Mike's Thoughts

Let’s be clear. For those of you who know me, I am a computer geek, and there is absolutely no getting around that fact. I have built at least 10 computers for friends and family, so I know my way around a computer. However, I don’t have the resources to build my own laptop. So, I will <<stutter>> buy a laptop from someone.

I have a two year old HP laptop that is now acting as a server. (The very server that is powering this website! ) However, I have had too many problems with it, and when it came to it, HP’s support left me just about high and dry. Award-winning customer service my rear. So, naturally, I was looking to another manufacturer to lighten my seemingly dark path to laptop bliss. Gateway is out of the question. If I wanted a Fisher-Price laptop, then I would buy one from Wal*Mart. My next choice was Dell. Things looked promising. They offer a significant discount for students, and I was able to find everything that I wanted for almost $800 off the retail price. Great…ish.

Let me set the scene for you. I am going to be getting Vista, which, if you don’t know, is a HUGE resource hog. So, I figure that I would go big. One aspect of a computer that is important to me, is RAM. More RAM, more programs running at the same time, the happier I am. However, I wanted to go REALLY big, 4 GB big. Ok, great. No problem. Dell has that option – standard, in fact. There is only one problem… Dell is really only offering you 3 GB, and selling you 1 GB of useless silicone.

Allow me to explain. Windows comes in two varieties, 32-bit and 64-bit, the latter being the newer. Because the 64-bit architecture is still new, there are compatibility issues, with software, drivers, etc. However, the crucial difference between the two architectures is that 64-bit can see and utilize 4 GB of RAM. 32-bit cannot. Microsoft will allow Vista SP1 machines to SEE the additional GB, but it still cannot utilize it. Great. Sell me something I cannot use. So, I want to bite the bullet and go 64-bit. BUT NO! Dell doesn’t sell 64-bit OS… or maybe they do?! I chatted with a “Product Adviser” today, and initially the technician said sure, you can get that option. After asking if I would need to call to get it “special ordered,” the technician flip-flopped and said that I couldn’t get it! WHAT?!?! You just said I could. After asking for clarification, they confirmed that I could not. I asked if I could special order it, or if they knew when they might offer 64-bit. They responded saying that they couldn’t disclose that information, but that they don’t offer 64-bit. I was fuming. After thanking them for their “help,” they ended with a perfectly, grammatically sound, “Welcome.”

So, now I am at a loss. I have two options. 1. Go with HP and know that half my hard drive will be chuck full of bloatware, spyware, and a recovery partition that does NOTHING, or 2. I buy the system from Dell, and then reinstall the 64 bit Vista with the disk that I have. But then this raises another question. If I reinstall the 64-bit OS, only trying to get the full use of my system, will Dell then void or ignore my 3 year warranty because it is not the “original operating system?” Oh trust me, HP tried to pull that on me once before.

After being dumbfounded at Dell today, I sent an email over to the wonderful folks at PC World’s On Your Side column, asking them for advice.

I will keep you updated as I hear from PC World, and then ultimately make my final decision.

I leave you with this final thought. “What happened to the world where the customer was always right, when the company was there for the customer. What kind of world are we coming to when we are at the mercy of the corporate monster who cares more about selling its customer useless junk than satisfying its customer?”