To bad you already lost quite a few customers, including me over this.  Had you sent this message out last week, as promised, I may not have canceled considering now you say it is going to ship at the beginning of this week.

Thank you Alex! I (we) appreciate the info. It is worth waiting for & I only wish that your customer service had this type of info a month ago.

Btw, I placed my order on July 9 & since then there have been some promotions (including a Timbuk2 bag). Is it unreasonable for those of us that have been waiting patiently to receive that bag or $100 off without having to cancel our orders? It would be so nice & so much appreciated if that could happen. I know it would go a long way to make me feel better about Dell (a company that I have ordered my last three laptops with). Thanks!!

That's what I assumed was going on, but maybe in the future you should inform your customer service reps when you go into full production. Because back in June they were saying it will ship within two weeks.

I think that many of you more reasonable customers understand the problems you can face when mass producing a new product, it's just the fact that noone until now has admitted that you have not started to mass-produce the system yet. We keep being told it will ship soon, and I personally have been told several times over e-mail that my system is probably being tested etc to meet Dells quality standards.

In the future just be honest, tell us that you are not in mass production much earlier, and then let us know when you do start going into mass production.

I hope you are correct and look forward to maybe seeing some progress next week. 

Thank you for the much awaited update to the situation.

However, I think the question still remains as to why Dell launched the M1330 without indication of delays. Clearly if the problems involve production issues and large-scale production will not even occur until this coming week, this product was launched with the knowledge that there was actually no product to sell.

If it were advertised as a pre-order with general availability set for a later date, I would have no qualms with the situation. However, this is not the case. For early purchasers like myself, I was given no indication that there was actually no product to sell. I was explicitly told 10-15 days - nothing came up about limited quantities or the fact that mass production had in fact not even commenced.

I understand that problems invariably do crop up on some production runs, but those problems and, by implication, production should have commenced before what was indicated to be a general availability launch. So the problem remains - why did Dell knowingly launch a product that had not commenced production, did not indicate that this was a pre-order or notify CSRs to that fact, and drag on for nearly a month without informing us of these developments - in the meantime racking up orders for a system that would not be filled for anywhere from 1 to 2.5 months.

From these updates, I now know some limited information for the reason behind the delays, but the question now becomes, who is responsible for this botched launch? Who will take responsibility for the false advertisement of availability? What is Dell going to do about it? 

"One of the simplest and most reliable ways to monitor the progress of your order is by checking My Order Status on Dell.com. "

 MOST RELIABLE?

DONT YOU KNOW THAT THE SITE FOR STATUS UPDATES IN THE UK HAS GONE DOWN AND HAS NOT UPDATED FOR AROUND 2 WEEKS!!! ?????????????????

Regards,

Graham

The status website for us in the UK has broken, so its not "very reliable" at all.

We not have to pay 8p per min to call dell as we dont have a toll free number provided to us!

8P per min is around 16cents per min, and on average it takes 12 mins to get through.

Do that every day and its costly.

The thing that gets me though is the fact that that call cost is not mentioned on the site anywhere and took around 5 e-mails and 3 days to finally find out the cost of all these calls.!!

So what I gather from the blog, the people who got their laptops first were HUMAN GUINEA PIGS!?!?! They were supposed to test out if the computer is working and such? How is that a good idea? You should have pre-built models that your lines should put-out (to test their manufacturing process) and have your ENGINEERS test on the product to see if its fully functioning properly.   
 

I'm also affected by Dell's incompetence and lack of prevision. Lots of people are being affected by this and I don't think this is good for Dell...well done!

I'm seriously thinking about cancelling my order.

Bad Bad Bad Bad.  

"For existing orders, our teams are doing everything they can to meet the estimated ship dates you were quoted at the time your order was placed."

So what do you mean by this exactly? I was quoted 10-15 business days but the website originally said August 22nd. Which was my "original quote"? Of course, my latest quote is August 27th from my rep and September 9th from the website, so who knows.

Graham, don't feel bad, here in the states it hasn't worked for over a month!! Below is what we have been seeing the past 43,200 minutes or so

Recent Order Status: The system is undergoing routine maintenance. Please check back in a few minutes.

What, is that it ?

I find such excuses from Dell pretty poor... When you go touting this model as an example of what Dell can do, you better be ready with a product ready to ship.

And when +you+ that is any and all Dell employees as ambasadors of Dell, when you know that you're not ready to ship and that you expect screw-ups while ramp-up; and still accept 1000's of orders promoting "10 days or less delivery" by CSRs on the phone you are borderline crooks... no?

It took a month to get a Sr VP here, how long before Michael Dell has to make amends for the situation? We want to see head rolls, and Lionel Manchega's not the one.

How about the Sr VP, Consumer Product Group ...?

