Shawn S

Yea, the system I’m looking at is about 2,200 from Dell direct.
or
2,000 through the Small Business section.
or
1,710 through the EEP Employee’s plan.
And that’s WITHOUT a monitor.

Scrib

And people say Apple's hardware is expensive...

zamo

Just put your name as business and you will be fine. I have done that tons of times. Always deals, never retail.

Shawn S

Yea, but at least this one will have lots of SOFTWARE to run on it.

Adam_Schwartz

Right - when I got our computer, there was a rebate and all I did was put my name down as the company name and everything worked out.

Adam_Schwartz

Wow, that is pricey - what are the specs on this box?

Scrib

Yea, good one...

Shawn S

Module Description Product Code Sku Id
Dimension XPS Pentium® 4 Processor 540 with HT Technology (3.20GHz, 800 FSB) M328H [221-5482] 1
Operating System Microsoft® Windows® XP Professional WPXP [420-1922][313-7222][462-4610][412-0688][463-2282] 11
Memory 1GB Dual Channel DDR2 SDRAM at 533MHz (2x512M) 1GB5 [311-3766] 3
Keyboard Dell® Enhanced Multimedia Keyboard EMK [310-1696] 4
Monitors Video Ready w/o Monitor N [320-3000] 5
Video Card 128MB PCI Express™ x16 (DVI/VGA/TV-out) ATI Radeon™ X800 SE X800SE [320-3915] 6
Hard Drive 160GB Serial ATA Hard Drive (7200RPM) 160S [341-0987] 8
Floppy Drive and Additional Storage Devices 3.5 in Floppy Drive FD [340-1927] 10
Mouse Dell® 2-button scroll mouse SM [310-1871] 12
Network Interface Integrated Gigabit Ethernet IN [430-0742] 13
Modem No Modem Requested N [313-3607] 14
CD or DVD Drive Single Drive: 16X DVD-ROM Drive 16DVD [313-2596][430-0945] 16
Sound Card Sound Blaster Audigy™2 (D) Card w/Dolby 5.1, and IEEE 1394 capability SBA2X [320-0667] 17
Speakers No Speaker Option N [313-4514] 18
Productivity Software Productivity Pack including WordPerfect® CORELM [412-0555][412-0701] 22
Security Software McAfee Security Center w/VirusScan, Firewall and Privacy, 90-day trial MCAFE90 [412-0632] 25
Digital Music Dell Jukebox - easy-to-use music player and CD burning software MMBASE [412-0691] 27
Digital Photography Paint Shop™ Pro® Trial plus Photo Album™ Starter Edition DPS [412-0521] 28
Limited Warranty, Services and Support Options 3 Year Limited Warranty plus 3 Year At-Home Service plus Nights and Weekend SQ3OS [950-4402][950-3339][412-0359][902-5560] 29
XPS Specialized Support Dimension XPS, Specialized Support XPSSUPP [960-2697] 31
Internet Access Services 6 Months of America Online Membership Included AOLEPP [412-0590][412-0625][420-3224] 37
Personal Finance Software Microsoft® Money 2004 Standard MNY [412-0551] 83
Dell Media Experience No Dell Media Experience™ Selected NODMX [462-5372] 115

Adam_Schwartz

Jesus H Christ, that is a lot of computer.

Scrib

Nice specs...

The 3.5" floppy drive really makes the machine...

Name

dell sucks, I can build u a better comp for 100 less.

zamo

clarify your argument. I got just Dell computers since 2000, all excellent. Not even a hard drive crash.

Shawn S

I’ve always built my own systems. Probably 25 or more of them to date for friends & family.
But I think those days are over.
It’s not worth the time & hassle of installing motherboards, dealing with I/O issues, loading software & hunting websites for the latest drivers.
You can put together a basic system with a warranty & customer support for 400-600 bucks.
That’s much easier then buying from multiple vendors and shopping individual parts.

I challenge you to duplicate that system for 1700 with all the software & accessories.
I can also “build” a similar system from Dell in the 8400 series case for just over 1,100 dollars.
That would be even harder to do.

