Acer vs. Dell

[Walzber813]

On the Windows end of laptops, I've been looking into the Acer 8204, The Dell 1505, and various Asus models. The Acer seems to be very high end for its price, with 2gb of ram, 2.0ghz core duo, and an x1600. The dell can be tricked out and almost match it, except with an x1400 as well. My main question was...how is the service on Acer? and how does it compare to Dell? my friends have been very satisfied with Dell, and I"m highly considering Acer as long as the service is ok.

 

[6000SUX]

It couldn't possibly be worse than Dell's service. Check out their rating on resellerratings.com . I bought many Dells over the years, but they'll get no more of my money after recently failing to honor a service agreement.

Your friends are probably satisfied because they never dealt with Dell service. If one of them did, he or she was extremely lucky. Dells are fine as long as they don't break.

 

[Flipped Gazelle]

My one experience with Acer was pretty negative. I had recently purchased an Acer wide screen monitor (from Newegg), and it was not capable of running at its native 1680x1050 resolution. Hard to believe it made it out of the factory, eh? Anyway, many other users had the same issue, and the "fix" was to ship it to Acer for a firmware upgrade. So I packed it back in the original box with the original packaing materials, and Fedex'd it to Acer. About 2 weeks later I got my monitor back... with scuffs and scratches covering nearly the entire bezel. My guess is that the tech who worked on it had to put it screen-down, but put nothing underneath it to protect against scratches. After rather irate, but polite, correspondance on my part, Acer was still unwilling to replace the monitor at their expense.

I'm pleased with the quality and design of the monitor itself, but I will never again buy Acer - because of the customer service.

 

[pkme2]

I've dealt with Dell since 1996 and really appreciate their service, always approaching them with respect and patience. I've personally had 5 laptops from Latitudes to Inspirons, and never had a problem with Dells Service.

I also helped a trainloads of students and clients purchase their laptops and desktops from Dell. Naturally, whenever they had a problem with their units, I got the call. It was part of my ongoing service. My clients felt more comfortable by having someone else handle the situation to resolve any problems and it worked.

Yes, the Dell wait time has increased over the years and working with Dell on glitches, computer RMAs, and the like, my experiences are still pleasant.

I can't speak for Dell's disgruntled customers. Dell sells huge amounts of computers in the world today, so even 5%-10% of those customers who are upset/angry with Dell, that's a lot. There is no business that can satisfy everybody's problems. It all depends how you approach any situation. Being patient and respectful gets more results than otherwise.

So whenever I see an angry thread, I try to think about the rest of the happy Dell customers out there. Dell still have a lot of happy customers who keep buying their products.

 

[halfadder]

Dell service seems to be a crapshoot. I've heard horror stories about Dell, I've heard glowing rave reviews about Dell. I've heard people who recommend nothing but Dell, I've heard people who want to sue Dell. Maybe it depends on what number you call for support, or what time of day or what day of the week you call. I'm sure Dell has multiple call centers.

As for Acer, I've never head anything "good" about Acer tech support... mostly neutral, and sometimes negative. However, I have heard good things about Acer's most recent notebooks, especially the 8200, 82xx series. They've won a lot of magazine awards in the past few months with their Core Duo / X1600 powered 8200 series models. Sounds like if you get one that was built properly, you'll love it, otherwise it could be a nightmare. But for the no-BS price (no coupons) it's a damn good deal.

 

[6000SUX]

Originally posted by: pkme2
I've dealt with Dell since 1996 and really appreciate their service, always approaching them with respect and patience. I've personally had 5 laptops from Latitudes to Inspirons, and never had a problem with Dells Service.

I also helped a trainloads of students and clients purchase their laptops and desktops from Dell. Naturally, whenever they had a problem with their units, I got the call. It was part of my ongoing service. My clients felt more comfortable by having someone else handle the situation to resolve any problems and it worked.

Yes, the Dell wait time has increased over the years and working with Dell on glitches, computer RMAs, and the like, my experiences are still pleasant.

I can't speak for Dell's disgruntled customers. Dell sells huge amounts of computers in the world today, so even 5%-10% of those customers who are upset/angry with Dell, that's a lot. There is no business that can satisfy everybody's problems. It all depends how you approach any situation. Being patient and respectful gets more results than otherwise.

