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Guestbook Archive 4

First Name : amanda
Which Dell model do you own? : 5100
Have you experienced overheating problems? : yes
When did the problems start? : a few months ago
Did The Solution solve your problems? : yes - thank you
What were your temps. before & after the fix? : uk
Will you buy from Dell again? : maybe...
Additional Comments... : many people at my college have same problem w/ 5100 & assumed it was inherent design flaw - will share your fix w/ them....

First Name : David
Which Dell model do you own? : Inspiron 5100
Have you experienced overheating problems? : Yes
When did the problems start? : About 6 months after purchase.
Did The Solution solve your problems? : Dont know...just sent the computer to Dell.
What were your temps. before & after the fix? : Uncertain...will install and run program after computer is returned. Will also do weeking cleaning (blow air) and keep fingers crossed.
Will you buy from Dell again? : Yes.
Additional Comments... : Wish Dell would recognize this problem and offer long-term solution.

First Name : Mandie
Which Dell model do you own? : 5100
Have you experienced overheating problems? : Yes
When did the problems start? : The problem started several months ago, prior to warranty expiring...but I waited too long.
Did The Solution solve your problems? : I have the fan control running and have used the compressed air. The problem still exists. I guess I just need to use more air or send it in.
What were your temps. before & after the fix? : At CPU peak...75 degrees! At low capacity...56-60 degrees.
Will you buy from Dell again? : Yes/No. I have two Dell computers,this is the first major problem that they have not responded to. Very disappointing.
Additional Comments... : Misery loves company. Thank you for putting this page together!!! Hopefully with enough complaints, Dell will come through.

First Name : Drew
Which Dell model do you own? : Inspiron 5100
Have you experienced overheating problems? : yes
When did the problems start? : 4 months after owning the laptop.
Did The Solution solve your problems? : NO
What were your temps. before & after the fix? :
Will you buy from Dell again? : if they stop making shitty designs.
Additional Comments... : the computer is great, fast, lots of memory, its a gunboat. Just has some major design flaws that keep it from being one of the best computers ive owned. It shut down while I was attempting to right up this review for the first time!

First Name : Greg
Which Dell model do you own? : 5150
Have you experienced overheating problems? : yes
When did the problems start? : late June
Did The Solution solve your problems? : well see
What were your temps. before & after the fix? :
Will you buy from Dell again? : maybe
Additional Comments... :

First Name : Daniel
Which Dell model do you own? : 5100
Have you experienced overheating problems? : Yes
When did the problems start? : August 2003
Did The Solution solve your problems? : Not sure yet, just sent it to the depot
What were your temps. before & after the fix? : runs upto high 70s and turns off.
Will you buy from Dell again? : NEVER. PATHETIC LAPTOP, PATHETIC SUPPORT. DISGUSTED
Additional Comments... : I will never understand how a company so large can ignore a plea from so many.

First Name : Rob
Which Dell model do you own? : Inspiron 5100
Have you experienced overheating problems? : Yes.
When did the problems start? : About 6 months after purchase. Applications would run much slower, and the fans were quite loud. The case itself became very hot.
Did The Solution solve your problems? : Using compressed air the first time yielded a dust cloud from the intake vent. Temperatures immediately went down to sane levels. Regular maintenance keeps the cpu temp down.
What were your temps. before & after the fix? : Before: idle, 55; cpu max, 77. After: idle, 37; cpu max, 65.
Will you buy from Dell again? : Never, no. They obviously know this is a design problem at this point, since tech and marketing execs no doubt monitor the forums and sites like this. Yet, we hear nothing from them on this issue.
Additional Comments... : It would have been simple enough for Dell to recommend upon purchase that users blow the vents out every so often. Or, they could recall and fix the cooling assemby. Its a short-term expenditure, but its a long-term customer retention issue.