At least Dell Mgmt has the guts to blog on the delivery issues - most companies just string you on for months on end without a peep.  My delivery is mid-September.  I'm willing to wait as it should be an excellent device.  For the naysayers - you can always bail and buy something else - Dell doesn't have you in handcuffs.  If you bail - great - we'll all move up the production chain a bit.

Agree with Graham - that Dell needs to address their online customer support systems.  I tried for several days to get into their CHAT without luck.  Finally ran a BOT for about 8 hours - never was able to get in.  Their Corp IT needs to step up to the plate and their CIO should be ashamed.

Yes this is a just another classic Dell response...

I kinda expected more of an update...

Question - I understand the reasons for the long lead time for my 1330 order - 9/12 - but can anyone tell me why the free Timbuk2 bag and the LoJack Software won't ship until Oct 1 ?  Seems odd.

I here the cry babies a singing...  I placed one of the first orders on the 26th  of June.. Certainly those that that ordered o the internet site, the first available date with the CCFL display was 30 days 26 July.  My configuration with an LED came to 31 July.  I am not screaming yet since I expected it to be at least 31 Jul before I had my hands on my new machine.

 Certainly Dell's response to delays should be better, but come on it is a new product.  Those that tried to buy a T61 when first introduced know a month delivery is quick for a newly introduced machine -- those thinking of switching to an Vaio SZ6 -- beware Sony is just as dependable at slipping delivery and their Customer service is the worst!

I'm sorry to say, but I agree with most of the above comments thinking this was a weak and late response.

What do I care about ranks... I guess that was the case here.... some boss-type writing to calm us down... what does that matter if all he can procure is a blubberish none-statement saying that he cares of the situation. Of course he cares... that is his job... but that thing is kind of late to tell... I didn't even find a trace of an effort to appolgize. That should have been done before this storm started. His job should be to foresee and meet such complications as this. It should have been attached to the letter telling me about the delay...

 What I need now is an in-depth on why my computer is delayed, and insurance that there will be no further delays. That the fool proof orderstatus works. You probably now if there are more problems in the pipeline... why not tell us? As you are acting I think there are...

I still believe in this product, but Dell as a company lost me a while ago...

And sorry if I sound angry... it seems as you can do nothing about the problem and hence you shouldn't be blamed... it is just my disappointment shining through... 

Many thanks for the update, but as Graham has mentioned, the UK Web page for production status is knackered, so i too have to call CSR's to be told it is production, yes but how far and is it on schedule????????

it would be nice to see some form of good customer service from Dell. In sales they have something call the whirlpool effect. if one person has a bad experience then that person has a tendancy to tell 5 or 6 others who in turn tell another 5 or 6 and so on and so on, therefore the poor customer service experience is spread. However, it works in both ways, that same person could have had a bad experience with Dell, BUT, 'as a bit of a 'sorry' Dell gave me this or knocked X amount off the price'.

Its a doddle, Bad experience+ Good customer service + incentive to continue with order = REPEAT BUSSINESS!!!!!

Come on guys, its not rocket science

Another crap response. No details, no apology, no acceptance of fault. As Ed said, the same stuff we have heard from CSRs or read in other forums with better informed sources.

You are starting mass production a month after taking orders? Not before releasing Ad after Ad, rebate after rebate. And you expect those of us that ordered in the first weeks to do what? Pay full price for a product that will not likely ship for another 2 weeks?

I don't expect an answer to any of these questions. But you can expect a lot more cancellations next week. 

Alex,

You are a Sr VP, so I assume you have some power. As I have previously stated, some reasonable concessions are due on the early orders (mine of course on 7/6 included). The Timbuk2 bag is a start, but a good will credit of $200 or more is also advisable.

 Remember, it probably is a high percentage of Dell 'loyalists' that stepped up first - and Dell is running a VERY REAL risk of not only loosing many more orders - but these loyalists leaving Dell forever. With Dell in the (slipping) market position it is currently in, one would think these loyalists would be of the very highest priority. 

Do not only the right thing - but the SMART business thing and throw these people a bone. With some serious 'meat' on it. Or, it'll be buh bye Dell for many - permanently.

Thanks, however, I think we all deserve a more thorough explanation on why EDDs were being pushed back successively the way they were, the possibilities of concessions for existing customers and the matching of the Timbuk2, etc etc... I mean, *most* of our questions remain unanswered and this comes off looking more like lip service than anything else; there wasn't even an apology for the customer service disaster that has accompanied the production issues. It's the combination of both that causes the problems and suffering we are experience, really. The lies need to stop.

Please try to further improve on the communication or else that 'business' that you thank us for might evaporate and walk away--I know I saw customer after customer on this blog and on notebookreviews and elsewhere cancelling and cancelling in light of these problems.

