Dell's "Express Upgrade" to Vista not so "express"

Dell-using Vista hopefuls are expressing their frustration at Dell's continued delays and problems with their Vista upgrades. The fiasco started right when the Dell Vista Upgrade site opened for business, with the sudden flood of visitors being blamed for site crashes, delays and error messages, and downtimes lasting as long as 24 hours at a time. Even after Dell stabilized the website, reports were rampant of the site not recognizing certain service tag numbers, or informing users incorrectly that their system wasn't eligible for the upgrade. Phone support was little better, with one phone jockey telling a customer "Your machine's processor is only at 667 Mhz speed. You will have to upgrade it before you can get the Vista upgrade." Turns out Dell's guy was reading the RAM speed off the spec list. In the midst of all these problems, Dell has been slowly pushing back the ship date for the upgrade discs, with the latest official word being late February: "We expect to begin shipping upgrade kits to customers within the next couple of weeks." That might be well and good, but Dell is processing orders on a first-come first-served basis, and some users are being told to expect a 6-8 week wait for their discs. Dell blames these added delays on continued testing of driver compatibility, along with continued site kinks, but they do claim to have eligibility problems ironed out, so at least that's a start. If your experience with Dell's upgrade has been any different -- or just as hellish -- we'd love to hear it in the comments.

[Thanks, Roy B]

Read - Dell Vista Upgrade site
Read - Official word from Dell
Read - The story from a disgruntled forum member

[SHOTT3R @ Feb 12th 2007 5:38PM]

If ever you wanted to see how to completely f*ck up your dominant business through greed, apathy and corner cutting, just have a look at Dell from 2000 onwards. Would make a good B-school study. Not even Sony has shot themselves in the foot so completely.

If you're a business you just can't cut corners on customer service. You will pay for it, one way or another.

[nyhater @ Feb 12th 2007 5:56PM]

People should be grateful for this kind of screwup. By the time their disks show up, the first service pack might be ready!

[Mills @ Feb 12th 2007 6:01PM]

i have not done the upgrade through dell myself but i did try with the actual retail disk. the ironic thing is that i installed vista on 3 computers: a dimension, an inspiron, and a macbookpro. the macbook went flawless and vista was up and running perfect in 20 minutes. for each of the dells, I had countless BSoD's and EACH one too the better part of six hours (after backing everything onto externals and then clean installing, etc). it was a nightmare

[supafu2000 @ Feb 18th 2007 3:05AM]

maybe you're stupid?

my friends and i have updated vista on a wide range of laptops/desktops with dell's included.

flawless flawless flawless. other than BT phone support

[Twist @ Feb 12th 2007 6:05PM]

My sister ordered a Dell laptop last week and we wanted it with XP but their customer service told us that that is no longer an option. Also for some reason it is going to take almost three weeks for the thing to ship with the Bluetooth module being the only hardware piece that we customized. Ordered an iBook a few years ago from Apple with nearly every option available being customized and it shipped out a few days after the order was placed. I tried to get my sister to get the Macbook and I told her I would set it up to only run XP but she just had to have the Dell even though the Macbook ended up being faster for the same price as the Dell and even though her Dell desktop has given her nothing but problems (and don't even get me started on her Dell printer). I figure I will be reformatting the HD on the Dell laptop and installing XP about two days after she gets it.

[Phil @ Feb 12th 2007 6:07PM]

I decided to not do the Express Upgrade, when the site launched I went and it said I wasn't eligible (even though I bought an XPS 410 system within the eligible date range) so I just purchased a retail copy of Vista when it was released. It seems to work great with the drivers available from Microsoft, so I think Dell's excuse is bogus. They really messed this one up.

[Jonathan B @ Feb 12th 2007 6:07PM]

I put in the service tag for my laptop and it worked fine, until it got to the payment, and they tried charging for a copy that was apparently free (not including postage, obviously). It took 3 days until someone on the phone would refund me for the costs that shouldn't have been there in the first place.

We were told it would ship then, and it's been 10 days...

[RomeoDude @ Feb 12th 2007 6:09PM]

Oh, so Acer (or the company that's handling their express upgrades, Moduslink) isn't the only company that's taking forever on the upgrades....... They haven't even sent my upgrade out yet.