GreenMonster

PLUS, you don't have to surport these systems... F'em, and tell them to call 1-800- get a dell

Adam_Schwartz

I agree - I thought it would be a novel idea back in 2001 to build my parents a box for Christmas and even with a free OS and some other software, the damn box came out to like $500-600, albeit I bought only top quality hardware. I should have just bought them a pre-assembled box. When I got our computer from Dell in 2003, I couldn't have built a better box for $100 less if I wanted to. Plus time is money in my book.

zamo

good point, but I can tell that Dell customer service has deteriorated in the recent years. They are sometimes :ghey: as hell.

Shawn S

No reply yet. I guess you must be busy adding up prices to prove me wrong.

momentum3.2

that's why I pay for the platinum gold super duper enterprise never put me on india's phone grid support...

momentum3.2

he won't. I'd rather pay $100 more for superb product, excellent support, and an iron-clad warranty. but I'm slightly biased in dealing with Dell servers for 4+ years...

zamo

I got some 2650s too with powervaults maxed out with 147 GB drives.
Drive fails and I get 1 in less than 4 hours, pop out the bad, snap in the new ona and voilá, rebuilding started.

GOOSE

Anyone know? Do these good deals from Dell include DVD-drive?

zamo

no, CD-RW is standard.

DVD is still option.

momentum3.2

exactly. they'd rather bring you a new part immediately so they can take the busted one to determine what made it bust and prevent future busting of said part...service I love!!!

SeCsTaC

AMD Athlon64 3000+ (172$)
Gigabyte Motherboard (88$)
256mb Corsair Value Ram (42$)
Maxtor 80GB Hard Drive (61$)
ATI Radeon 9200 (52$)
CD Burner (25)

Priced from newegg.com, I could probably shave off a couple more $ but this deal from dell is a nice one =D

Gilgamesh

For friends and family...its Dell time

I'll still build my own, since I find it fun, and to get one like that can still be expensive since they don;t do valume with the stuff I want to play my games.

zamo

They took out the +$150 deal for 17" LCD again. Fawkers.

Name

eh whoever gave me... neg feedback.... I wasnt the one who gave it to you.... and quoting the post up there saying dell sucks, its the truth, ive been working around computers for 4 years, built at least 20-30, I know my stuff, Dell is an ok PC company if you dont know what they are putting in the computer, such as a terrible video card, 250wt power supply, crappy mainboard, sorry if me saying dell sucked somehow offended you

Name

I was just giving advice, Dell is absolutely FINE for a PC user who doesnt know what they are getting or dont have the time(edit). Dell tells their consumers the best things about their computers, and leave out the cons. First off, Hard Drive crash has NOTHING to do with the computer pre builder such as Dell, it depends on the company who BUILDS the Hard Drive, such as Seagate, Western Digital, Maxtor. I'm saying someone who builds their own computer can make a duplicate of the components in a Dell, with the execption of a different case for much cheaper. I will not go into details, but thanks for the negative feedback, this red dot is annoying because im not the type who is an annoying asshole, and it seems all the other red dots are. My point being Dell in my opinion, and in a big percentile of others who have actually built a computer is a terrible choice. Just wondering on this deal, is the 2.8GHz P4 revision A(400FSB) B(533FSB) C?(800FSB) E?(800FSB 1 MB CACHE) EE?(2mb cache 800fsb). Also with a Dell built the computer, the power supplys are extremely low, such as 250WT, and the CPU fan will always be stock resulting in high CPU temps, and if you ever wanted to get more out of the computer you have, overclocking it.

zamo

Fine with your argument. But people like me do not have time to build a PC (which is not difficult anyways) and prefer to buy an all-in-one solution with warranty. Thats it.

Name

yeah, im just angry at whoever gave me negative feedback, I havent been on lately looking at this thread, and nor did I ever say the majority of people do know, or have time to build a PC, from what I remember all I said was Dell sucks and I could build a better for $100 less. The reason I like building my own PC's is because I know what is in it, and if one part dies, I can always RMA it, without sending away my whole computer to dell who takes an awfully long time( from previous experiences, I could be wrong ). Anyways if anyone ever wants to learn how to build one, id be glad to tell you, and some awesome sites to get parts at such as Newegg.com as computers are my expertise.