 Personally I will give Dell a little more time, a few weeks into August, but then I have *no choice* literally but to cancel and get something that can actually be delivered to me. In my case that will probably be a macbook pro, but hey, what does it matter to Dell so long as the business is lost? I told my CSR when I first ordered, it was the m1330 I wanted... I just wish Dell wouldn't make it so hard for me to get it.

 Someone needs to accept some responsibility for all this, as others have said... all we ask for is some respect, we understand that there can be issues with production! It's really pretty simple.

 lots of <3, Sam Jackson

While we have begun shipping on a limited basis, we expect to begin large-scale production and to ship systems in all regions beginning this week.

Last time I checked, good business practices should dictate that it would be wise to do this prior to offering an item for sale.

 Also, Dell's competitors, like Apple have units in the store ready to sell the day that they announce a product.

Furthermore, a two month delay is enough time that we should receive some level of depreciation on a product we already paid for.  The computer market is crazy volatile, and a processor released two or 3 months ago is often obsolete for the market segment it was released into and relegated to a value segment, and subsequently deeply discounted.  That means our purchases are depreciating while dell is incapable of delivering them to us.  Plus they are now offering a promotion to new customers in the form of a Laptop bag, which they will not give new customers w/o canceling
 their current orders, all the while they cannot deliver on orders to current customers.

If this VP marketing speak continues to offer no apology, and no compensation for the devaluation of the product during these delays, I will be shortly forced to cancel this order and vote with my money by purchasing a macbook pro.

Thanks for the update but these comments provide little comfort and really is too little too late.  Especially for those of us that have already cancelled. It would seem to me that this time Dell got it wrong big time by providing the ESD's it did.  I can deal with a 10% or even 20% error in the lead times, but in my case the delay was (and still is) well over twice what I originally anticipated based on the ESD i was given. I hope that you use this experience and learn from it.  I know I have!

Well, the news here is not the content of the post, it is a standard-issue corporate statement which says nothing. The news here is that Dell is probably now paying attention to this customer relations and PR disaster. So just maybe it won't get any worse.

It's amazing that so many people will be so easily made happy by a laptop bag or a shipping discount. I can't say that these things would do anything for me. I have been given a >6-week wait time (ordered 7/23, est ship 9/4). I guess I should be happy that some of the bugs may have been ironed out by then.

As much as I want to hate Dell for this fiasco......I'm too much in love with the m1330.  It's a sweet machine and I can't wait to get it (even if that means a prolonged wait).

Dell does need to work on their communication, but they should also be commended for their effort so far.

I was ready to cancel my order after the 2nd time it got canceled, however I'm in the position of not liking anything else currently available, so if I cancel, what am I going to buy?

I don't want to say that Dell has me by the short and curly's because ultimately it's my choice whether or not I wait for the m1330 or order something else.

They do need to iron out a lot of kinks however as this has definitely made me consider another laptop manufacturer in the future.  If Dell screwed up this launch so bad.....what guarantee do I have that they won't do it again in the future, and at that time, I might be more time pressed for delivery.

One other comment for people to keep in mind when complaining about your Estimate delivery date.......the key word being ESTIMATED!!

Would you rather Dell only estimates a one week delivery time, and then keep changing it every week or would you rather an over-estimate which then gets bumped up because production was completed early? 

"... we expect to begin large-scale production and to ship systems in all regions beginning this week."

So nothing firm once again.  I expected an update on the 1330s last week since this site said there would be one and it didn't happen until this week.

Why is it so hard to just come in and say "once we get the shipment of this and that, we will ship stuff, and we get that shipment on monday." ??     

Very poor excuse for information...very weak.

No apologies because that would mean accepting responsibility for a mistake and this is simply not a mistake, it was 100% intentional. Paper launching is now the de facto standard at Dell. So do not expect an apology rather expect what you are seeing right now, a boiler plate response to what Dell sees as a non-issue.

Face it, we paid our cash, they have that cash and whatever happens from this point on is a win-win for Dell. We will eventually receive the product and this will blow over...how many of us will order from them again? Think about that very carefully the next time you need a product. Be sure to tell all of your clients, friends, and family. Those of you who blog, post this fiasco. Those of you with a website, post your experience. Other need to know that this is Dell's policy for new products.

Dell thinks so highly of their customers that they offer a free bag to everyone EXCEPT those who ordered early and are waiting the longest!! They took our money, receive interest on it and can't even offer us the same deal...oh wait, sure they did... IF we cancel the order we have been waiting for all this time and go to the back of the line. This is almost surreal...tanks for nothing, again.

