Hope nobody is waiting on a Time/Tiny PC

[Shude]

Errr... Glasgow to be precise

The consumer-level support people are in India, they were less than helpful!

With laptops at least (not necessary for desktops), make sure you pay the extra for 3 years next day onsite warranty and you will not regret it. Laptops are no longer component based - if anything fails its a motherboard swap @ £300... not something you wish to fork out for on a 13 month old laptop.

If they were built properly they'd not fail after 13 months. This is the exact argument I had with the Indian guy and he just repeated "OUT OF WARRANTY" more and more loudly until I gave up. I shouldn't have to buy an extended warranty package for something as expensive as a laptop when I expect it to last a couple of years at least, not precisely 1 month over their manufactured expiry date.

They should advertise that their products only last 13 months and then consumers would be able to make better decisions!

 

[MikeL]

The consumer-level support people are in India, they were less than helpful!

If they were built properly they'd not fail after 13 months. This is the exact argument I had with the Indian guy and he just repeated "OUT OF WARRANTY" more and more loudly until I gave up. I shouldn't have to buy an extended warranty package for something as expensive as a laptop when I expect it to last a couple of years at least, not precisely 1 month over their manufactured expiry date.

They should advertise that their products only last 13 months and then consumers would be able to make better decisions!

You have noted the worst problem with India (not exclusive to India though) call centres - they can only work within a small "sphere" of operation, unable to provide assistance outside a standard remit, everything is black & white. Very frustrating.

Mike

 

[Shude]

You have noted the worst problem with India (not exclusive to India though) call centres - they can only work within a small "sphere" of operation, unable to provide assistance outside a standard remit, everything is black & white. Very frustrating.

The guy had a script and he was sticking to it.

This is also true of any other outfit these days. Try returning something to a Comet or a Dixons and prepare to hear that your fairly expensive piece of electrical equipment is past it's included 12 months warranty and that you'll have to buy a new one. At least you can scare customers away by shouting at staff about their poor quality items. Enough people walk out and the manager gets interested. The spotty teenagers that work in these places have no idea about consumer rights, the shops make more money out of warranty packages than they do from electrical goods or whatever they're peddling.

Still, most places look good compared to Time

 

[Sp!ke]

Its a tricky one really, yes, products should last 'a reasonable' length of time and whilst I agree that 12 months isnt enough to expect a £1000 item to last. The thing is that laptops are mobile devices.

My laptop has lasted 4 years so far with only one HDD failure. But I look after it carefully. I am gentle with it, I transport it in a padded bag, I close its lid gently , dont expose it to extremes of temperature, humidity or damness etc etc.

Other people I see treat their company laptops like sh*te. they virtually throw it into their docking station, they leave it in the boot of the car overnight in sub zero temperatures, they drop it and do all manner of bad things with it and then complain when it needs a component changed saying its badly designed.

Whilst I agree that it should be designed to cater for this abuse, in order to build in suitable protection from the likes of Mr Gorilla the public, the only way of making it robust enough is to design something bulky, heavy and so expensive that no-one would buy it. Afterall, consumers want something that is sleak and light for very little cost. Design compromises follow and we get machines that if properly cared for, last a reasonable length of time. The insurance cost to guarantee a 3 year lifespan is about £100. In my view, that is really quite reasonable considering the delicate electronic components contained within.

 

[RichardM]

I'm on my second dell laptop (and about 4th desktop) and although I have had a problem with a keyboard on the first laptop they fixed it next day on site. Can't complain at that.

 

[BTB 500]

Dell agreed to send me just a replacement CD drive that I could fit myself (rather than taking the box away to swap them over) ... so I was quite happy. That's the only time I ever dealt with their customer support, maybe I was lucky but when I replaced the PC earlier this year I got another Dell.

My dad bought a Tiny

 

[Thmsshaun]

Not really suprised about Time / Tiny whoever they were. They are poorly built and I wouldnt give them the time of day. Unfortunatly they just sold to people who know no better.

Personally I always Upgrade/ Build my own & families desktop systems.
As for Dell always been happy with their laptops and if anyone asks my opinion I would recomend a Dell.

 

[Spinal]

The consumer-level support people are in India, they were less than helpful!

If they were built properly they'd not fail after 13 months. This is the exact argument I had with the Indian guy and he just repeated "OUT OF WARRANTY" more and more loudly until I gave up. I shouldn't have to buy an extended warranty package for something as expensive as a laptop when I expect it to last a couple of years at least, not precisely 1 month over their manufactured expiry date.

They should advertise that their products only last 13 months and then consumers would be able to make better decisions!

I believe you missed the crucial point. Personally, I think Dell are GREAT "entry level" systems, good for someone that needs a comptuer for 3 years, then wants to "upgrade" (i.e. throw it away and buy a new one).

I've had several dells, and believe me, they are so well designed that within 3months of the warranty ending, something WILL go wrong... just not before. One majoy point I will give dell is the amount of planning they put into cooling the processor. No two words about it.

Michele