So whenever I see an angry thread, I try to think about the rest of the happy Dell customers out there. Dell still have a lot of happy customers who keep buying their products.

If you've helped trainloads, odds are some of them got a bum deal with Dell if 5-10% of people are unhappy. In reality it's much higher. Dell now has a reputation for crappy service.

 

[pkme2]

Originally posted by: 6000SUX

Originally posted by: pkme2
I've dealt with Dell since 1996 and really appreciate their service, always approaching them with respect and patience. I've personally had 5 laptops from Latitudes to Inspirons, and never had a problem with Dells Service.

I also helped a trainloads of students and clients purchase their laptops and desktops from Dell. Naturally, whenever they had a problem with their units, I got the call. It was part of my ongoing service. My clients felt more comfortable by having someone else handle the situation to resolve any problems and it worked.

Yes, the Dell wait time has increased over the years and working with Dell on glitches, computer RMAs, and the like, my experiences are still pleasant.

I can't speak for Dell's disgruntled customers. Dell sells huge amounts of computers in the world today, so even 5%-10% of those customers who are upset/angry with Dell, that's a lot. There is no business that can satisfy everybody's problems. It all depends how you approach any situation. Being patient and respectful gets more results than otherwise.

So whenever I see an angry thread, I try to think about the rest of the happy Dell customers out there. Dell still have a lot of happy customers who keep buying their products.

If you've helped trainloads, odds are some of them got a bum deal with Dell if 5-10% of people are unhappy. In reality it's much higher. Dell now has a reputation for crappy service.

You know that's funny that none of my clients were unhappy with their rigs and many have reordered from Dell since. Since I found out what they wanted and what they needed, it made for a great deal when you factor in the Dell coupons. If you're getting a good deal at the beginning and what you want, how can you get a "bum deal".

I admit that not many people are so fortunate. Maybe that's why my business is still ongoing. Saying Dell has "crappy service" without the facts is just hearsay.

 

[6000SUX]

Originally posted by: pkme2

Originally posted by: 6000SUX

Originally posted by: pkme2
I've dealt with Dell since 1996 and really appreciate their service, always approaching them with respect and patience. I've personally had 5 laptops from Latitudes to Inspirons, and never had a problem with Dells Service.

I also helped a trainloads of students and clients purchase their laptops and desktops from Dell. Naturally, whenever they had a problem with their units, I got the call. It was part of my ongoing service. My clients felt more comfortable by having someone else handle the situation to resolve any problems and it worked.

Yes, the Dell wait time has increased over the years and working with Dell on glitches, computer RMAs, and the like, my experiences are still pleasant.

I can't speak for Dell's disgruntled customers. Dell sells huge amounts of computers in the world today, so even 5%-10% of those customers who are upset/angry with Dell, that's a lot. There is no business that can satisfy everybody's problems. It all depends how you approach any situation. Being patient and respectful gets more results than otherwise.

So whenever I see an angry thread, I try to think about the rest of the happy Dell customers out there. Dell still have a lot of happy customers who keep buying their products.

If you've helped trainloads, odds are some of them got a bum deal with Dell if 5-10% of people are unhappy. In reality it's much higher. Dell now has a reputation for crappy service.

You know that's funny that none of my clients were unhappy with their rigs and many have reordered from Dell since. Since I found out what they wanted and what they needed, it made for a great deal when you factor in the Dell coupons. If you're getting a good deal at the beginning and what you want, how can you get a "bum deal".

I admit that not many people are so fortunate. Maybe that's why my business is still ongoing. Saying Dell has "crappy service" without the facts is just hearsay.

Everything you hear on the web is "hearsay" by your definition, including your claims of stellar quality from Dell. Many reports from unhappy customers represent real data. There are plenty here on the forums-- just search.

 

[pkme2]

Originally posted by: 6000SUX

Originally posted by: pkme2

Originally posted by: 6000SUX

Originally posted by: pkme2
I've dealt with Dell since 1996 and really appreciate their service, always approaching them with respect and patience. I've personally had 5 laptops from Latitudes to Inspirons, and never had a problem with Dells Service.

I also helped a trainloads of students and clients purchase their laptops and desktops from Dell. Naturally, whenever they had a problem with their units, I got the call. It was part of my ongoing service. My clients felt more comfortable by having someone else handle the situation to resolve any problems and it worked.