And last but certainly not least...those of you who fancy yourselves Dell fanboys will be crying the blues soon enough. You come across as pretty smug about your ship dates, as if you know something the rest of us do not. When that dates slips a few times are you still going to shake your pom-poms and cheer? Will you still be so understanding of their production troubles? How about the lies from customer service? Are your emails getting answered or are you simply so enamored by this company that you don't even care? Keep cheering, I am sure Dell appreciates you.

The computer market is crazy volatile, and a processor released two or 3 months ago is [...] subsequently deeply discounted.  That means our purchases are depreciating while dell is incapable of delivering them to us.  Plus they are now offering a promotion[s...]

Before signing off, I wanted to thank all of our XPS M1330 customers for your business. In the meantime, we appreciate your patience.

Mr. Gruzen,

Since you can't seem to provide any updated information of substance regarding the new m1330, maybe you can update us on how, exactly, you became a Sr. VP.  It certainly wasn't because you treat customers with respect.  Today's update was the most disrespectful communication I think I've ever received from Dell - and that's saying a lot because your company's customer service communication is terrible.  A monkey with poop on one hand and a phone in the other could do better.  As you can see, you didn't have to do much to go above and beyond - yet you actually managed to screw it up.  You pooped in both hands!

I ordered the m1330 on June 27th.  I was told it would be shipped to me today (7/29).  Obviously, I understood a new laptop would have delays and wasn't upset with my shipping date.  With that said, I haven't been able to get ANY updated information - online or by phone.  Matter of factly speaking, your customer service reps act as though they don't want to help with this info anyway.

Truly great companies treat their customers with respect.  They may not be able to always meet demand but they provide regular updates to paying customers regarding their orders.  Dell has failed miserably and your recent update is proof.  You gave us NOTHING!  As of now, I still don't have my new laptop - but it's certainly been billed to my credit card - and I'll never get the 5 minutes back it took to read your incredibly disrespectful 'update'.

One thing's for sure, it's becoming easier and easier to understand why HP has taken so much of your marketshare.  I nearly moved my business to them this time but was willing to give Dell another shot.  After buying my 6th computer from you (including the m1330), I'm afraid I've made the mistake of being too loyal to you.  It's painfully obvious you don't need my business going forward.

Go wipe your hands - they smell of poop. 

I truly hope that giving away the Timbuk2 bag is the first among many future gestures of sincerity for the situation you have created for your customers.

Dell Slim Auto/Air/AC Power Adapter or a money off discount would truly be a best way to alleviate your public relations disaster. I'm one of the lucky few who got the Timbuk2 order because it appeared the day I ordered.

 ABOVE ALL ELSE, DO NOT RUSH A PRODUCT FOR THE SAKE OF GETTING IT INTO OUR HANDS! I'd rather wait longer for a product that passes quality control standards than a piece of obsolete junk that will stop functioning two yrs later.
 

I ordered my xps1330 on 30/6 as the Australian site listed an "available date" of 10/7/07, almost immediately the $2800 was taken from my credit card and I received a email and order status stating 17/07/07 as the delivery date which sounded excellent

Well what a surprise on 11/07/07 I get an email advising my delivery date had slipped from 17/7 to 27/7, a quick check of the Dell Australia website then showed the xps1330 as available from 31/7.. this did not put much confidence in my revised delivery date.

Well I check on the 27th an low and behold the delivery date is now listed as 8/8 (with no notification of the change I note) but the Dell Australia website now lists the XPS1330 as "Available Now"

I would bet not a single person in Australia actually has a unit so no idea how it is supposed to be available,  if it wasn't for the fact I paid already a month ago I would have canceled a bought something different by now.

Dell should be ashamed at the poor performance they have displayed with their new flagship model, for my first Dell purchase I can guarantee it will also be my last 

Well, Lionel, since CS won't answer my question, maybe you can help.  Your VP just said that Dell will work hard to meet ESD's.  That's great, but here's the problem.

Original order: 6/27, ESD 7/24

SKU Error, Dell CS Reorders: 7/2, ESD 8/20

SKU Error prevents production: Dell CS Reorder: 7/27, ESD 9/25

Does Dell honestly expect me to wait 3 months for delivery or does the right hand just not see the left?  Nobody will answers my questions, all I know I know is that now Dell is committed to hitting that 9/25 ESD. 90 day lead time?  Surely you can do better than that, you've already missed my original ESD and SKU errors are surely not my fault.

 Great informative update though.

  This is extremely disappointing to say the least.  This is my second XPS system and it will be my last unless Dell does something to redeem itself.  When I purchased my m1330 I had an estimated ship date in late July.  When I confirmed my order on your website my EDD jumped a month to August 23rd (after my credit card processed).  I understand that there can be supply chain glitches but that is just plain disrespectful. 