[Rich @ Apr 3rd 2007 3:06PM]

I too purchased an acer laptop. And I applied for my upgrade through Modusk link and to say the least what a nightmare ! It has been 3 months now and i still have not gotten my upgrade . My status says approved and has said so for about two months and about three weeks .
I emailed modusk link to ask for some help in speeding up my order and was told that there was nothing they could do that at this point it was all in the hands of the manufacturer of the pc company. I thought this was odd so I called ACER Global
and they had assured me this was not the case , that they were not happy with the statement and they would look into it for me and get back with me . To say the least I have not heard back from ACER Global yet~!~ Suprise suprise ,suprise~!~

Good Luck All

WE NEED IT NOW
RICH

[Shmoe @ Feb 12th 2007 6:18PM]

Nice change of the logo. Maybe Michael Dell coming back as CEO will turn things around for the company. It's no wonder with service problems like this and outdated, crappy looking desktops with little inovation like HPs or even Gateways that Dell has slipped to the No. 2 computer maker spot. Problems started about the time they axed the Dude guy.

[heatX @ Feb 12th 2007 6:35PM]

good thing i went with oem instead of going through dell

[Kyle @ Feb 12th 2007 6:39PM]

It's not just Dell that is having issues! I have been attempting to process an upgrade request directly from Microsoft, but after 8 attempts and 3 phone calls I am still without any solution! First my credit card gets denied (my bank says the transaction was approved), then my COA number is invalid, then my address can't be verified..............soon they will say that my name is incorrect. Love Microsoft, Love Vista, HATE UPGRADE PROCESS.

[Ryan @ Feb 12th 2007 6:47PM]

I'm in the midst of this little debacle right now. I sent Dell an e-mail about a week after Vista was released, asking them how long it would take. Whatever moron replied told me that MS wouldn't be releasing the product until the end of February, and I would then have to wait 4-6 weeks after that to get my upgrade. They still haven't responded to my reply to that, in which I basically asked if they were retarded (not in so many words) as they are selling machines right now with Vista. I bet when I get it, the driver disk they send with it will have the wrong bios. Then it's off to the races :-)

[izgo @ Feb 12th 2007 6:49PM]

Funny... I just saw a commercial about how Dell servers/services can run your business, your website, your this and that but from the looks of it, Dell can't even keep it's own site up. Way to set an example Dell!

[edwin @ Feb 12th 2007 6:58PM]

SHOTT3R is absolutely correct. I wish I recorded my exchanges with Dell customer service. In hidsight they are hilarious although at the time they made my blood boil with the amazing incompetence of the people who answer their phones. Once a woman tried to convince me that my LCD screen didn't need a power cord (which was missing from the box). "It's all one piece" ... meaning there was mistakenly only one part number in their system for a device that comes in two pieces. I only managed to convince her by asking her to reach in behind her screen and see what I mean. Af

[bob @ Feb 12th 2007 7:16PM]

i want my vista!! but i can wait.. more drivers will be released, updates will come out. its a good thing a in a way...

[z1g1 @ Feb 12th 2007 7:25PM]

Yeah this sounds right, had to get a Dell for the new semester and the upgrade has sucked. 4 times I tried and 4 times it failed, I try to call on the phone and they tell me "this service tag has already been used, ill put you on the escalation list" That was a week ago and no phone call. I guess it doesn't really matter because I wasn't going to put Vista on until the first service pack anyway.

[Kickflip @ Feb 12th 2007 7:30PM]

"EXPRESS" Upgrade? I purchased 2 Dell computers when the Upgrade became available. I am VERY satisfied with both of those purchases. I registered immediately for the Upgrade and didn't have any problems there. I still have my "DELL VISTA REGISTRATION CONFIRMATION" emails. I called the "Express" 1-800 number to see when my Upgrades would arrive and I was steamed when the guy told me sometime in MARCH! Dell should think VERY hard next time they name a product that they advertise... EXPRESS Upgrade it is NOT! The whole "waiting for the drivers" issue is a lame excuse. How long have they known Vista is coming out? Just be honest with your customers. I'm sure there are 1000s of people running Vista just fine...Someone there at Dell has dropped the ball. They still aren't preloading Vista on their machines... oh but HP is.

[bDavid @ Feb 12th 2007 7:53PM]

was a DELLaholic and loved their stuff and all my experiences have been good ,imagine my discust to find out dell supports republicans ..and chimpy Bush ..ruined my day totally and was the last day i ever order anything from DELL... ever . worst president ever! oh and upgrade site was down first three or four visits but then took my order and all was good ..far as i know its in the mail ..

[Joseph @ Feb 12th 2007 8:14PM]

BTW, it's disgust. Discust is what happened when someone apologizes for dropping an F-Bomb.

[justin.johnson3 @ Feb 12th 2007 8:00PM]

I upgraded a while ago (not through the Express upgrade thing) and had a few issues with bluetooth drivers but that was it. I did back up all my stuff tho just in case.

