Dell SmartStep 250N

[Andem]

Hello to everybody,

I'd like to post my story about the Dell SmartStep 250N laptop. First I'll list the system stats and then I'll list my problem.


System Information:
- Pentium 4 running at 2.2GHz in full power mode
- 1x 256 MB DDR266
- ATI Mobility Radeon, 32MB
- 15,1" TFT (1400 x1050 Pixel)
- 40 GB, IBM Travelstar 40GN (IC25N040ATCS04-0)
ATA-5, 4200 rpm


The problem: OVERHEATING.

The issue with this system is that it was installed with a CPU design for desktop computers, I think it might have been one of the first of it's kind (P4) offered by Dell. What happens is once the system reached a certain temperature, it shuts down with no warning.

We've returned the system 4 times to Dell and it's over a year old. One of the biggest problems here is the heatsink and the cooling system are just not sufficient for the system.. so you could be using WordPerfect or playing a game.. and it will still shutdown at some point. Sometimes it's after an hour and others it's after 5 minutes. Very fickle.

We have an extended warranty which lasts for 2 years which will soon expire. Dell has not offered to replace the system, they've not offered any viable solution and worst of all, they've not even admitted that there's a problem.

I've visited the Dell user forums and seen about 900 complaints about this model and there's no one who's gotten a satisfactory response from Dell regarding this huge line of systems.


It's not an isolated problem and I (as with many others) have come to the conclusion that the systems are defective and Dell has NOT even yet admitted that there's a problem.




So if you want to purchase a laptop, DO NOT purchase a Dell.. You will be throwing your money down the drain for a defective and poorly built/designed system/


PS. I have a friend who recently purchased a different Dell system and has already run into problems with defective hardware.

 

[Isengard]

That sucks Andem, I hate it when companies ignore customer complaints like that!!! About laptops, at work we only use Compaq, but I've worked on a lot of Toshiba laptops and I must say, from my experience, that Toshiba laptops are of better quality than Compaq. But I must say that I never had any manufacture problem with a Compaq either. It's just that they are not as solid, just open a Compaq laptop and press on the back of the screen, you'll see your fingers on the screen, do the same with a Toshiba and you'll see nothing unless you press real hard.

I hope you'll be able to get a refund or a replacement or anything. They must do something since you have a garantee!


Good luck

 

[Andem]

That's the sad part, I don't think I'll ever get a refund or a replacement. Hell, now I would even settle for something of lesser (not that much) value just so I can use it. Right now I'm doing something on it and poof, it's dead.

I agree that Toshiba's are really nice systems.

 

[zenfisher]

We bought a Dell ( desk top) a few years ago. The CD recordable drive didn't record near the time the warranty was about to expire. They wouldn't fix it. They insisted we had to buy the " extended warranty " before they would repair it. We fought with them for a year and a half. and ended up buying a external drive. ( eventually the entire drive failed.

We use Dell's at work. I've had 386' s that were faster.

Never buy a DELL. They are crap. Come on Dell come after me. I'd love to get this in court with the press eagerly waiting. I can prove what I say.

 

[bogie]

Get the order, slap 'em together, get 'em out. Mass production.

Dell, Compaq, HP, and most brand names. Dell is a non-traditional virtual retailer (no brick and mortar locations) and is famous for the types of challenges you face. Another one is MDG, but we won't go there right now

Had one fellow who simply took his Dell laptop, while at home, used a standard desktop monitor, keyboard, and mouse, and placed the laptop unit right beside a large fan to keep it cool. Worked OK that way. Not too many laptops have a 12" fan

BTW, Dell laptops are not the only ones with this challenge. Laptops are compact units and thereby more susceptible to heat-induced errors - especially during the warmer weather.

It is hard keeping some desktop units cool at times, so imagine the challenges facing laptop manufacturers!

Don't have one, been tempted, but time will tell.

 

[fubbleskag]

all of our pc's in the office are dell, including 90% of our various servers across the country. i cannot say that we've ever had any issues - not even with the few laptops that the upper mgmt. have.

the call centre i worked at previous to coming to the newswire was also all run on dells (excepting the proprietary telphony server, of course) with equally little problem.

it's been my experience that a pc of any brand can be made to run worse than a 386 in the right hands

since we're on the topic, has anyone tried out HP's new Linux laptop?

 

[bogie]

Most "commercially" operating Dell systems run well, but it seems that consumer versions experience the most challenges. Dell makes excellent servers, without any doubt. But most "server" manufactureres put extra care into such a product that requires a massive amount of reliability. Servers are also not $499 on special.

With the HP/Compaq merger it will be interesting to see how things go. HP and Compaq servers also have a fairly good reputation .... wish I could say the same for IBM, as my experiences with their servers (expensive ones) has been a horror story.