  And furthermore after we, those who went out on a limb to purchase a product that was new and not road tested, you offer a free Timbuck2 bag to new orders before we even receive ours.  That is wrong, and a bad business practice.  My computer is in boxing right now and I am still on the verge of canceling it.

I am a student, this is a big purchase for me.  And those of us that are students ordered this computer because when we were on your website it gave us a shipdate that was before school started.  

Finally, the online status that you are telling us to check has not worked since the day I placed my order.

Thanks for nothing Dell.  You act as if you are doing us a favor by updating us.

As someone who ordered their XPS m1330 7/28, I actually enjoyed this update because I've only gone through a day of confusion and dismay.

 I am also a new Dell customer and this is not a very good start :S

Thanks for the update but if results (notebooks shipped) don't come this week like the update says they will, I'm afraid I have no time to wait over a month.

Good luck Dell... wonder why stock is on a down slope these last few weeks...

"wonder why stock is on a down slope these last few weeks..."

Hard work to destroy their name. Lol.

This will certainly be my last Dell. I don't think any family or friends will be going Dell after this either. And I've sold a lot of systems for Dell to them over the years. It's really quite sad that Dell doesn't realise the values of early adopters.

As so many people have already said, it's not necessarily that we're mad at the delays or want free stuff. We just want to be told the truth. And if this "update" proves anything, it's that Dell still can't be bothered to tell the truth or own up to anything.

I hope that with "we expect to begin large-scale production and to ship systems in all regions beginning this week" you mean Monday and not the end of the week !

I'm a Dell customer about 7 years, but this was really annoying, to wait for a NB more than 1 month, unexceptional. 

So many words, so little content. I understand that unexpected issues may arise when ramping up production but why had production not been ramped up prior to launching the product to iron out most these crinkles, 80+% of every laptop must be the same regardless of configuration?

For those of us who have chosen to sit this out why not offer a goodwill gesture to everyone instead of the hollow words and the haphazard compensation system that seems to be in place currently. Some UK orders have received £100 discount whereas others have received nothing. This doesn't have to be a monetary gesture and in fact I would have thought extended warranties, bags etc are more likely to increase our overall satisfaction with our purchase and likelyhood of repurchase. My original estimated delivery date passed nearly two weeks ago with the only communication being an automated email.

I stand to be corrected on this but I don't think the UK order tracking system is broken, to the best of my knowledge no M1330s have been produced in Ireland yet.

Finally, why are credit cards being billed when Dell's when the laptops haven't even entered production?

Sorry Alex, but I don't think that we were expecting. It's been more than a week since we are waiting for an update with some REAL info. So far, what do we have in this update:

-we are late for some very vague reasons (shortage, industrial manufacturing problems), but we know that for weeks already. Nothing new in this area. Nothing precise.

-we expect to solve those problems soon. Same story. No date. No figures. No info. That's still very vague. All the european orders were pushed to end of August or early September. Are you just saying that you are going to TRY to meet those new delivery dates? Great news, that's such a relief for us... Sorry to be ironical.

-Thank you for your patience. Same, nothing concrete, just be patient.

For delays exceeding 2 months for a lot of orders, that's quite short. Especially after waiting a week for news which are not really new... "we have problems, we expect to solve them soon, thanks for waiting". You could have summarized your entire post in those few words. I understand very well that you cannot say everything in this post. But I think there could be a decent compromise between what customers want to hear and what a big company like yours can say. And we want answers with some real facts. When will european orders begin shipping? Am I supposed to wait until early september?  I know I'm just an individual customer, but most of us need to know, for various reasons. Accurate answers would be more than welcome, and maybe the only way for you to keep some orders. Thanks in advance!

And what about the Inspirons and Vostros ? It's not as bad as it is for the XPSM1330, but the annouced delay is 3 weeks, and some people have an updated delay for 8 more weeks !!

2 months for having a computer !!! What is it ? What's happening at Dell ? 

I like the idea of the Dell Slim Auto/Air/AC Power Adapter as a kind of "appreciation" for our patience. The bag would be nice too, but i don't care that much cause i already have a bag for the M1330.

But please if you introduce some kind of "freebie" as gimmick for customer don't forget EMEA! We are customers as well and even if my 2 H2C XPS (6.5 Grand each) and my PE2800 Server (2.5k) are only 15.500euro  (or 18.000k Euro incl. my 2.5k M1330) in revenue over the last 1,5 years i generated by me are nothing in comparison with corporate customers, but i bet i'm in the upper half of HSB customers in a worldwide comparison in money spent with your company.

Please make it pay that we stick with our decision to buy the M1330.

I just read the update over again and this jumped out at me:

 "As Lionel mentioned in a previous update, there are some components like the LED display that may add time to an estimated ship date."

