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Interesting that they mention the Dell website for decision making. 4 times this year I've decided to purchase a new computer and spent hours trying to figure

by brador 15y ago

Interesting that they mention the Dell website for decision making. 4 times this year I've decided to purchase a new computer and spent hours trying to figure out what to buy from the Dell website. I have yet to upgrade.

zdw 15y ago
Dell likes to offer a TON of options on everything. You can get the exact computer you want (within specs), but at the cost of having to accumulate the knowledge to make those decisions. This isn't hard if you're a hardware geek, but ask say a software geek a nontechnical person to do it and they'll frequently end up in a world of confusion. Compare to say Apple's site which in many cases has about 2 options per item (as opposed to Dell's 10+), which often causes hardware geeks frustration. See also the paradox of choice.
- brador 15y ago
  When it was Pentium 2,3, or 4 it made perfect sense. Higher number = better. When it's pentium 2318497X vs AMD 328712Y vs AMD 1238NP32 it's just a garble of random digits. Combine that with graphics cards, motherboard types, connections and all the upsell opportunities/marketing gimmicks Dell attempts and it's a confusing mess of choices. I just want a fast PC for upto £1,000. edit - I should add this is all after I've been in tech for close to 15 years now. I wonder what it is like to be a non-tech buying a computer.
gte910h 15y ago
An easy way around this: Buy mac hardware, install windows.
- brador 15y ago
  That's actually what I decided to do in the end, until I looked at the Apple site and figured a mac just isn't powerful enough for my needs...plus the release schedules are a mess right now...mid cycle everything.
mdda 15y ago
That's one reason that I lie in wait for Refurb deals from buy.com or woot. Every so often, a $300 Quad core comes along : The lack of decision points is a huge win. Upgrade something when you find the weaknesses. Or ditch it (pass it to a deserving relative) and move on.
rhizome 15y ago
I think they should fire the person who convinced them that the best first question a potential customer should have answered should be "home office? personal? corporate?" The fact that they don't allow you to select from their entire range turned me off from ever considering them years ago.

by brador 15y ago

zdw 15y ago

Dell likes to offer a TON of options on everything. You can get the exact computer you want (within specs), but at the cost of having to accumulate the knowledge to make those decisions. This isn't hard if you're a hardware geek, but ask say a software geek a nontechnical person to do it and they'll frequently end up in a world of confusion. Compare to say Apple's site which in many cases has about 2 options per item (as opposed to Dell's 10+), which often causes hardware geeks frustration. See also the paradox of choice.

brador 15y ago
When it was Pentium 2,3, or 4 it made perfect sense. Higher number = better. When it's pentium 2318497X vs AMD 328712Y vs AMD 1238NP32 it's just a garble of random digits. Combine that with graphics cards, motherboard types, connections and all the upsell opportunities/marketing gimmicks Dell attempts and it's a confusing mess of choices. I just want a fast PC for upto £1,000. edit - I should add this is all after I've been in tech for close to 15 years now. I wonder what it is like to be a non-tech buying a computer.

gte910h 15y ago

An easy way around this: Buy mac hardware, install windows.

brador 15y ago
That's actually what I decided to do in the end, until I looked at the Apple site and figured a mac just isn't powerful enough for my needs...plus the release schedules are a mess right now...mid cycle everything.

mdda 15y ago

That's one reason that I lie in wait for Refurb deals from buy.com or woot. Every so often, a $300 Quad core comes along : The lack of decision points is a huge win. Upgrade something when you find the weaknesses. Or ditch it (pass it to a deserving relative) and move on.

rhizome 15y ago

I think they should fire the person who convinced them that the best first question a potential customer should have answered should be "home office? personal? corporate?" The fact that they don't allow you to select from their entire range turned me off from ever considering them years ago.