Whenever a computer manufacturer gets "proprietary" with parts, is when problems start. This is why I like generic boxes where I have more control over repairs (if required), and immediate access to parts.

Example: If a power supply goes on an HP, be ready to wait, as it is proprietary - and expensive. No running down to the local generic computer parts source and getting a new one. Got 3 HP boxes (from a company I used to manage - I didn't buy the HPs!) here with blown power supplies - they now make good boat anchors as I won't repair them (pieces of s***).

A business associate of mine has had a Dell laptop that has now gone back at least 3 times for repair (and it's a high-end unit). They wiped the drive each time (standard procedure), but never seem to be able to fix the problem. He is not a happy camper. Dell is not on his list for the next purchase.

 

[snooker]

Its all about cooperation .... the consumer are stuck with garbage but hey with a forum like this we might have a chance to get even , i doubt it but its worth trying though ... What we should all do is send companies like dell emails and just drive them nuts with emails , telling them to be more concern with the consumer as well not just where the big money is ... I am a true believer that the United States of Amercia is no longer but rather they are now known as Cooperate USA... Its sad but its all about the big dollar sign

 

[astgtciv]

Below is the information on how to save your Smartstep 250N. I had exactly the same overheating experience, with no-warning shutdowns. I followed the instructions below (copied from a google-cached post by piphil on forum.us.dell.com), and there are no more crashes now. In fact, the fan rarely kicks into high gear, and even the noise level becomes acceptable. So, before you throw out that 250N, give this a try.

Buy a $5 tube of Arctic Silver, download the doc from http://docs.euro.dell.com/docs/systems/smrt250n/remove.pdf, carefully disassemble your 250N (keeping track of the screws!), remove the aluminum foil Dell thermal pad which simply DOES NOT WORK, apply arctic silver (see arcticsilver.com for instructions), reassemble - you are done. The procedure took me about 2 hours.

>>>>>>> Reposted from http://216.239.57.104/search?q=cach...87+smartstep+250n+keyboard+foil+thermal&hl=en


Pour les fran ais, voir le traduction plus loin.

Here is my experience with the overheating problem of the DELL SmartPC 250N, for every one's benefit.
After 14 months of use, I experienced unexpected and brutal shutdowns; after different investigations, my conclusion was that the hardware works fine and that the problem occurs with CPU hungry software, whatever the OS is Win$$$ XP Home or Linux, but the fan does not seem to work correctly.
I upgrade the BIOS to version A05 without any change in its behaviour.
I email DELL Technical Support from their site : never had an answer (you probably noticed that I was out of my warranty period).
I install the Roychris Linux program (thanks to him and many other forum contributors) that displays the two thermal zones temperatures, thus determining the temperature at shutdown (around 70 C).
I begin to suspect a dusty fan, then follows the instructions in DELL's document:
http://docs.euro.dell.com/docs/systems/smrt250n/remove.pdf
When I take the heatsink down, the microproc comes glued with it; the fan is clean and the grating too; anyway, I clean everything with dry air and, shyly, put up every piece together, but the PC won't boot : probably the microproc is not well secured in its socket.
Then, I call the DELL hotline: the guy says it comes from the motherboard, so, I inform him about the forum which says it looks like a generic failure (he heard about, he said, no more), and will send me a proposal to replace it. Proposal received at a sky rocketing 840 ! Ooops!!!
I send a letter for DELL to revise its proposal : never had an answer (you probably noticed it is the second time).
For this price (I could afford a low-end Inspiron), it is worth taking some more risks : I strip down the PC again, detach the heatsink from the microproc with a razor blade (old fashion!), takes the gray glue away as well as the chocolate paper foil (that is not uniformly glued), clean the 2 metal surfaces shining, add a thermal paste thin coating and put up everything : it worked at once. Now, the temperetures are around 40 and 50 C, gaining more than 20 C, very good indeed for the microproc lifetime.
Conclusions (for my own case):
1- the fan is not the problem, even if it works better when clean (true in many other areas!)
2- the microproc/heatsink interface has been aging badly with its bloated foil, and the metal to metal interface is much more efficient.
3- DELL support is close to nil;
the repair costed me 5 of thermal paste, no wonder if DELL is a profitable company with such methods! And not ready to acknowledge a design failure.
My PC works fine for nearly 2 months now .


En fran ais, ici, puisqu'il n'y a plus de forum d di :
Ayant constat que je n' tais pas le seul avoir des probl mes avec le syst me de refroidissement du DELL SmartPC 250N, j'apporte ma modeste contribution l'exp rience de la communaut .

