Angus Kidman14 December 2006, 11:06 AM
Just because Dell loves to boast that its build-to-order process means it sells the lowest-priced gear doesn't mean we wouldn't like to get it a little bit cheaper. Here's how.
You might hate it as a globe-straddling conglomerate (or just think Michael Dell has ridiculous teeth), but it's hard to deny that Dell is very successful at what it does.
Even with HP edging it out of the number one position in Gartner's most recent quarterly sales rankings, it still sold more than 9 million units in three months.
 Michael Dell: Own teeth, hair and company. |
A central part of the Dell mythos is the notion that its build-to-order approach means it can beat the price of any conventional retailer.
For Dell, it may be a marketing strategy, but it's undeniable that Dell's prices are often well below what the rest of the market is able to offer. This poses a unique challenge for the dedicated techie: how can you get those prices even lower?
Here's some tactics to dig out those Dell bargains.
Find someone who works at a company which already uses Dell
Dell offers standing discounts for employees of most of its corporate customers in the form of discount codes, which is a great way of getting a markdown of something which isn't otherwise on special.
Official company policy is that these aren't transferable, and that codes which are (for example) shared on a forum will be rejected.
However, a code which you get directly from a friend or relative is less likely to be a problem -- and if you get the friend to do the actual ordering and pay them afterwards, it's not going to be detectable, is it?
Lurk on hardware forums and look for promo codes
Discount codes (and notifications of sudden specials) do regularly appear on the hardware forums of popular Australian tech discussion sites.
As well as providing a pointer to possible deals, such discussions will also often highlight pros and cons of particular products. For example, early buyers of Dell 24" monitors noticed severe gradient banding problems (the issue has been resolved in later versions of the monitor.)
(Incidentally, if you see a cheap system advertised in a paper or magazine and want to track down that specific deal on the Dell site, click on Home and Home Office and then Advertised Systems on the Dell Australia site.)
Don't dither
Dell changes its main special offers in Australia once a week -- so if you wait until the end of that period, they'll probably have sold out. That said, if your order actually gets accepted and you subsequently get told it is no longer available, kick up a stink; in our experience, you may well get a newer component for the same price.
Subscribe to the Dell mailing list
OK, you'll be competing with half the country, but it can't hurt to subscribe to the Dell email list and get an update on its current bargains when you're in the market for new gear. (And no, we're not being paid by Dell to say that.)
A final cost-saving and environmental tip: with some models, Dell collects and recycles your old PC when you buy a new one, which will save you the cost of petrol heading to the dump, as well as giving you a warm inner glow... and will possibly save your children's children from the residual build up of toxic chemicals leached from PCs).