Laptop Screen Trouble - (happily resolved)

[Cheesy]

ok this might be real stupid, cheesy you know of cause that these laptops have a keyboard combination to switch between the different graphic output possibilites (screen, port etc.). Could it be that you managed to switch to external output only without noticing and simply have to switch that back?

I wish. Just like I wish restarting it 12 times would fix it

[StarLord]

I believe Cheesy is over 18, but if he has any pics of himself under 18 he could still be charged. Its been making the news. People are recommended to destroy anything they made of themselves with or without a girlfriend while minors.

I personally wouldnt put anything like that on my computer

[Cheesy]

Update: the goat porn is now erased and removed from recycle bin.

Dell came yesterday and replaced the screen. It works great now, except the replacement screen is crappier than the one I originally had. The max resolution is much lower.

So now they're sending a replacement for the replacement that matches the original specs.

I hate people

[WoodenPlank]

This is why you shouldnt buy Dell.

[Cheesy]

I wasn't planning on it, but they had a deal for $750 off a $2000 laptop, plus free shipping. I haven't heard much better things about other companies anyway.

[Charger]

This is why you shouldnt buy Dell.

Probably some of the best advice offered on this entire site!

[Winter_Lion]

This is why you shouldnt buy Dell.

I spent a lot more for an Alienware gaming laptop, than the deal that Cheesy got. It lasted 12 months and more than a few major issues in those months. Disappearing CD burner, cracked fascia at the hinge point on the screen frame, little doors over the pcm card slots flew away one day and were never found. XP had to be recertified by Microsoft and a custom serial number had to issued by them just to allow me to register my OS at the 30 day mark.

The keyboard started coming apart at 9 months, the ATI 9700 pro video module started overheating at six months and would reboot my lappy at the worst times, and the list goes on and on.

AW wouldn't even repair my cd drive when it finally gave up the ghost completely, citing that I had put my driver's license number on the top of it and that voided the warranty. The drive was a removable one, and I had an optional battery that I used in its place when I needed it. I marked the drive so as not to have it ripped off by a passerby at work or in a cafe. Go figure!

I don't think Dell could do any worse than AW did and from my experience in the last year they have done a lot better. Customer service is right now, technical serice was knowledgable and polite and they got the little software problems I had straightened out on the phone.

Now that Dell has bought AW, I hope they at least require AW to upgrade its customer service levels and get rid of the commisioned sales bandits in AW's front office.

Cheesy: You got a good buy and very decent laptop. Good score! I know it sucks to have a new pc needing factory attention but I really do think you got the right brand for any customer or technical service needs. These guys at Dell haved ruled this last year with everything I wanted or needed.
I remember when the cool thing online was to never buy or admit buying machines from Dell, Hp, and any other companies that used to price gouge their custom parts. That's old news and not being done very much by any industry survivors now. Dell's are totally compatible with off the shelf third party hardware now. Which was the biggest biatch about their pc's for years.

Winter

[Ash2Dust]

This is why you shouldnt buy Dell.

Probably some of the best advice offered on this entire site!

And what company would you advise to buy?

I still advise Dell just because I see the least issues. I also advise that all the companies care less about their customers once they have there money.

At least Cheesy is getting a fast response for a rare problem. Screwed up, but getting dealt with.

[StarLord]

And what company would you advise to buy?

What about building one ourself? or going into a Computer store and ask them to build one for you... The cost is the same when there is no discount offer from the big companies

[Charger]

I avoid laptops when ever possible. My job requires one though. Over the years, I've had Sharp, Compaq, & Dell. They ALL fail prematurely, even under "normal" use. I believe that the technology is just not refined enough for the luxury of mobility. Buying the 3-year warranty is a must. This is only an opinion, but I base it on my 14 years experience using laptops.

I prefer to build my own desktop. Designing/building your own mid to high level system is cheaper than buying a factory model. I like the fact that I can choose individual parts from companies that specialize in their respective field.

[Cheesy]

I plan on building my next desktop, but the idea of putting a laptop together is terrifying Anyway, the Dell deal was too good to pass up, and support has been great. Though the chats are frustrating, the support lady who's come both times has been knowledgable (and waaaay too talkative). Still, I've had both parts replaced within 2 days, and now it's working smoothly.

[ph1l0r]

Custom building a laptop sounds interesting. I just wonder where you would order the parts hehe.

I made very good experience with a Thinkpad laptop. X24. My sister wrecked a mousebutton on it. Replacement keyboard including new trackpoint and mousebuttons cost me 70$ (30 months after i bought it, delivered within a week. Try this with another brand) and i was able to replace it myself. If it would only break i'd have an excuse for dropping some cash on a new model but it's working perfectly and does the job so i'll probably have to live with it some more time. Almost everyone who studies with me got a laptop and the very few that are statified with their models are the Thinkpad owners and some guys with expensive Samsung and Toshiba models. The rest can talk about more or less miserable experiences with failures, replacements of replacements, wasted time on hotlines etc.

I've ordered two dozen Dell Optiplex series desktop PCs for various small businesses here. All with premium support option. Price is right and nothing beats the business hotline and the next business day on site service which makes the small premium well worth for all companies i've dealt with as they don't have an administrator/tech guru on site that could deal with a failing harddisk/cdrom etc.

[ColonelHogan]

You better erase all that kiddie purn off teh hard drive, Cheesy. Those Dell Techs are trained to look for it and will turn you in.

You have much knowledge about this situation.

[Charger]

You better erase all that kiddie purn off teh hard drive, Cheesy. Those Dell Techs are trained to look for it and will turn you in.

You have much knowledge about this situation.

Shite, you outed me just like Valerie Plame!
....I confess.....I am........ a former........

Dell service tech.

[StarLord]

Hum, that make me remember, my mother brought a Laptop like 10 years ago, yep, it's old, it's got a Cyrix CPU with 850mg of Hard Drive, no CD driver, just the floppy one, and Windows 95 on it. It never needed any repair, and it's still working pretty well Ok, it is just good for word or windows card games but anyway Ho, and Dos games work on it too...