Apr s 14 mois de loyaux services, je me plante sur des mises hors tension intempestives et brutales; en investiguant, j'arrive la conclusion que le mat riel n'est pas en cause et que le probl me se produit avec des logiciels gourmands en CPU et quelque soit l'OS Win$$$ XP Home ou Linux, mais que le ventilateur ne se met plus en marche bon escient.
Je mets jour mon BIOS la version A05 depuis le site DELL : m mes sympt mes.
Je fais un mail au support DELL depuis leur site : jamais eu de r ponse (vous avez remarqu que je suis hors garantie).
J'installe le petit programme de Roychris (merci lui et autre participants du forum) sous Linux qui m'affiche les temp ratures des 2 zones thermiques, ce qui permet de d terminer ces temp ratures au plantage (autour de 70 C).
Je suspecte d'abord un encrassage du ventilateur . Je suis les instructions du manuel de d montage de DELL :
http://docs.euro.dell/docs/systems/smrt250n/remove.pdf
mitig es par les remarques du forum. Le microproc vient avec le radiateur quand je le retire; le ventilateur est propre ainsi que les grilles; je nettoie la bombe; sans m'avancer plus loin, je remonte le tout, mais le PC ne red marre pas : le microproc n'est s rement pas remont correctement sur son socket.
J'appelle la hotline DELL : le gars identifie le probl me comme venant de la carte m re; je lui signale que sur les forums, ce d faut semble tre g n rique; il en a entendu parl , mais me propose un devis pour remplacer la carte m re. R ception du devis : 840 ! Gloups!!!
Lettre DELL pour modifier ce devis exorbitant : jamais eu de r ponse (vous avez remarqu que c'est la 2 me fois).
Pour ce prix l (je pourrais acheter un Inspiron d'entr e de gamme), a vaut le coup de prendre quelques risques suppl mentaires: Je re-d monte la b te, d tache le microproc du radiateur avec une lame de rasoir, enl ve la colle (grise), enl ve la pellicule de m tal argent e qui n'est d'ailleurs pas coll e uniform ment, nettoie les 2 surfaces, ajoute une tr s fine couche de p te thermique et remonte le tout : a remarche super bien avec un ventilateur qui s'agite et change de vitesse quand il faut. Les temp ratures sont maintenant autour de 40 et 50 C; la manip fait gagner plus de 20 C, c'est bon pour la dur e de vie du micro!!!!!

Conclusions (dans mon cas) :
1- le ventilateur n'est pas en cause, mais a aide si l'on est propre (c'est vrai ailleurs aussi!)
2- l'interface radiateur/microproc avec sa feuille m tallis e a d vieillir (d collage et couche d'air) , l'interface m tal/m tal radiateur/microproc est s rement plus efficace.
3- le support DELL est d plorable;
la r paration m'a co t 5 de p te thermique, pas tonnant que DELL soit une entreprise profitable avec de telles m thodes! Et visiblement qui n'est pas pr te de reconna tre une erreur de conception.
Mon PC tourne sans probl me depuis 2 mois maintenant.

Email s par Roychris

 

[Unhappy dell user]

:x I'm having the exact same problem with the Dell laptop. I'm still battling with Dell about this. you're right. They won't admit a problem exists. They've gone so far as to say, the system has been functioning with no problems. I'm planning to file a complaint with the better business bureau if dell does not resolve this situation. THe computer is 2 years. Was used approximately twice a month for the first 18 months. Then my daughter took it to college 4 months ago. Since the usage increased, within the first month, it began to heat up and shut off. I've had a certified Dell Technician look @ the laptop. (I didn't actually send the system to Dell and don't plan to. I don't want them to touch it). He determined the processor was defective from the beginning but Dell refuses to acknowlege it.

 

[Klemensowski]

I had a million problems with this computer.
The most popular was overheating and missing keyboard keys. I was missing a few keys and i could not get them to send me a replacment keyboard because they said that its a custom part. Finnaly a month ago the outlet where you plug the charge cable into broke and i needed to get a replacment motherboard. Thats about 400$. I decided to just get a new computer. So here i am now with a not working laptop only because that little part is broken. So i want to sell its parts to anyone who wants them.

<SNIP: Personal sales are not permitted on this site at this point>

 

[ICantBelieve]

Hey, guys!!! Dell's behavior on this is disgusting. I have one as well and have had all the same issues. Dell was more than willing to sell me an extended warranty a year ago, but now no longer carries batteries or ANYTHING for this computer. They won't answer my emails. They should be sued.

Here's some good news: the overheating problem can be controlled (usually) by spraying keyboard cleaner into the fan intlet (on the right side) on a regular basis--once a month or so. The first time you do this, you will see a huge puff of dust come out the back!!! The design flaw is that dust builds up on the heat sink. I've been doing this since I read about it on the Dell users' forum (not like Dell support would tell you this!!!) and haven't had the problem since. And, frankly, I really don't even do it once a month; just every now and then.

