. You may want to just do the warranty through them in case anything were to happen. I suggest dell to everyone i know bc everyone i know that needs a pc is a basic user on a budget....and we all know those 2 qualities don't go well with an apple. so if you can get a hefty discount then go for it....you won't be able to get anything brand new from apple or even a refurb at that.
WOW!!! 50 !!!
Have you had any problems with them???
Especially the laptops???
What do you mean by:
It may look kinda weird if the person buys from dell then immediately transfers the warranty to you. You may want to just do the warranty through them in case anything were to happen.
Do you mean keep their name on the warranty indefinitely or just for a month or so?
I don't know the employee too well (Brother's Friend's Aunt)so I don;t know how comfortable I'd be with the first scenario ......
haha well of course all 50 weren't for me. most of those machines i bought were laptops. friends and their friends needed a budget portable and didn't wanna pay over $1,000 for a second machine...so of course dell was the cheapest. As far as the ones i've owned, my family and friends have owned, there hasn't been one single problem yet. If something does become a problem it will either get replaced by dell immediately or they will fix it immediately.
What i mean about the warranty is.....she buys the computer at employee pricing it's usually meant for themselves. so if she buys it then like within a week or a month the name on the warranty is changed to someone else it may look weird....you may wanna ask how warranty transfer will work with that. i'm sure it won't be a problem since i've never had one problem with any warranty on the machines i've gotten for friends and family. worse comes to worse.....just get her to get it fixed for you...still worth the money your saving.
this is what you would use to transfer the warranty...easy...
http://support.dell.com/support/topics/global.aspx/support/change_order/en/tag_transfer
OK, a Dell Outlet Refurb or Dell Auction Lease-return 1 year old machine != a new machine, so the 50% off price comparison is not exactly accurate. Esp. if the machine has any less than full new warranty and/or does not come with operating system (it's been a while since I checked the Dell Outlet site so I don't know, but those would be 2 really important things to check for.)
News Flash. You can get used machines cheaper than new. Film At 11
News Flash. You can get used machines cheaper than new. Film At 11
then you should check the outlet before acting like you know what you're talking about......you can buy a scratch and dent, a refurbished, and a previously ordered as new. All the same warranty applies just as if you bought it brand new over the phone or on dell.com. all operating systems and discs come with the machine just as if you were to buy it brand new again. if i sat a refurb'ed next to a brand new machine...u wouldn't be able to tell the difference except for the red sticker on the bottom of the machine that states it's a refurb. BTW the discount on the stuff from the outlet if you know how it's played is well over a 50% discount guaranteed.
NEWS flash...if you knew what you were talking about you'd know you can get brand new systems from the dell outlet..
Yes you are correct, they offer the full new warranty.
Only the "Previously Ordered New" category might be new product, even so it might include used accessories. The Certified Refurbished, Scratch and Dent and Off-lease items are definitely not new. Terms
Unfortunately, there are no Previously Ordered New Latitude, Inspiron or XPS laptops on offer at the moment so I can't compare prices. Some of the Scratch and Dent and Refurb models are discontinued models.
Here's a sample:
Latitude D410 Notebook: Intel Pentium M Processor 740 (1.73GHz) 12.1in XGA Display, 512 Mb DDR RAM, 40 Gb IDE hard drive CD-RW/DVD-ROM Combo drive $839
Vs the closest new machine: Latitude D420, CoreDuo processor, 12.1 in XGA screen, 512 Mb DDR2 RAM, 60 Gb SATA hard drive, DVD+/-RW, WirelessG, three year warranty, $1,437
The Refurb machine is 41% off in this configuration, and the new machine will spank it around the block and back, both in features and performance. This is like comparing an iBook G4 to a MacBook.
Re: reselling these, you have to become a Dell authorized reseller in order to sell them to others:
Policies at delloutlet.com
"Applicable Law; Not For Resale or Export. You agree to comply with all applicable laws and regulations of the various states and of the United States. You agree and represent that you are buying only for your own internal use only, and not for resale or export. "
*Flummoxes Eraserhead by not hitting this thread. Hahahaha.*
Oh, oops.. bugger
Oh well, in for a penny, in for a pound. I buy rather a lot of computers from Dell mainly in the form of servers, as a result of that I used to get decent discounts already, but I get an even higher level of discount courtesy of a financial institution I work with who did me a favour by telling Dell to sell to me direct at their discount rates. Even then it's not 50% off.
