Dell's reasons to be fearful (1,2,3): Intel chip supplies, trade tariffs and slowing server sales in sagging Chinese economy

Sagging server market demand, protracted chip shortages and the US’ tariff shenanigans with China are among the things Dell Tech is watching with interest after lowering fiscal ’20 revenue targets. Michael Dell’s plaything issued the guidance last night along with its financials for Q1 ended 3 May showing a 3 per cent rise in …

[Khaptain]

Ian Dury

Thumbs up for the Ian Dury reference .

[Wade Burchette]

protracted chip shortages

If only there was another CPU supplier out there that could meet their demand ... Then again, it might be time for Intel to keep Dell solvent again.

[sal II]

Re: protracted chip shortages

After the Opteron debacle/saga, there isn't much demand/appetite from enterprise for AMD powered servers.

[garou1674]

Will NEVER buy a Dell again...

After buying a POS Alienware 15R2 that is more a lap warmer while surfing the web than anything else, then follow that up with 2 Dell Gaming 15s, and finally a Dell G3. All 4 bought over the past 3 years. The Alienware I called for support and they install a software that my AV software reports as a virus (needless to say a reinstall was shortly after that call), then I start getting calls from "Dell Concierge" saying my system has a virus. Yeah, riiiiight.

Fast forward to the 2 Gaming 15s, and a keyboard had the keys pop off a year after purchasing the laptops, they wanted to charge me $80 for a new keyboard when I had purchased their best warranty. Found out that the warranty was good for a one time "oops" per year, which this was not.

Then the last straw was ordering the G3. It was to be my daughter's birthday/graduation gift. It was to show up 3 days before her birthday (I asked three times to ensure I had the date right), giving me just enough time to re-image the system with a fresh install of the OS to remove all the bloatware that Dell loves so much. I call three days prior to find out the tracking label as the site showed it "in route". Was told they had no shipping information as it was in the middle of the Pacific. WTF! The day it was supposed to arrive on my doorstep I finally get a tracking number, and it is coming FedEx Ground from California. I blew a gasket, called them up and chewed them up one side and down the other trying to get them to get it to me next day. They offered me $100 of stuff off the Dell site to try and calm me down. Told them this was the final straw, and that I would be closing my account out.

The G3 incident was last year. I am so glad I will never order crap from them again. All the above systems I purchased the best possible warranty for (4yr on-site premium support), and aside from the Alienware normally get someone that I can barely understand. Yeah, never a again Dell, rot in Hell.

[NATTtrash]

Re: Will NEVER buy a Dell again...

Some times small things are really amazing, funny, eye openers...

Not familiar with the G3 you mentioned, I was curious, and had a look. Searched for it and found 2 top search results; one in the US and one in the EU (Germany). Had look at both.

And then it's really funny to see the cultural divide. Where in Europe, Dell has no probs supplying the box with Linux/ Ubuntu installed (see the possible OS's to choose from under "Betriebssystem"), this seems to be too scary for US customers. Choice of OS in the US? Windows 10, Windows 10, and... (wait for it) Windows 10. The Linux option there only shows up if you can't choose and go for the "Help Me Choose" option. Helpful of course, because it's very difficult to choose between Windows 10, Windows 10, and Windows 10.</chuckle>

PS: Looking again, must be a German thing apparently; the UK Dell site does the same thing as the US one. Interesting...

PSPS: Nope, the French and Italians are also allowed to choose Linux. Would it have to do with the B-word? ☺

[Steve Davies 3]

Re:would it have to do with the 'B' word?.

Nope.

Dell in days gone by would not sell a PC to a consumer in the uk without some form of Windows.

Yet, if you bought a server you could get it with no software provided you were a VAT registered company (this was around 2002/2003)

So we bought cheap servers and put RedHat 7 or 8 or SUSE on them and everyone was happy apart from Microsoft that is. They got zilch in terms of revenue (good thing).

Microsoft seems to have most UK PS makers by the short and curlies. Novatech will sell you a device without software but don't tell MS or they'll get heavy with them. It is probably illegal but who has the guts to go up against MS and their £1000/hour scumbag lawyers.

[Anonymous Coward]

Re: Will NEVER buy a Dell again...

I think it has to do with whether or not a country interprets monopoly law strictly.

[karlkarl]

Re: Will NEVER buy a Dell again...

I think the UK is still in the backwards mindset that "the only way is Microsoft".

The rest of Europe seems to have progressed a little past that point. Possibly Brexit is for the best; they don't want the UK slowing them down ;)

[Jakester]

Re: Will NEVER buy a Dell again...

Also fed-up with Dell. I ordered an entry-level server with 16GB RAM instead of the baseline 8GB. The server arrived, but with only 8GB RAM. Called "customer support" to see if they could send the other 8GB RAM. After more than an hour on the phone with the the "support" person (located somewhere in India, and barely intelligble English), she determined that the only thing that could be done is to send the system back and they would send the correct server configuration. I got the replacement server in a few days, and it also had only 8GB memory. Called "customer support" again, got pretty much the same response that I return the unit and they would send one with the correct configuration. I get the replacement, and it too had only 8GB memory. Repeated call to "customer service". The agent this time said I would have to send the server back and they would have to cancel the order (which they did) because a customer can only have two returns on a single order.

After about a week, I get a call from the "Dell Triage Team" (the manager of the department and located in the U.S.). He offerred to send a 16 GB memory module and I could return the 8GB stick. I told him that would be good, if I had a server in which to install the memory. Bottom line was I had more than 10 hours in calls to dell and more than 40 e-mails in an attempt to resolve the issue and to get a refund when they refused to fix the problem in the first place. My opinion is if Dell are paying the "customer support" agents more than 27 cents (US) an hour, they are extremely over paid.

While waiting for the refund, I purchased an HP server and had it configured an in service in 1/10 th the time than it took me to deal with Dell with that mess.

[Charlie Clark]

Numbers

Dell is betting on achieving revenues growth of 2 to 5 per cent for fiscal ’20

In other words, and assuming profits grow commensurately, just enough to cover the interest payments. Anyone for a demerger or a sell-off?

[WatAWorld]

US company worried about Chinese market?

US company worried about Chinese market?

Once Trump, Pompeo, and John Bolton are done with things, no American company will ever again have to worry about the Chinese market. Maybe not even the Indian market.

My concern is that the logical conclusion of current national security issues is that they'll all be Huawei'd out of China.

The USA has genuine concerns about Huawei being based in China, the exact same concerns any foreign country should have about a supplier based in a foreign military power.

And -- surprise -- to the rest of the world, the USA is a foreign military power.

Sadly, since the fears are valid, I do not see a solution. I only mention it because we're talking about future stock prices of a US company that depends on exports.