How many of you ordered the laptop WITHOUT the LED? How many of you are reading this and saying to yourself "wow, that was a close one, glad I didn't order that LED..." I would imagine that we can translate that little piece of data as saying most of us will experience further delays. To me this is like saying " there are some components like the motherboard that may add time to an estimated ship date".

So, after taking a second look at the update I have determined:

1. This is not really Dells fault, it's the supply chain, weather, plague, locusts, fill-in-the-blank.
   
2. Dell thinks we are clowns
3. Dell appreciates our cash, er...patience
   
4. Dell will ship when they feel like it so stop asking, you are upsetting CS
   
5. If you ordered early then you simply don't get it, Dell doesn't even make the bloody product for months after the launch, duh!
6. Last but not least, this is not really Dells fault.

Cheers 

I say throw in a Dell Slim Auto/Air/AC Power Adapter. That's the very minimum you can do for your customers. All of this is a shame.

Tool late Dell. Orders cancelled yesterday (3 M1330 canceled). I am grabbing 1  Sony and 2 Asus tonight ;o) 

 I have too say, on this one Dell, you are a freaking nightmare.

To all other Dell customers (I am definitely considering myself as an ex-customer)...."patience it will come soon".

 Ciao,

Laurent 

Where am I?

Armed with the offer for the "$149" value of the Timbuk2 bag offered with the XPS 1330, I emailed a CSR rep to get this added to my order. She said she cannot do so without cancelling the original order and putting in a new order, which will delay the EDD more so.

I ordered on 7/16/07 with a EDD of 9/15/07 - 8 weeks. It seems very rigid and customer unfriendly not to throw this bag in for customers who ordered prior to this offer.

 Surely there is a more reasonable solution than cancelling and reordering.

Too add insult to injury a 150dollar off with DPA coupon arrived in my e-mail yesterday. How could an existing m1330 order claim this coupon!!?

Dell requires that you must cancel your order and re-order to take advantage of new promotions. Perhaps, in the future, promotions should be held back until after the first 30days worth of orders have been filled. That, or let customers who have orderd and are waiting for the order to apply these promotions to existing orders without delay.

My newest information, a new engineering hold and they hope to be shipping out in mass production in SEPTEMBER, end of August if we're lucky. Mind you this isnt from a normal case manager or CSR rather from the Round Rock office. If this is the truth I'll seriously need to consider the alternatives, problem is atm Dell has the only laptop with the specs I want. Between a rock and a hard spot.

 @Tech|noob: I hope your right, but my info negates that.

@Dell, Grunzen, Lionel: If Dell has messed up as badly as I was just told there better be a fall back plan for us customers who've ordered a laptop on the 1st day. The depreciation of the laptops just hardware wise is becoming huge. To that some of us need a laptop for work.

This is my first Dell purchase ever and I must say I am quite dismayed to see how things are being handled by Dell. In ordering the laptop, the CSR was basically rushing me through the process and it was quite obvious he just wanted to make the sale. He didn't spend the time to answer any of my questions really but since I didn't have time to waste as I need this laptop for school , I ordered from him. He advised me on the phone I would have my laptop Aug 23, no later and in checking the website, now the edd is Sep 3. School starts for me the week after so I certainly hope to have it by then. However in reading everyone's comments, I will be looking into other viable options such as the mbp or the sony sz line. I invested alot of money into this product and it is true what everyone is saying. They have already charged my credit card and I won't even have the product for a month and a half all the while computer prices fall and no doubt, new specials will come out. Not like it's bad enough in Canada where we don't even get the timbuk2 bag...I have emailed my CSR rep who I purchased from regarding this and it's no surprise I have not had a reply. I am definately leaning closer and closer to cancelling...

Well, I ordered an Inspiron 1720 with the German Dell on the 6th June. My EDD was 2nd August. Now I received an e-mail that the production has been delayed and the new EDD should be the 10th September. This is a push back of over a month. So Dell's problems seem to more complex than just the display's with the M1330.

The worst thing about this is that I need the notebooks for business issues and I wanted to order further notebooks for collegues since our firm is providing us with cash for new hardware. Now I cannot even tell them that dell is a good choice since they wont get their notebooks before october if they order now.....

[quote]Filed under: Laptops There's good news this morning for those of you stuck in the Dell XPS M1330[/quote]

 Where? :|

I have just got off the phone with a very helpful Dell CSR. She advised me that my XPS was well into production and build should take 24-48 hrs. The units then go in for testing.

hopefully this MAY mean i get it on the EDD!! or am i being too optimistic???? We'll see

I have also just noticed that the only LCD option available on the 1330 on Dells website is the White LED!!

I have ordered the standard screen but does this mean that it will be upgraded FREE. Is a compatibility issue or a supply issue??

does anyone know? 

