Dell goes above and beyond for its XPS 700, finally.

Ugh...looking back. And here we thought this industry was only supposed to move forward. Still, it's only fair that since we made such a stink about Dell's XPS 700 last year, we ought to give it credit for addressing one of that system's key problems, even if it is 10 months later.

If you'll recall, the Dell XPS 700 and XPS 710 shipped with Dell's own version of Nvidia's 590 SLI chipset. The Dell hardware lacked that chipset's support for BIOS-based overclocking of Intel's Core 2 Duo Extreme chips, as well as support for automatically detecting overclockable EPP memory that can further boost system performance. It also lacked certain kinds of RAID support and Intel's Virtualization technology. All bad stuff, especially since the missing features initially weren't documented as such.

Dell's XPS 700 gets some long-needed attention.

(Credit: CNET)

Ten months later, an announcement on Dell's blog says the company not only plans to remedy those issues, it's also going a step further. For one, a forthcoming BIOS update will address all of the issues above. Even better, in the coming months Dell says it will offer XPS 700 customers a free quad-core CPU-supporting motherboard, complete with on-site install service, with the option to purchase a quad-core chip at a 25 percent discount from the current price at Dell.com. XPS 710 customers who already have a quad-core CPU also will be able to get in on the motherboard exchange program.

Dell hasn't specified hardware makes and models yet because the parts it has in mind haven't been officially announced. But bringing these systems up to date retroactively is a major customer service move, and more like something we'd expect from one of the smaller boutique shops. It sounds as if Dell is finally getting the message about what it takes to compete in the high-end PC market.

(Thanks, Inquirer)

[gbakmars]

Michael Puts the CARE back into Dell Customer Care

Dell has done an amazing thing here! What large American Corporations do we know anymore that really and truly care about their customers the way that Dell has just demonstrated. Thank you Michael Dell for genuinly LISTENING to your customers. This action taken by Dell is an indication that Michael Dell really plans to put the "CARE" back into Dell Customer Care!

[romills]

It took some time.. but they came around

Wish Dell could of kept us in the loop better on the issues. I finally feel much better about my purchase of this machine.. These last 6 months on this pc wasn't what I had expected, but it looks like Dell is going to fix that now. Hopefully the new motherboard meets our expectations..

Thanks Dell..

[CHSIsupplier]

Dell is regaining trust

Dell has done the right thing here. They have earned my repeat business and loyalty. Who knows, maybe one day soon Dell will be a leader in gaming/enthusiast machines. It definately seems like they are listening to their customers!

[deadites]

Dell has FINALLY given what was promised

Thanks Dell for finally doing the right thing and taking care of those XPS 700 loyal. One may never know if this would have happened without David Marshall's meetings with Michael Dell and other executives or not. All I can say is thank you David and thank you Dell for doing the RIGHT thing!

Now I just hope the replacement motherboard is something we all can appreciate.