1Wolf
Limp Gawd
- Joined
- Jul 10, 2007
- Messages
- 433
I've been on the fence between the LG 38GN950-B and the Alienware AW3821DW for a while. After hemming and hawing I finally decided that maybe the full G-Sync module was worth it, and the folks here in the forums spoke highly of the Alienware warranty and support.
So I went with the Alienware. I ordered in March and they projected an April delivery which they came through on. However, FedEx really dropped the ball. Who knows what they did with the package but it took over a week to get here and by the time it arrived there was a bit of damage on the box and FedEx red & white tape re-sealing the box. I went ahead and opened the box and it was clear that someone had indeed been into the box. The monitor itself had some small scratches on the screen. They were small, but they were not minor. They weren't surface scratches but went all the way through the coating. I took pictures of the damage and the box and contacted Alienware support. They were awesome. I was only on the phone for like 15 minutes and they asked me to send photos. I sent pictures and they sent me a new monitor the next day. They asked me to send back the old one pre-paid shipping as soon as I could.
I received the new monitor about a week later and the box from FedEx was in pristine condition. No damage. I opened the monitor, and inspected it thoroughly with a flashlight and it was in fine condition. I set it up, turned it on...and you can see what it looked like below. Again, I called Alienware support and this time it wasn't so easy. It took me an hour and a half on the phone to get it resolved. Because I was 30-days out from the initial purchase I had to go through regular regular tech support instead of replacement of an item damaged in shipping. I did the whole customer service thing we all love where I was transferred, lost, unhelpful people, etc. I finally got someone helpful and they walked me through the process that even involved me having to write down a bunch of information on a piece of paper (my name, the tech support id, service tag, my address, etc.) and then take a photo of that next to the QR codes on the back of the monitor and e-mail that photo to them. The lady was very nice though and when all was said and done they have another exchange on its way to me that should be here in a week. I verified that this would indeed be a brand new monitor and not a refurbished one or something.
So anyhow, after all of this I'm beginning to doubt my purchase and wondering if maybe I'd be better off telling them to keep it and getting a refund....then purchasing the 38GN950. I lose out on the G-Sync module (its G-Sync compatible) but maybe its a better monitor. I don't know. The majority of people seem to think the Alienware has better quality. I just keep reading all these anecdotal stories about flickering screens and inconsistent quality and such. Maybe I'm just being paranoid from having such trouble getting a quality monitor when it costs so much money.
So I figured I'd just ask for advice and see what you guys thought, maybe someone else was in the same boat and might advise me to scrap it and get the LG. Or...conversely....maybe the popular advice will be just to give them another chance and hold out and I'll probably have a very nice monitor in the end.
Thanks!
So I went with the Alienware. I ordered in March and they projected an April delivery which they came through on. However, FedEx really dropped the ball. Who knows what they did with the package but it took over a week to get here and by the time it arrived there was a bit of damage on the box and FedEx red & white tape re-sealing the box. I went ahead and opened the box and it was clear that someone had indeed been into the box. The monitor itself had some small scratches on the screen. They were small, but they were not minor. They weren't surface scratches but went all the way through the coating. I took pictures of the damage and the box and contacted Alienware support. They were awesome. I was only on the phone for like 15 minutes and they asked me to send photos. I sent pictures and they sent me a new monitor the next day. They asked me to send back the old one pre-paid shipping as soon as I could.
I received the new monitor about a week later and the box from FedEx was in pristine condition. No damage. I opened the monitor, and inspected it thoroughly with a flashlight and it was in fine condition. I set it up, turned it on...and you can see what it looked like below. Again, I called Alienware support and this time it wasn't so easy. It took me an hour and a half on the phone to get it resolved. Because I was 30-days out from the initial purchase I had to go through regular regular tech support instead of replacement of an item damaged in shipping. I did the whole customer service thing we all love where I was transferred, lost, unhelpful people, etc. I finally got someone helpful and they walked me through the process that even involved me having to write down a bunch of information on a piece of paper (my name, the tech support id, service tag, my address, etc.) and then take a photo of that next to the QR codes on the back of the monitor and e-mail that photo to them. The lady was very nice though and when all was said and done they have another exchange on its way to me that should be here in a week. I verified that this would indeed be a brand new monitor and not a refurbished one or something.
So anyhow, after all of this I'm beginning to doubt my purchase and wondering if maybe I'd be better off telling them to keep it and getting a refund....then purchasing the 38GN950. I lose out on the G-Sync module (its G-Sync compatible) but maybe its a better monitor. I don't know. The majority of people seem to think the Alienware has better quality. I just keep reading all these anecdotal stories about flickering screens and inconsistent quality and such. Maybe I'm just being paranoid from having such trouble getting a quality monitor when it costs so much money.
So I figured I'd just ask for advice and see what you guys thought, maybe someone else was in the same boat and might advise me to scrap it and get the LG. Or...conversely....maybe the popular advice will be just to give them another chance and hold out and I'll probably have a very nice monitor in the end.
Thanks!
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