First Name : John
Which Dell model do you own? : Inspiron 5150
Have you experienced overheating problems? : Yes
When did the problems start? : Long ago
Did The Solution solve your problems? : Long ago
What were your temps. before & after the fix? : 70-45
Will you buy from Dell again? : NO
Additional Comments... : actually...nvm, a lot of the ppl who signed the guestbook around the time I signed it didnt seem to understand the prob....hey maybe I can get my money back now *HAH*

First Name : John
Which Dell model do you own? : Inspiron 5150
Have you experienced overheating problems? : Yes
When did the problems start? : Long ago
Did The Solution solve your problems? : Long ago
What were your temps. before & after the fix? : 70-45
Will you buy from Dell again? : NO
Additional Comments... : Im just posting again to let you know the techs are either playing dumb, or dell still doesnt recognize this page. A lot of the ppl who sign your guest book dont even sound like they understand the prob. or theyre just assuming they have it which may make

First Name : Kimberlee
Which Dell model do you own? : 5100
Have you experienced overheating problems? : Yes
When did the problems start? : after 6 months
Did The Solution solve your problems? : no
What were your temps. before & after the fix? : none
Will you buy from Dell again? : No Way! Customer support sucks.
Additional Comments... : Next time I will buy a Toshiba

First Name : Dan
Which Dell model do you own? : 5150
Have you experienced overheating problems? : yes, melting and electric shocks
When did the problems start? : about 6 mo. after i bought the system
Did The Solution solve your problems? : yes a bit
What were your temps. before & after the fix? :
Will you buy from Dell again? : NO, Those bastards!
Additional Comments... : the computers heat melted the wires and almost started a fire. This is SERIOUS, its a safety hazard. Plus, I heard people got electric shocks from the melting wires!!!

First Name : Robert
Which Dell model do you own? : Inspiron 5150
Have you experienced overheating problems? : Yes
When did the problems start? : about a week ago. Laptop is aut 1 year old. (13 days short of warranty expiry)
Did The Solution solve your problems? : Yes.
What were your temps. before & after the fix? : Before: Idle was 53C. Running a virus scan temp would raise to 78C at which point machine would shutdown. After: Idle 44C, peak during virus scan 63C. Thanks for posting this. Saved me hours of pulling my hair out.
Will you buy from Dell again? : Probably not. This problem which appears to be well known not admitted y Dell. PLus the tech support I got when I called in was crap.
Additional Comments... : tech support was issue. 40 min wait. Very poor line quality to what appeared to be offshore support. Bad line plus accent/language barrier bad, plus the tech didn;t tell me anything I didnt already know.

First Name : Conor
Which Dell model do you own? : Byrne
Have you experienced overheating problems? : YES
When did the problems start? : After about 8 months
Did The Solution solve your problems? : YES!!!!
What were your temps. before & after the fix? : maxed out CPU before 73c+ after 50 max normal / idle before around 48c after around 30c
Will you buy from Dell again? : Yes, although this was a problem thanks to your guys hard work it was solved! I had previously bought from dell and had a very good response to problems.
Additional Comments... : Just want to thank you for all your efforts on this problem. I found both the dell forum and this page very helpful. It was funny I didnt think there was a problem till I saw the forum. I put the poor performance down to software problems. Thanks agai

First Name : Robert
Which Dell model do you own? : Inspiron 5150
Have you experienced overheating problems? : Yes
When did the problems start? : Monday 6/28.04
Did The Solution solve your problems? : Dont know yet. Going to try it. Proping up the back of the laptop to allow decent airflow seens to work at least temporarily.
What were your temps. before & after the fix? :
Will you buy from Dell again? : Probably not. Tech support is much weaker than Ive previosly experienced. This is my fourth Dell, ist laptop from them.
Additional Comments... : 20 min wait to get a tech who transferred me to proper dept...another 25 min wait. Next Tech complained of poor sound quality on telephone line. Very hard to explain the problem when the tech cant hear you AND an apparent language barrier.

First Name : Fred
Which Dell model do you own? : Inspiron 5100
Have you experienced overheating problems? : yes
When did the problems start? : 6 months after I bought it
Did The Solution solve your problems? : Yes
What were your temps. before & after the fix? :
Will you buy from Dell again? : yes if they solve the problem
Additional Comments... :

First Name : Jeremy
Which Dell model do you own? : Inspiron 5100
Have you experienced overheating problems? : yes
When did the problems start? : 10 months after purchase. Ive been doing some renovations, so my house is more dusty than normal, which is probably why it started happening now.
Did The Solution solve your problems? : Yes, my cpu temp dropped by almost 20 degrees according to fangui.
What were your temps. before & after the fix? : Before: 68+ while idle After: 49
Will you buy from Dell again? : Maybe, but I think Ill shop around a little more and look online for reports of problems before I purchase.
Additional Comments... : With this many reports of problems, Dell should have sent me a notification of the problem with a description of the solution. Thanks for posting this information!