The other good news is that I've found a new replacement battery for $US110 on EBay.

One thing in Dell's defense--this is a really nice computer otherwise. I LOVE the screen. 1400x1050 resolution is still hard to get and I bought this thing 2 years ago. It was and still is EXACTLY what I want--fast processor when plugged in, decent processor when on battery, wonderful screen, FLOPPY drive right on board, DVD reader/CD RW. I've gone out looking and wouldn't want to have to replace this thing. It's still the perfect fit for me.

I swore after my last bad experience with Dell--had another Inspiron from them that croaked in a year--that I'd never buy from Dell again. Yet, I did, because this SmartStep 250N was the best price for performance--heck, it was the best performance PERIOD at the time.

Anyway, sorry to babble.

 

[Ed]

I too have a 250N dell Pentium 4 2.4 Ghz laptop. It is a leased computer. I gave it to my son to use. After less than a year of use and after the warranty expired the computer would not start. The green light comes on for about 4-6 seconds and turns off. It would simply refuse to start. Here's what I did:

- took the battery off and tried ac power - same result
- Suspected the memory chips. There are two, 250 MB ram chips. Yanked one at a time to see if it works. No Luck
- Suspected the modem. Yanked the modem out. No luck.
- called Dell. I was told it is the ram that is defective. Replaced the ram. Tried it and had exact the same results.
Dell would not offer any assistance or replacement since the contract is out of warrant. What's painful to me is that I am still paying the lease fees without the use of the computer.

Did anyone of you experience the same nonesense? I would love to get some answers.

Thanks

 

[Azalie]

I too have a 250N dell Pentium 4 2.4 Ghz laptop. It is a leased computer. I gave it to my son to use. After less than a year of use and after the warranty expired the computer would not start. The green light comes on for about 4-6 seconds and turns off. It would simply refuse to start. Here's what I did:

- took the battery off and tried ac power - same result
- Suspected the memory chips. There are two, 250 MB ram chips. Yanked one at a time to see if it works. No Luck
- Suspected the modem. Yanked the modem out. No luck.
- called Dell. I was told it is the ram that is defective. Replaced the ram. Tried it and had exact the same results.
Dell would not offer any assistance or replacement since the contract is out of warrant. What's painful to me is that I am still paying the lease fees without the use of the computer.

Did anyone of you experience the same nonesense? I would love to get some answers.

Thanks

My next suspicion would be a defunct power supply. If Dell won't help you repair it, call around local pc repair stores. You should be able to get the power supply replaced and it shouldn't cost too much. I know it sucks that leases often go longer htan warranties, but if the laptop has passed its warranty, they do have a right to not repair it for free. I am surprised, however, if they do not offer repair options at a cost to you. Still, it's probably cheaper to get a local pc shop to do it.

 

[Ed]

Thanks Azalie,

If it is a defunct power Supply, should it not work on the Battery alone?

 

[Azalie]

Re: RE: Dell SmartStep 250N

Thanks Azalie,

If it is a defunct power Supply, should it not work on the Battery alone?

No, the power supply is a lot like a transformer.. it takes the energy that's provided to it.. be it by ac power or battery, and converts it to energy the pc components will need (consider this.. direct 120V to the pc would fry the motherboard, and that's the standard voltage of an electrical outlet in North America). The power supply is the intermediary between the power source (ac power or battery) and the rest of the computer.

 

[toshio]

same shit,different place

Hello Guys,
I am also suffering the same shit (overheated CPU) as you. But in the first time i was very lucky because the overheating problem came up in the warranty period and some helpful DELL technicians replaced the fan. but after 8 months the same prob appeared and is still sucking.. First i did not know what to do so I let some high "CPU-Challenging" Programs run in the background so the fan did fall back into the lower gears. Once the CPU falls in lower gears it is not able to change into higher gears and starts making some odd sounds. I think i will follow your advice and try cleaning it and then we'll see.
I really feel with you guys.

Hamburg,
Germany :wink:

 

[Nascar_James]

Yep. Dell laptops have known to be problematic. I have always stuck with a HP laptop. They are pretty reliable.

 

[Andem]

I'm liking my VAIO laptop now

 

[MikeP]

my 250N is now 4 years old. was having shutdown trouble like described above. with instructions from dell's web site, i took it apart and found that the internal part of the cpu/power supply heat sinks were 20% blocked by dust. vacuuming it out from outside was impossible (i tried). i carefully used a vacuum cleaner with a straw. i did not distrub the cpu. it's been working correctly for 2 weeks now. it was shutting down within 1 hr. it started when summer got really warm. once the problem started happening, i could get very little work done...have used it extensively now and left it on overnight without incident. dell's support didn't provide any clues on this. thank you all for your insights.