[Steve @ Feb 12th 2007 8:09PM]

same thing going on with hp. my order says shipping in early march, 6-8 weeks after my order was placed

[Jcasebmw @ Feb 12th 2007 8:15PM]

I called Dell and asked when my upgrade disk would ship...LATE MARCH! WTF its called an express upgrade, late March is not express. I even threatened to send the whole machine back and they kindly reminded me of the 15% restock fee. I have been a Dell customer for a long long time and I don't like being treated like this. On the bright side with so many problems with Vista it might be wise to wait for a few critical updates. : )

[Sandlapper @ Feb 12th 2007 8:47PM]

I'm one of the customers waiting for their upgrade. Now, if I go to the site and click on order status and enter my information and then click continue, it just clears out the information box and doesn't do anything! I guess it'll arrive eventually....

[Joe Smith @ Feb 12th 2007 9:07PM]

I'm running Vista. With a homemade computer. Got if for free from Power Together.

[hkkevinc @ Feb 12th 2007 9:08PM]

I requested for a free update, when to realize that my computer was not accepted. My computer is an XPS 410, but I purchased my computer about 1-2 weeks before the deadline. I asked if they could extend the service, but the customer service guy got my question totally wrong so I just hung up. Then I sent in an e-mail asking if they can still give me vista for free, and they said no but I can have the upgrade for 50 bucks or something like that. They told me to register at the following link. The link just goes to the same vista page I started at. No place to register, and my system is still not accepted.

[Nickk @ Feb 12th 2007 9:11PM]

Yup, this was my first Dell computer and will be my last. If they have had this many problems with a simple thing like this "express" upgrade, what happens when I need my computer repaired. My biggest complaint is that after waiting 20-30 minutes to talk to a rep, I have a hard time understanding him through his thick accent. Though, I am able to understand them enough to realize that they tell me a different date and make different promises everytime I call. Thanks Dell

[Matt M. @ Feb 12th 2007 9:20PM]

Strange, i installed RC1 just fine on my dell. it's probably just bullshit to stall time.

[Hino @ Feb 12th 2007 9:40PM]

... wait... their a vista hopefulls.

[Biff_Meister @ Feb 12th 2007 9:43PM]

Boycott Vista.

[Farwest @ Feb 12th 2007 9:55PM]

Ha! We got our Dimension E521 THE VERY DAY BEFORE the upgrade was offered - and I had no clue it would be offered the next day! I believe we ordered on October 25th, 2006 at 8PM Pacific Time - 11PM EASTERN TIME! I swear an hour or so later and we could have the upgrade. Oh well. It doesn't seem to be going well anyway. It would be better if I just bought Vista separately.

[Andy @ Feb 12th 2007 10:03PM]

Not newsworthy.... This is what I expect from Hell.
Quite possibly the worst computer manufacturer ever. I would take a commodore 64 over a hell XPSuck.

[brewt @ Feb 12th 2007 10:35PM]

Would you people quit complaining about the late-march-isn't-express crap? You do realize that that's just some marketing terminology bs from Microsoft and nothing to do with the manufacturers themselves?

[djmcmanus @ Feb 12th 2007 10:40PM]

NOTE TO DELL:

Stop fucking around with the OS disks. You guys don't know what you're doing. A complicated and incompatible "blue Dell OS" disk is what cost you any future business from myself and my family.

[MSFT @ Feb 12th 2007 10:41PM]

Free copy of Vista that installs on every Dell machine? That's how I roll.

[spaceman @ Feb 12th 2007 10:50PM]

Engadget, pick up the story of HP as well! I've been waiting for over a month for the POP to happen on my order. No one answers emails on the EU side of things!

[Mike Botros @ Feb 13th 2007 12:12AM]

I ordered my upgrade to vista as soon as I could on the site. It went well, and I'm able to check my order status now; it still says pending last time I checked. I ended up downloading an RTM disc of vista and installed that and I'm using it in evaluation mode until I get my disc. I have like 115 days left. Dell posted the drivers for Vista for my XPS M1210 sometime in mid January. I just can't use some of the programs that came with the computer because they aren't compatible with Vista, such as my PC-Cillin, and burning software. Also had an issue with Office 2003, kept bringing up a window saying "Please wait while Windows configures Microsoft Office 2003" with every program I open, or new tabs in IE. Ended up downloading the Office 2007 60-day trial until I find a solution for the 2003 thing. Why couldn't companies had just made stuff work by the time Vista came out. They had so much time. nVidia drivers still suck. Yeah Apple doesn't have these problems because they control EVERYTHING. They don't have to worry about 3rd parties.