Looks like all posts are being withheld now...wonder why?

Word over at Endgadget is that as of today Dell Corp is saying there is yet another engineering hold on this product. I hope that's just a rumor. Anyone heard otherwise?

After waiting a month, just got my delivery postponed another week. Canceled.

Have been ready to buy for a couple months now… wanted the Dell, but the now infamous productions delays have given me time to think…never good. Was just about to get in that ridiculous queue when I saw the announcement for the Sony Vaio SZ6 refreshed to the Santa Rosa chipset.

Intrigued, I spec'ed one out as close as possible to the configuration of the M1330 I planed on ordering and the difference in price surprised me. The Dell was only $300… MORE!

Comparing the two at that price, I found that while the Dell was the only unit to offer an HDMI out, a multi media remote and an additional 64k of dedicated video card RAM, the Sony offers several other core features the Dell is lacking:

1. First laptop at this size to offer Windows ReadyDrive (an H-HDD with 256K flash memory attached to traditional platters spinning at 5400 rpm)

2. a real docking port (Port Replicator)

3. Hybrid Graphics System - provides a choice between two hardware switchable video cards (to save power)

4. a faster chip set as standard: SR - T7500 @ 2.2 GHz (vs. T7300 @ 2.0)

5. an internal modem card

6. 1 Gb fast Ethernet card

Ouch, that's a LOT of extra stuff for less money.

Aesthetically, the SZ's carbon fiber case vs. Dell's three case color options is a pick'em to me. Credit Dell in that they wisely allow more options for WWAN connections (AT&T, Verizon and Sprint), whereas, at present, Sony only let's you connect to Sprint for EVDO rev. A. Personally, I'll be using Bluetooth to tether to Verizon's rev. A service over my existing cell phone's data plan.

Another consideration, Sony still insists on loading-up their machines with tons of crapware while Dell, mercifully, does not.

The final blow though comes with the realization that the Sony's are set to arrive in stores tomorrow, August 1! Order the Dell today and get it… when?

So, while Dell may have the edge for a multimedia user… and may later get around to adding some of the missing items… at present, I gotta go with the Sony… hands down.

I ordered a Inspiron 1720 on 7/10. My estimated ship day was 7/26 for a while, and on the 26th I called to see if it was actually going to ship out. On the phone I was told my estimated ship day was now 8/2. I refreshed the online order status, and it was still showing 7/26, so I was glad that I had called to find out what was really going on.

A few days later the website changed to show 8/2 as the estimated ship day, as I was told on the phone. Well today (7/30) it still shows 8/2 as the estimated ship day, but I figured it would probably be a good idea to call anyways and check on things. It seems the blue cover is back-ordered, and now it's looking like my order will ship closer to 8/24, or so I'm told. My shipping was upgraded from 3-5 day to next-day, free of charge. Too bad that still puts me about a full month away from getting my laptop from what I was originally told at the beginning.

I'm mildly frustrated, but not pissed. Anyhow, the reason I'm posting this is because you should definitely keep on top of things and make sure you actually talk to somebody at Dell, and get them to tell you what the story is. The website is oftentimes wrong, and I have received no e-mails or phone calls telling me about these delays.

I was at a Dell Kiosk two days ago, and the lady there was saying the estimated lead time for the M1330's was between 15-30 days. I tried to use one of their computers to go to this blog, and it let me, but all of the comments were blocked. I started to laugh, but was also pretty disturbed by this. I told her that she should take a look at the comments sometime, and hinted at the fact that 15-30 days is a bit of a stretch. She was very friendly about it, saying that she knows some people have had a really hard time with long wait times. She told me that Dell waits until all the parts are there before they will start building your computer, and somehow some of the very first orders got messed up. She said Dell has a team that is getting people to cancel their orders and replace them....she didn't really know why, but it sounds like their computer systems had some trouble keeping track of all of the orders, and the order in which they were placed.

Good luck all of you M1330 people!

Looks like Alex Gruzen brought a bit of HP and Compaq over to Dell with him...

 

Over on notebookreview.com we have several hundred people who have ordered M1330's. And this week several are reporting changes in status from Building, to Testing, Boxing, and Shipping. But they are all Tux Black!

Is there a shortage of Crim Red, or White lids as well as everything else? 

I appreciate the update.  I ordered the Crimson model for my girlfriends birthday July 26th.  Looks like it will be about a month late in arriving.  I'm sure she will forgive me once it finally arrives. 

Chill people, good things come to those who wait...

Me, I'm holding out for a blue one.