Yes, the Dell wait time has increased over the years and working with Dell on glitches, computer RMAs, and the like, my experiences are still pleasant.

I can't speak for Dell's disgruntled customers. Dell sells huge amounts of computers in the world today, so even 5%-10% of those customers who are upset/angry with Dell, that's a lot. There is no business that can satisfy everybody's problems. It all depends how you approach any situation. Being patient and respectful gets more results than otherwise.

So whenever I see an angry thread, I try to think about the rest of the happy Dell customers out there. Dell still have a lot of happy customers who keep buying their products.

If you've helped trainloads, odds are some of them got a bum deal with Dell if 5-10% of people are unhappy. In reality it's much higher. Dell now has a reputation for crappy service.

You know that's funny that none of my clients were unhappy with their rigs and many have reordered from Dell since. Since I found out what they wanted and what they needed, it made for a great deal when you factor in the Dell coupons. If you're getting a good deal at the beginning and what you want, how can you get a "bum deal".

I admit that not many people are so fortunate. Maybe that's why my business is still ongoing. Saying Dell has "crappy service" without the facts is just hearsay.

Everything you hear on the web is "hearsay" by your definition, including your claims of stellar quality from Dell. Many reports from unhappy customers represent real data. There are plenty here on the forums-- just search.

Your statement tries to say something factual but it falls on deaf ears. You try to put down a company that sells the most computer equipment in America. I admit I see the complaints but never experienced those bad situations in the past 11 yrs in dealings with Dell.
Every retailer in computer sales has complaints but to say in generalities is pure BS. If you have a personal horror story to relate, then I'll listen. Otherwise, do me a favor, if Dell is so bad, people will stop buying without your negative remarks. People aren't that naive......

 

[Walzber813]

so..hows the acer service?

 

[pkme2]

There's no outline rating on service available for Acer or Acer laptops. Can't give you anything because its seems non-existent.

 

[dementedlemur]

I'm on my 3rd Dell laptop and so far I've been quite satisfied with their service. I got the complete care warranty to cover accidents and the only issue I've had is with trying to communicate with their tech support. I've found that online chat is much easier than calling, and they seem to get things done faster since they can look back over the conversation.
As far as durability and build quality goes, the 3 Dell's I've had (I1100, I6000, and I700M) have been quite good. They were noticeably better than the Averatec 3150 I used to have and were comparable to the T20 series laptops I've come across.
As with any company, you'll find people that have had good and bad experiences. People that have had negative experiences tend to stand out more because someone who is happy or satisfied with their experience don't tend to go out of their way to make their opinion known.
IMO you would be better off looking at specific models within each company, and any problems associated with each of them.
EDIT: I see that you've been looking at specific models, good luck in your search!

 

[imported_mala]

the only reason I bought a Dell over Acer, Asus, or even Abspc/ibuypower was the ability to upgrade the warranty.

I've heard a lot of superstitions that bad laptops usually fail within the first 2 years. So i went with Dell since it was fairly cheap to upgrade to a 2 year warranty (not complete care).

Plus I like the Dell quality (sure it's not up to IBM) but I've only had one problem with my Dell desktop, and had no worries over dead pixels because of their direct production (ie not just shoved in a box and sent off to a retailer). I do wish that the i6000/e1505 was a bit thinner like the acers, but my i6000 seems much more solid than the acer laptops I've tried at bestbuy/cc.

If I was to buy again though, I'd probably go with Asus as I hated all the bloatware that the Dell came with.

 

[Trader05]

I never had an Acer or ever dealt with Acer Support.
But for the last couple of years i've been dealing with Dell. Overall im satisfied with Dell. Dell is great for the money, i recently got an E1505, 1.86ghz, WXGA+, X1400, 100gb, 1gb, dvdburner, and 1 year warranty for less than a grand. Dealing with their tech support kinda sucks, but like said before the chat is much easier, that is if you have another computer to go online with if your computer/laptop doesn't work. I've seen that most of the people that hate Dell have software issues with their computers and think automatically Dell sucks. If you do a fresh format, load the OS and drivers, they'll work great in my experience. I had a Dimension 4700, 8400, Latitude D600, D800, Inspiron 8600, 700m and now my E1505.
One time we had a tech come to my work to service an HP laptop, so i was just asking some usual questions, i popped the question of what's the worst laptop to work on, he did mention Acer

 

[BladeVenom]

Dell sucks, all the major computer manufacturers suck. Dell offers some good deals, and actually sucks a little less than the average major PC maker, at least last time I looked at Consumer Reports. The computer industry has horrible customer satisfaction, expect lots of horror stories about every PC company. That's why most people here make their own desktop computers, and if you could actually make your own laptop most here probably would. (I know about whitebox laptops, but that's not any better.)