Dells don't exactly inspire fierce product loyalty because they're dull products but I find them on the whole well / conservatively engineered (better - or should I say more appropriate than Apple, since both companies have access to the same build quality) and above all, very well supported for the business products (a HELL of a lot better than Apple in this case). I'm not as hugely enamoured of the base-level consumer product support but even then it is still better than Apple, at least in the UK.
I'm not fond of the basic-basic Dell laptops (but then who is of anything basic-basic) but I think the Latitudes are a good deal. I like the D620 right now, it's the right combination of value, portability and performance in a laptop. Core 2 Duo, the NVS1xx series GPU available as an (highly advisable) option, magnesium shell, steel hinges and a high-res 14" screen. It still doesn't feel or look as pretty as the MBP of course but it is a very decent workhorse.
I don't know what your actual budget is, but if I was going for something with a 50% discount I'd go for that, especially as even with my lesser discount I managed to buy *two* D620's with fairly decent specs and full onsite support included for 3 years for the same amount as my Applecare'd 17" MBP.
Just curious...Why is the latitude better than the inspirion...does it have higher quality hardware???
It seems like it has less bells & whistles for the same price?
Hmm, i guess someone at macrumors will like Dell, but if they admit it the rest of us will come round and "re-educate" that individual.
Dell are fine, just not Apple - and round here thats cause for a hanging.
Dell are fine, just not Apple - and round here thats cause for a hanging.
The only problem I see with Dell is that great price they advertise isn't so great, as in order to run XP and a couple of programs at a tolerable pace, you have to add on several hundred bucks (ram upgrade, HD upgrade, possibly a CD upgrade.
for example, the bare bones system may ship with a Celeron, 20gb HD and 256 mb ram.
Celerons are slower than pentiums, and there are a few programs that will not work correctly on a celeron chip. (Pentium M upgrade)
256mb ram is simply not enough, even though Ms says it is. Sure, XP will run under 256, but you'll get way better performance if you get the 512 upgrade.
Given LTs generally use 5400rpm drives, between low ram and a slower drive, you'll spend lots of time waiting. 20gb is borderline now - XP, Office, and a couple other programs, and that 20gb drive is going to start looking small. (need the 40gb upgrade)
In short, if you take the 50% you save off the standard price and apply it to upgrades, you'll probably be OK.
Consider these alternatives:
Laptop:
http://www-132.ibm.com/webapp/wcs/s...1&catalogId=-840&langId=-1&categoryId=2576396
Desktop:
http://www-132.ibm.com/webapp/wcs/s...1&catalogId=-840&langId=-1&categoryId=2576395
Since the Mac is my primary machine, I didn't want to spend much on a windows box. At sub-400 for a 3ghz desktop w/1gb ram...
I wouldn't get a computer from Dell...even if it was given to me for free (although I'd sell it and use the money for a new Mac). However, I would consider a moniter from Dell...
I'm not a Dell fan by any means but are you stuck in 2004?
First of all, the lowest model of any Latitude comes with a 40GB HD and 512MB of ram standard and a Sempron or Celeron.
The lowest model Inspiron comes with a 60GB HD and 512 MB ram with a Sempron.
Granted these figures aren't that much better, it's better than 256 MB and a 20GB hard drive. Don't post useless, non-factual information just because you dislike a company.
What is this talk about Celerons being slower than Pentiums? Pentiums are done...Core is the new processor. Not to mention the newer Celeron chips are a completely different architecture than the old. They are based off the Pentium M, just with less cache.
It's built better. As I said, the D620 has a magnesium shell (pretty strong and light) and steel hinges (stronger but weight penalty - so they balance heavy and light) for longevity. The extended support (3 year on-site) is also included as standard, at least in the UK. The Inspiron is the 'value' range and is engineered more like... well, a Macbook, but fuglier.
My thoughts exactly...
Agree. Mainly for the reasons cited here:
http://www.ihatedell.net
I wouldn't get a computer from Dell...even if it was given to me for free (although I'd sell it and use the money for a new Mac). However, I would consider a moniter from Dell...
Agree. Mainly for the reasons cited here:
http://www.ihatedell.net
well sell it for 10% less than that then, and you'll still make a profit. man, do i have to think of everything?