First Name : TNTaangela
Which Dell model do you own? : Inspiron 100
Have you experienced overheating problems? : YES
When did the problems start? : From the beginning but got a lot worse after several months.
Did The Solution solve your problems? : dont know if it will work on my mine but would love to try it if I knew it was okay
What were your temps. before & after the fix? : I dont know, just that it burned my hands.
Will you buy from Dell again? : Maybe. I had a Dell Inspiron laptop before and loved it.
Additional Comments... : I appreciate what you are doing. I wish more people would speak up the way you are. Many thanks!!

First Name : Johnathan
Which Dell model do you own? : Inspiron 5100
Have you experienced overheating problems? : Yes
When did the problems start? : They started 3-6 months after I purchased the computer, when my games experienced noticeable framerate drops.
Did The Solution solve your problems? : The solution alleviated the problem...for another 3-6 months.
What were your temps. before & after the fix? : before the prog. - 68-70 after the prog. - 52-55
Will you buy from Dell again? : Yes, they still make damn fine computer usually!
Additional Comments... :

First Name : Matt
Which Dell model do you own? : Inspiron 5150
Have you experienced overheating problems? : yes
When did the problems start? : A few months after I bought the computer.
Did The Solution solve your problems? : No, I continued to have problems until I dusted the heatsink weekly.
What were your temps. before & after the fix? :
Will you buy from Dell again? : Not unless they recognize and rectify this design flaw and acknowledge the customers it has affected. A recall should have been instigated long ago.
Additional Comments... :

First Name : Magnus
Which Dell model do you own? : Inspiron 5150
Have you experienced overheating problems? : Yes
When did the problems start? : About two months after I bought it.
Did The Solution solve your problems? : Dell accepted the laptop in for service and changed the fansystem. Then the temp. was low for a month, I immediately applied the solution described on this site. Now the temperature starts getting high again, so I doubt this solution helped.
What were your temps. before & after the fix? : Before service: Idle: 50 Gaming: 70 After service: Idle: 35 Gaming: 70
Will you buy from Dell again? : I will not recommend/buy from dell again until they have acnowledged this problem and permanently fixed my laptop.
Additional Comments... :

First Name : Rena
Which Dell model do you own? : Inspiron 5100
Have you experienced overheating problems? : yes
When did the problems start? : April, about two months ago
Did The Solution solve your problems? : Dont know yet
What were your temps. before & after the fix? :
Will you buy from Dell again? : Dont think so.
Additional Comments... :

First Name : Huiyu
Which Dell model do you own? : Inspiron
Have you experienced overheating problems? : yes
When did the problems start? : about 2 month ago
Did The Solution solve your problems? : waiting for the outcome
What were your temps. before & after the fix? :
Will you buy from Dell again? : probably not
Additional Comments... :

First Name : Ethan
Which Dell model do you own? : Inspiron 5100
Have you experienced overheating problems? : yes
When did the problems start? : After owning the computer for about 7 months.
Did The Solution solve your problems? : Yes
What were your temps. before & after the fix? : Using shot glasses as legs to hold the computer up over the table surface.
Will you buy from Dell again? : Maybe....... probably not a laptop.
Additional Comments... : Thanks so much for putting up this site, and helpingg me to cure a problem that has been a pain in my ass for months. Wow, I have a laptop again.

First Name : Glenn
Which Dell model do you own? : 5150
Have you experienced overheating problems? : Yes
When did the problems start? : Early June 2004
Did The Solution solve your problems? : Not sure yet. Dust came out of the fan vent ports when I blew with compressed air.
What were your temps. before & after the fix? : Current temp is: 163 F CPU 120 F HDD
Will you buy from Dell again? : Yes, -- unless this becomes a problem that they dont deal with effectively.
Additional Comments... :

First Name : Diane
Which Dell model do you own? : Inspiron 5100
Have you experienced overheating problems? : yes
When did the problems start? : In May when my laptop was 10 months old.
Did The Solution solve your problems? : Havent tried the compressed air yet. Vacuuming the vent on the bottom and blowing into the fan intake helped. Also raised my laptop up on little legs on the four corners helped ventilation.
What were your temps. before & after the fix? : Do not know, have not installed that program to monitor them yet.
Will you buy from Dell again? : Not till they make a good effort to fix this
Additional Comments... :

First Name : William
Which Dell model do you own? : Inspiron 5150
Have you experienced overheating problems? : yes
When did the problems start? : 3 months after purchase
Did The Solution solve your problems? : yes
What were your temps. before & after the fix? : low 70s before low 45-50 after
Will you buy from Dell again? : NEVER
Additional Comments... : Customer support is terrible! Langauge barrier, etc. Failure to communicate problem with company that is contracted to provide service.

