[rescue] Compaq or dell??

[Steve Hatle]

On 7/16/03 2:45 PM, "Steve Sandau" <ssandau at bath.tmac.com> wrote:


> 
> Opinions? No religious fervor, just statements of reliablility, options,
> warrantees, etc..
> 

I've personally always preferred Compaq. Quality of construction and
reliability has always been superior over the Dells I've come in contact
with.

Also, the machine setup with the SmartStart CD's beats Dell hands down. The
included Insight Manager stuff (if you use it) is also much better than what
Dell includes.

ROM and firmware updates are also pretty painless.

When I've had parts failures on machines under warranty with Compaq, the
replacement part shows up the next day, with pre-paid return shipping of the
failed part part of the deal. I've waited 2-3 days for Dell. I've not opted
for the on-site service contracts from either vendor, so I can't comment on
those. 

I've had very good luck buying lease-return Compaq hardware that still has
1-2 years left on warranty at fire-sale prices. When I had a warranty issue
on a used box, there was no checking if I was the original purchaser, etc.
Just gave them the serial number of the box. They verified it was still
under warranty, I gave them my address, and the replacement part was there
next day.

You can go to the Compaq support website and punch in the serial number of
any machine and get the warranty status. If you go used, this might be
useful.

My 2 cents. Hope it helps.

Steve