[jimmothy86 @ Feb 13th 2007 12:56AM]

I dont know about Dell, but my HP express upgrade for my PC that was a christmas present has a ship date of March '07, I would be happy with a delivery date of february

[Hatious @ Feb 13th 2007 1:00AM]

@ Nickk

My company uses Dell's @ work. Today we had our UPS shipping computer have a "thermal even." A bunch of caps had popped. I got on the phone with Dell, explained the situation, and in 3 hours a tech came and fixed everything. It was great and a true lifesaver. Thanks to the super quick response we were able to meet are shipment demands for the day. I personally have an M1710 and when the screen was giving me problems I had a tech come out the next day and fix everything. In both situations is was perfect.

[Hatious @ Feb 13th 2007 1:12AM]

Of course, I should also mention that I have no received my Vista upgrade, but I am in no hurry. I am gonna wait until SP1. Still, sucks for people who want to upgrade now. :(

[Jason Bauman @ Feb 13th 2007 1:35AM]

I've been dealing with DELL for the past 6 months and it has been a nightmare. Took over 6 hours straight in one day (and about 8 phonecalls) to resolve an issue that I had been calling about for over 3 months. It does not suprise me that Dell has had so many issues. My trouble was with a warranty applied to the Service Tag of a PC I returned to them. Took all that time to get them to correct it.
It took me a week and 4 phonecalls to actually spend a coupon they sent me as a credit and BUY products from them. Dell lost my confidence a while ago.

[olivernward @ Feb 13th 2007 4:17AM]

aaaahh microsoft. the amusing thing is they've already announced they're working on the "next" OS. havn't they learnt anything? they havn't even finished the current one yet, seriously. i have a "vista capable" branded notebook, but yet when i run microsoft's own vista upgrade software, i discover i numerous hardware components that are currently not supported by Vista. i hereby take back any Mac bashing i have done in the past, microsoft take the cake.

[tcp277 @ Feb 13th 2007 4:40AM]

I'm annoyed, because I ordered a quad core extreme Precision and got it two days before they started shipping out Vista preloads.. Now I'm here dealing with this "second or third week in March" crap on Vista. Give me a break.

Only reason I went with the Precision is because they mentioned it came with "dedicated North American Technical Support." Amen to that. Let's see how long they stick to that, though.

[Alan @ Feb 13th 2007 5:02AM]

Well I never had a problem with Dell site taking my service number or credit card info. It still says PENDING, and I applied for the upgrade several days before Vista's launch. So I guess we will see when they ship. Now the OFFICE2007 upgrade program on the other hand was a bitch. The site charged my credit card twice and didnt put he order in. I finally got someone on the phone and they worked it all out, but that was a nightmare for a few days.

[zonamanoz @ Feb 13th 2007 8:34AM]

I recently purchased a Dell XPS M1210 and applied for the free upgrade but tbh I'm in no hurry to upgrade so I don't care much and I don't really understand people who do. I've read the reviews and they've all been great I know but still......

[Ming Han Chung @ Feb 13th 2007 9:03AM]

Registered for the upgrade in late december.. I get a registration email saying i'll get a confirmation email soon.... Janaury 29 rolls around.. no confirmation.

Call up Dell.. First CSR can't find my registration information and to "re-register again". Not wanting to violate anything by double registering I tell her to look again... lo and behold she finds it but says I need to talk to another department.

Call other Dept.. Find out they are "shipping late February, but shipping will take 3-4 weeks"

... How does ANYTHING take 3-4 weeks to ship? do they have only 1 truck for the US? Or somehow did they think most people would not redeem their free Vista?

[Phong @ Feb 13th 2007 9:32AM]

I got my XPS system with the highest specs and the label on the laptop reads only Windows Vista Capable. Not Premium Ready or how you call it when the laptop is supposed to be getting advantage of all the Vista's features. I got the laptop in October last year and that's when the express upgrade offer started and I registered my update kit the day it was open to public. When I checked the status of my order today it was still pending so my hopes are not very high to get the kit by the end of February and for those who just bough their Dell machine recently...well good luck to you guys

[keith waddington @ Feb 13th 2007 9:53AM]

Mmm

you order a second rate OS from a second rate computer manufacturer.

what exactly do you expect?

keep grinning and bear it!
waddo

[Brian @ Feb 13th 2007 1:07PM]

HP is doing the same thing. My Vista Upgrade won't ship until March 31!

[LJKelley @ Feb 13th 2007 1:46PM]

I think the whole "Express Upgrade" is a fiasco. Acer is taking their long time to provide drives and Moduslink hasn't even shipped or confirmed anything... they just keep saying, "We will get to it". I have a free retail copy of Ultimate I got from the Beta, I installed it and everything is working except for 1 driver and Acer is taking their time. I'm like Vista is out and has been planned for years... GET WITH THE PROGRAM!!! There is no express upgrade...

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