First Name : Kurt
Which Dell model do you own? : Inspiron 5150
Have you experienced overheating problems? : Yes
When did the problems start? : After about three or for months of use.
Did The Solution solve your problems? : Blowing dust away with my mouth helped alot, even though I did get some of it in my eyes. Then I shot bursts of air into the vents with my paintball gun, since Im too lazy/cheap to go and buy some compressed air thats made for the job. My computer is a lo
What were your temps. before & after the fix? : Not sure. I need to update my BIOS.
Will you buy from Dell again? : Cannot say for sure. Very discouraged because of the overheating issue.
Additional Comments... : Smooth move, Dell.

First Name : Stuart
Which Dell model do you own? : Inspiron 5100
Have you experienced overheating problems? : Yes
When did the problems start? : Laptop was just over a year old.
Did The Solution solve your problems? : Havent tried it yet.
What were your temps. before & after the fix? : .....
Will you buy from Dell again? : I will think twice after finding out about this. It seems to be a very common problem and theyre doing NOTHING about it.
Additional Comments... : Im annoyed about this.

First Name : Richard
Which Dell model do you own? : Inspiron 5100
Have you experienced overheating problems? : Yes
When did the problems start? : Three months after purchase.
Did The Solution solve your problems? : Dont know yet; trying it now.
What were your temps. before & after the fix? :
Will you buy from Dell again? : No.
Additional Comments... :

First Name : Patricia
Which Dell model do you own? : 5100
Have you experienced overheating problems? : Yes
When did the problems start? : After 2 or 3 months..
Did The Solution solve your problems? : Not yet.
What were your temps. before & after the fix? : Just turn off the computer
Will you buy from Dell again? : Yes
Additional Comments... : I just wish it would stop.

First Name : Sue
Which Dell model do you own? : Inspiron 5150
Have you experienced overheating problems? : yes!!!!
When did the problems start? : This month, 10 months into the product life.
Did The Solution solve your problems? : Will try it, and thanks!
What were your temps. before & after the fix? :
Will you buy from Dell again? :
Additional Comments... :

First Name : Youssef
Which Dell model do you own? : Inspiron 5150
Have you experienced overheating problems? : Yes
When did the problems start? : After about 3 months, though earlier problems might have been caused by heat or dust.
Did The Solution solve your problems? : Yes
What were your temps. before & after the fix? : highs hit 70C idles were in high 50s now its down to low 40s and a high of 63ish
Will you buy from Dell again? : NO, They refuse to help
Additional Comments... :

First Name : Hani
Which Dell model do you own? : Inspiron 5100
Have you experienced overheating problems? : YESSSSSSSSSS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
When did the problems start? : 4 months after purchase
Did The Solution solve your problems? : Yes. I had linux installed, and I thought the overheating was due to ACPI misconfiguration. After several weeks of kernel compiles and scouring the linux forums I stumbled upon this site. Thanks a lot!!
What were your temps. before & after the fix? : Before: 59C idle, easily goes up to 75C when CPU load increases After: 37 - 42 Idle, with max CPU load it shoots up to 57 but then cools quickly.
Will you buy from Dell again? : Hell No. I just ordered my own parts for a new desktop even thought its costing me much more than Dells offerings.
Additional Comments... :

First Name : St.Pierre
Which Dell model do you own? : 5100
Have you experienced overheating problems? : Yes
When did the problems start? : With in 5 months.
Did The Solution solve your problems? : Yes, and I have demanded that Dell send a tech. out today to replace / fix the problem.
What were your temps. before & after the fix? : not sure but when I put my hand under the 5100 it was hot as HELL.
Will you buy from Dell again? : Gateway Babby! Thats a big NO. It took me a week to get them to talk with me even under the express service contract.
Additional Comments... : Dude, Im @#$@ sorry I purchased a Dell!

First Name : Michael R
Which Dell model do you own? : 5100
Have you experienced overheating problems? : Yep
When did the problems start? : About three or four months ago.
Did The Solution solve your problems? : havent tried it yet
What were your temps. before & after the fix? :
Will you buy from Dell again? : probably
Additional Comments... : Will Dell be doing this work for free if I have to send it to the depot?