 

[Flipped Gazelle]

PC Magazine's Reader Satisfaction Survey

pkme2 - McDonald's sells more hamburgers than anybody, does that mean they are good for you? VHS won out over Betamax, despite inferior quality. The fact that Dell sells more computer equipment than anyone in America doesn't necessarily mean they are good; it means they are cheap and market-savvy. I'm not saying that Dell is bad - sure, they've done things I don't like (odd sized PSU's a few years back, and really pushing the whole you-don't-get-real-Windows-CD-you-get-a-recovery-CD) and they totally screw people over on upgrades that aren't on "sale". And yes, people really are that naive because many are not well informed - nor do they care to be.

Dell's main issue with most people, I think, is that their tech support has become pretty bad. If you check out the link above you'll see that. Dell has become a victim of its own success at selling pretty decent, cheap desktop computers. Also note that, according to the PC Magazine survey, Dell laptops break a little more often than average.

My own experience with Dell - purchasing an accessory that was on sale - was more hilarious than heartbreaking, due to the incompetence of the Dell rep. I had cancelled an order, then they shipped the item more than a week later, then a couple days after that they wanted to know why I cancelled the order - which I had previously explained - and they had no clue that they had already shipped it to me! It all worked out fine in the end, but it was a really funny example of how poor Dell's customer service had become.

 

[pkme2]

Originally posted by: Flipped Gazelle
PC Magazine's Reader Satisfaction Survey

pkme2 - McDonald's sells more hamburgers than anybody, does that mean they are good for you? VHS won out over Betamax, despite inferior quality. The fact that Dell sells more computer equipment than anyone in America doesn't necessarily mean they are good; it means they are cheap and market-savvy. I'm not saying that Dell is bad - sure, they've done things I don't like (odd sized PSU's a few years back, and really pushing the whole you-don't-get-real-Windows-CD-you-get-a-recovery-CD) and they totally screw people over on upgrades that aren't on "sale". And yes, people really are that naive because many are not well informed - nor do they care to be.

Dell's main issue with most people, I think, is that their tech support has become pretty bad. If you check out the link above you'll see that. Dell has become a victim of its own success at selling pretty decent, cheap desktop computers. Also note that, according to the PC Magazine survey, Dell laptops break a little more often than average.

My own experience with Dell - purchasing an accessory that was on sale - was more hilarious than heartbreaking, due to the incompetence of the Dell rep. I had cancelled an order, then they shipped the item more than a week later, then a couple days after that they wanted to know why I cancelled the order - which I had previously explained - and they had no clue that they had already shipped it to me! It all worked out fine in the end, but it was a really funny example of how poor Dell's customer service had become.

I'm not disagreeing with you. This is a sad state of affairs that Dell's satisfaction factor has dropped to what it is today. My only problem is that I've never had any of that kind of dis-service as mentioned above for the past 11 yrs.
As a country-folk type of person, I was always taught to be respectful and patient with others until otherwise. My contacts with Dell has always been cordial and problems resolved satisfactory. I and my students/clients have had good service and so I cannot say anything bad about Dell.
The products that I've purchased for myself and others have been the mid-range to higher quality versions. I've tried to order the computers that I would have gotten for myself and used those discount coupons especially.
I will continue to support Dell by purchasing their products until proven otherwise.
You bought up some good points. Thanks.

 

[Flipped Gazelle]

The products that I've purchased for myself and others have been the mid-range to higher quality versions. I've tried to order the computers that I would have gotten for myself and used those discount coupons especially.

Ah, that's probably the key right there. That, and of course the fact that you are most likely more tech-savvy than 90% of Dell's non-corporate consumers.

I hope your good fortune with Dell continues. The entire PC industry as a whole - as BladeVenom has pointed out - needs to work on their support.

Back on topic, based on your criteria, I certainly CANNOT recommend Acer to the OP, and I'd suggest he go with Dell.