Dell, could you please improve your customer support? I had to contact customer support today to get one of my 2 hard drives replaced in my RAID array (scares me that I only have one, how did I ever live without RAID?). I went to support.dell.com and logged in. Was I shown a list of the systems that I have purchased? NO! I had to enter the service tag for the umpteenth time (luckily browser auto-complete helps in this regard). I choose the option to get support (not obvious on the web page, it is more about downloads of drivers and selling warranties, etc), and choose the ‘Dell reccomended’ chat support option. Luckily I knew this was coming, and choose IE to do this, as it forced me to install an ActiveX control just to chat. This is a ripe minefield for an Ajax app, I can tell you now. I am now waiting for my chat request to be accepted, after filling out my name, service tage number (again!), and the description of my problem. In a few seconds, my chat request is accepted by my agent, Harsha. Harsha then starts the standard scripted question: “Name and telephone number, please?”. Fine, I give it. Then I am told that the telephone does not match my records. What? I thought I was giving the phone number so that I could be called back if our chat was disconnected. No, I am being verified. We go back and forth about why they need to verify, I try my cell phone, home phone, etc to no avail. I am then asked to verify my address which I do. We are 5+ minutes into the chat, with no chatting about the problem yet, because of some idiotic script some monkey dreamed up for the tech support people. I then get the standard “repeat the problem back to the customer, and make them verify that” (lots of verification in the CYA world of customer support). Harsha then sets off to create a dispatch, and come back in a couple of minutes, asking me if I need a technician or if I could do it myself. I say I can do it myself, figuring that I don’t need to help them waste money so that they can update their customer service experience. I am then given a dispatch number, and a templated thank you, and a hangup. NICE! I ask for a tracking number, and I am told to look up the dispatch number. WHERE??? This keeps getting better (or worse, as the case may be).
I will report back here when I actually receive the drive.
Frank
Update (4/14/2005 17:00): I received the hard drive this morning (it was actually here yesterday, but I wasn’t here to sign for it, so technically they made their next business day promise. I waited until I was done with the work I had to do to replace the drive. I pulled the drive out of the box, noted that it was a 160GB drive (what I needed), and shut down my computer to replace the failed drive. Opening the case on the Dimension 8400 was simple, and pulling out the old drive and replacing with the new was about 3 minutes and 4 screws. Cases sure have come a long way. When replacing the drives, I noticed that I was trading Seagate drive for the new Western Digital Drive. I booted up the computer, opened the Intel Storage Utility, and attempted to rebuild the RAID array using the new drive. I am abruptly told this: “The selected disk is not large enough to be used for the rebuild action. Insert a larger disk.” As if it was that easy! Off to Dell support again, going with the chat option for the second time. This time it takes 1-3 minutes for each response from the agent. As a side note, it is funny that the agents ‘names’ are actually their Indian first name, and an American last name. Why not both of one or the other?
I digress. While I am waiting, I look up the specs of both drives to see what is going on, and I notice that I am being given a 2MB buffer cache drive to replace the 8MB buffer cache drive I have. Is this a valid replacement? Methinks not. I ask the agent for a phone number to talk to an agent, so that the conversation can go a little faster than 2 sentences per minute.
I call the number given, only to go 10 levels deep in the IVR, and then dropped after entering my ‘express service code’. Not very express!
Luckily (or not so luckily, as the case may be), my wife also had a call with Dell today. Perhaps we should a) stop buying Dells, or b) allot Friday as ‘Dell Support Day’. She gave me the number she called, and while I got the same IVR menu, I was actually dropped into a queue, rather than off the face of the planet. I ended up with an agent after about 4 minutes on hold, and he helped solve my issue. The real issue is that the hard drives listed as originally shipped in the machine were Western Digitals, not Seagates. I told him this was a refurb unit, and I got that ‘Ohh…’ response, like he now knows what’s wrong but is not allowed to say. He then puts me on hold while he starts the exchange paperwork. The new hard drive is on its way, and I have been given the secret callback number and extension should I have problems.
Update: Frank sent me a 250GB drive, and the RAID array is now all happy. I would give the overall experience a C, but only because of my grade A interaction with Frank.
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