Name

oh and for Shawn, I just ordered a computer for my brother, I can give you all the parts if you want, it was for 450, just a little more, but with a 21 inch CRT flatscreen, 2500+ Barton ( which I will overclock to 2.4GHz, and even though this is less speed than the 2.8, it is an AMD Chip, which has much better architechture, and a 2.4GHz overclocked AMD Barton 2500+ will run about as good as a 3GHz P4. The case has 4 case fans, and a see through side panel, 400wt power supply, Zalman CNPS7000A-Cu fan, and a GeForce FX5600, also an ABIT NF7-S, all ordered off newegg.com btw =)

zamo

I will partially agree with you, cause I get the bare bones Dell and than add memory/drives/DVD burner/etc from newegg.com.

I always had good experiences with Dell, so maybe I do not know all the parts they use to build it, but is realiable as hell.

momentum3.2

so many things wrong with your statements. Dell allows you custom-configure any of their PC's, servers, laptops, storage devices, etc. You know exactly what you are buying, unless you don't understand what "Seagate 150GB SATA 15k RPM" stands for. If that's the case, you don't care what's going in the system but you do understand you're getting a 1, 2, 3, or 4 year warranty. And a 1 - 4 year warranty is far more valuable than any home-built PC. Sure you have to use their cases, but I've never had complaints with the cases that Dell builds. I personally don't buy a computer to 'mod' it, that's not the purpose of buying a computer, that's a hobby. So the only concerns I have with a case is A) how easy is it to get into, 2) how hard is it to upgrade/remove components, C) is it quiet?. On all accounts, I have no complaints with dell.

Specifically what are the cons of owning a Dell? (or an HP for that matter?)

here, I challenge you to beat every line item on here and come in under $1779. I'll give you postive rep points if you can.

I provided all of the part numbers and the base system below, this is a print from my shopping cart NOT using my corporate discount. Here's the link to the system:

http://configure.us.dell.com/dellsto...oc=D84RH&s=dhs

with options, configured:

Description

Dimension 8400
Date & Time: August 25, 2004 2:40:50 PM

SYSTEM COMPONENTS
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------


Dimension 8400 Qty 1
Pentium® 4 Processor 540 with HT Technology (3.20GHz, 800 FSB), Microsoft® Windows® XP Professional Unit Price $2,094.00
Dell Home Customers: Save 15% off the Dell Dimension 8400!
Limited Time Offer!
-$314.10

Catalog Number: 29

Module Description Product Code Sku Id
Dimension 8400 Pentium® 4 Processor 540 with HT Technology (3.20GHz, 800 FSB) S328H [221-5711] 1
Operating System Microsoft® Windows® XP Professional WPXP [313-7222][412-0409][420-1922][412-0688][463-2282] 11
Memory 1GB Dual Channel DDR2 SDRAM at 400MHz (2x512M) 1GB4 [311-3818] 3
Keyboard Dell ® Quietkey ® Keyboard QK [310-1582] 4
Monitor FREE UPGRADE! New 17 in E172FP Flat Panel Display E172FPP [463-1883] 5
Video Card 128MB PCI Express™ x16 (DVI/VGA/TV-out) ATI Radeon™ X300 SE X300SE [320-3934] 6
Hard Drive 160GB Serial ATA Hard Drive (7200RPM) 160S [341-1056] 8
Floppy Drive and Additional Storage Devices No Floppy Drive Included NFD [340-8442] 10
Mouse Dell™ Optical USB Mouse OM [310-4037] 12
Network Interface Integrated Gigabit Ethernet IN [430-0742] 13
Modem 56K PCI Data/Fax Modem DFAX [313-2279] 14
CD ROM/DVD ROM Dual Drives: 16x DVD-ROM Drive + 8x DVD+RW Drive DVD8DVR [313-2627][430-0945] 16
Sound Card Sound Blaster Audigy™2 (D) Card w/Dolby 5.1, and IEEE 1394 capability SBA2 [313-1933][313-2720] 17
Speakers Dell 5650 5.1 Surround Sound Speaker System with Subwoofer D5650 [313-2246] 18
Productivity Software Productivity Pack including WordPerfect® CORELM [412-0555][412-0701] 22
Security Software Norton Internet Security™, 90 day trial NIS90 [412-0626] 25
Digital Music Dell Jukebox PLUS - Rip and burn your CDs faster, print CD labels, and more MMPLUS [412-0692] 27
Digital Photography Photo Album Premium - Enhance, Organize, and Share Photos DPSPREM [412-0522] 28
Limited Warranty, Services and Support Options SAVE $80 Instantly with the Premium Service Package plus Nights and Weekend QDHS4 [950-7447][412-0359][902-6390][900-5793][980-5858][980-5869][412-0358] 29
Dial-up Internet Access 6 Months of America Online Membership Included AOLDHS [412-0585][412-0625][420-3224] 37
Personal Finance Software Microsoft® Money 2004 Standard MNY [412-0551] 83
Video Editing IEEE 1394 Adapter 1394 [320-0169] 85
Dell Media Experience Dell Media Experience™ DMX [412-0660] 115