Hi Dell,

Wow, I ordered my XPS m1330 on June 30th and have been following these forums concerning the delays about the XPS m1330.  I was stoked that laptops will be starting to shipped this week.  I have been changing my order status every day since I ordered, excited and awaiting the shipment and delivery of my laptop.  Today (7/30/2007), when I check my order status, a whole MONTH since I ordered my laptop, the status has changed from "In Production" to "Changed".  I don't know what this means but when I called the automated order status number, it says my order is cancelled.

I am unhappy.

Okay, pretty irritated.  Been waiting a month and now the order has been canceled by Dell because they are backordered on some sort of bag that came free with my University purchase.  Like I care about the free bag...  I just want the computer!  Now I have to sit through the endless queue all over again.

Thanks a lot :P 

Kevin, they did the same to me. They backcanceled and repositioned order because of an stupid reason (some sort of trouble with some hardware code at production). I'm from Santiago de Chile. I'm really dissapointed at this point with Dell and im thinking i will apreciate to get my money back.

I feel they are playing with it, while im here still sitted waiting.

Maybe ill get another macbook, and give a break to XPS 1330. 

A few years ago I ordered a system from Dell, and after lengthy delays I received the wrong system. It was handled badly and eventually managed to get a full refund.

 At the time I vowed never again to buy anything from Dell - so I only have myself to blame now.

Customer service from India is a joke (I actually feel sorry for them, they are obviously in the dark and being fed lines from corporate - getting angry with them is a bit like slapping a puppy).

They are telling me now that the estimated delivery date will be missed, but it will be shortly after - although this doesn't seem to be based on information like parts availability or production runs, but just a figure plucked from the air.

I had already been misinformed (lied to??) about the status before, that it is in production when it wasn't.

Sadly, I'm not in a position to cancel as I'm going on an extended business trip shortly and have no time to re-order from a decent manufacturer. So hope is all I have, and if it's late it will sit in my home for a couple of months before going back to sender.

Like I say, my fault for going back to a manufacturer who I had already placed in the poor category. I have now downgraded them to the breathtakingly awful slot, and hope I'm not stupid enough to ever go back to them again.

Crap! 2 months delay and the best thing DELL can say is this. not even a simple word: sorry.


 

I come from Taiwan,

I check my order every day, the delivery status show me 01-Aug will arrived,

I do not receive any information from sales yet.

I order M1330 at 08-July , but on the Taiwan web-site,

If I order this before 03-Aug, I have more gifts on the same prices,

I think I should cancel my order and re order  new M1330, since the delivery 

status is not reliable.

Canceled my order.  Ordered first day June 26.  Extremely upset at the service and delays.

Will be getting a Vaio SZ. 

Well, now it looks like after over a month of waiting and with one co-worker having order after me and received the m1330 with the same specs, I may have to look at canceling due to a very, very long expected shipping date.  It's a shame...this laptop had potential.  I won't be purchasing any laptop as a replacement.  Sony has flat out said they will not support 64 bit Vista and any other laptop either will not meet the specs or will take too long to build and ship.  Thanks for the month long bump...it was truly not worth calling on the first day to order.  But, with any luck, Dell might get my order out before the new shipping date.  Thanks Dell for your accurate shipping estimate and assuring first orders are built first.
 

almost everyone already said this, but why promise something you knew beforehand it would be impossible to deliver on time?
when i ordered, i didn't have a warning saying 'expected delivery time 5 weeks' as it does right now at dell's french site.

in the meantime, component market price lowers, and that is a good deal for dell.

my EDD is supposed to be august 9th in france.
so, dear dell, either you deliver on time (which i seriously doubt) or you repay otherwise (e.g. offering us an extended warranty, car adapter-- whatever negotiable in a per customer basis). either way, it's the first and the last time i buy here. i think it's clear enough to explain why.

I ordered mine on the 5th July, went into pre-production on the 6th.  ETA 29th July.  On the 29th July, the ETA changed to 6th September.  Thats bad form Dell!!.  I wouldn't mind as much about the delay, It's just that they waited until the last possible second to let me know in order to reduce my bitching time to Customer Services to as little as possible. 

 This morning, I got an email from Customer Services, telling me that my laptop would be arriving in 2 days and that I would be contacted with a delivery time.  A half an hour later I got ANOTHER email saying to ignore this email, that it was for someone else.  From the look of the email, that SOMEONE ELSE ordered there laptop on the 27th July and is receiving it on the 2nd August!! WTF
 

I re-ordered. I was able to take advantage of all the new offers and my ESD is not that far changed. I am looking forward to this product. Nothing else compares.

I hope Dell learns a lot from this product launch .Especially, allow current orders stuck in production to take advantage of new offers (it only makes sense). That, and communicate delays uniformily and clearly.

SO WHAT HAPPENED TO THE 2.4GHz processor?????????????????

No one can answer at DELL.