ACCESSORIES

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

FREE Dell 720 Color Printer with 1 Yr Advanced Exchange Service Qty 1
Unit Price $0.00
TOTAL: $1,779.90

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------


Notice it includes a FREE 17" flat panel and a FREE color printer? tough to beat AND provide service/warranty, for the same price or lower as you think you can. Dell's core business comes from the millions of small/medium size business who don't want to deal with joe user putting together a bunch of PC's for them. Call a company like Dell, they do it, guarantee it, adn support it. And usually for cheaper prices. Large businesses have known this, which is why Dell's server & storage business line is so huge and so popular. Same thing for HP/Compaq. And it's near impossible to build a RISC-based Sun box nowadays, finding the parts/supporting it. You're better off just buying from Sun.


So I challenge you to go into details. Case-modding is fun, but it's not the reason you're buying a Dell. If you're into case-modding and the fun stuff of building a PC for yourself, then you're going to spend extra bling bling to get the peripherals you want.

Name

I'll try and beat it, I think I can, but I just thought I would point out, I said Dell sucks in general to the computer that was originally posted in the thread, its a generalization, but give me a couple minutes I'll try to beat it =) just wondering how big is the power supply, what kind of CPU fan? what brand is the ram? also just wondering is shipping free? or shouldnt I add shipping costs to mine? and for that matter what mainboard? I can pick up some crappy generic or intel mainboard too. Also a lot of the parts vary, if say I buy the Windows XP Pro off eBay, but I'll beat it anyways.

zamo

Dude, I got a similar configuration compared the computer that was originally posted in the thread. I paid $399 after rebate and it rocks. I have it for 13 months now, no problems. Added 1 GB Ram, DVD burner, Firewire Card and External USB 2.0 card reader.

So because it is inexpensive, it does not mean it sucks.

Then you are asking why you got neg rep points.

momentum3.2

A) Dell uses Micron ram

B) the power supply is rated and tested for all of the available components they offer for that model

C) the CPU fan is rated and guaranteed to make sure that the CPU stays under the threshold temperatures that are rated and tested in Dell's labs and Intel's labs. They do not offer CPU fans for people who enjoy overclocking processors. The warranty doesn't cover that anyway.

btw, it's expected that in your reply to my challenge that you will use reputable brand name product with exact specs, since that's what I gave you.

Name

I'll make the best momentum, and no less.

Name

I cannot buy Micron Ram, but I will list Kingston ram, with the EXACT same specs DDR2, etc, thats ok?

momentum3.2

as long as you provide support for it within the terms of the support contract in the Dell PC.

Shawn S

If you read my post you’ll see that I’ve built MANY PC’s and at this point in time it can’t be done for less then Dell is selling for.
And that’s including all the official software & a minimum of a 1-Year warranty.

I’m still waiting for you to put together a duplicate of the system I posted.
Do it exactly or better and I’ll eat my words.

And as for the NEGATIVE FEEDBACK comments.
If you learn to GIVE then you must deal with what you RECEIVE.
Remember, MODS can see who gives what.