First Name : Ken
Which Dell model do you own? : 5100
Have you experienced overheating problems? : Yes
When did the problems start? : About 8 months after purchase.
Did The Solution solve your problems? : Still waiting to see.
What were your temps. before & after the fix? : Still need to find a temperature monitor.
Will you buy from Dell again? : I dont plan to buy a Dell again because of their poor thermal management design.
Additional Comments... : Thanks for the site. Its good to know Im not the only one with this problem.

First Name : Jeff
Which Dell model do you own? : Inspiron 5100
Have you experienced overheating problems? : Yeah
When did the problems start? : About 3 months after purchase
Did The Solution solve your problems? : Havent tried it yet.
What were your temps. before & after the fix? :
Will you buy from Dell again? : If they fix it soon.
Additional Comments... : Finally I found some answers. Nice job on the site.

First Name : Mark
Which Dell model do you own? : Inspiron 5100
Have you experienced overheating problems? : YES - LOADS!
When did the problems start? : After Id had the laptop about 4 months
Did The Solution solve your problems? : yes, although you dont expect to have to do that with a new laptop (or even an old one!)
What were your temps. before & after the fix? : before, with the fan on full permanently it was averaging about 65 C, now its at about 45 C
Will you buy from Dell again? : Possibly - my last inspiron (4000) is still going and I have never had any problems with it, a bit disappointed with this one though obviously
Additional Comments... : what a pain in the arse this problem has been - big thanks for the fix!

First Name : Johann
Which Dell model do you own? : Inspiron 5100
Have you experienced overheating problems? : Yes
When did the problems start? : March 2004, nine months after purchasing my laptop.
Did The Solution solve your problems? : Yes.
What were your temps. before & after the fix? : N/A
Will you buy from Dell again? : Yes.
Additional Comments... : Thank you for creating a very helpful site. I knew something was up when so many others were also having overheating 5100s...

First Name : Jeramy
Which Dell model do you own? : Inspiron 5150
Have you experienced overheating problems? : yes
When did the problems start? : at 4 months of use
Did The Solution solve your problems? : No, I sent the computer to Dell before learning of this page. They replaced the MB and Power board.
What were your temps. before & after the fix? : hot, cooler.
Will you buy from Dell again? : Probably not.
Additional Comments... : I naively used this computer to run fortran engineering codes for 8hours at a time at 100% processor use over the course of many nights. One day, the computer started loosing power when bumped, moved, typed upon, breathed upon, etc... and it would not reb

First Name : Mosfetman
Which Dell model do you own? : 5100
Have you experienced overheating problems? : Yes
When did the problems start? : Compressing large video files.
Did The Solution solve your problems? : Yes, just blowing through the vents decreased the tempreature considerably... I have yet to ship the laptop back for cleaning/new heatsink.
What were your temps. before & after the fix? : CPU idle before: 65 CPU idle after: 41
Will you buy from Dell again? : Yes
Additional Comments... : I agree Dell needs to react to this problem soon.

First Name : markus
Which Dell model do you own? : inspiron 5100
Have you experienced overheating problems? : yes
When did the problems start? : 6-8 months after I bought the computer
Did The Solution solve your problems? : partially
What were your temps. before & after the fix? : dont really know, my hd temperature right now is 55 Celsius
Will you buy from Dell again? : probably not
Additional Comments... : Cant give away my computer for a week, I have to work with it daily...

First Name : Andy
Which Dell model do you own? : Inspiron 5100
Have you experienced overheating problems? : yes
When did the problems start? : box was 4 months old
Did The Solution solve your problems? : temporarily
What were your temps. before & after the fix? :
Will you buy from Dell again? : not till they fix this
Additional Comments... :

First Name : Joe
Which Dell model do you own? : 5100
Have you experienced overheating problems? : Yes
When did the problems start? : Nov. 2003
Did The Solution solve your problems? : Sent it back to the depot and they said the motherboard and heat sink were replaced in Jan 2004, reappeared in April 2004 and started shutting down in May 2004
What were your temps. before & after the fix? : will try the fix, will by compressed air and go from there and report back
Will you buy from Dell again? : 5100s? No. I have purchased an IBM Thinkpad T41
Additional Comments... : Dell Tech Support did not mention this at all. Plus my warranty has expired and it will cost me to replace the motherboard and heatsink. If the fix does not work, it will just be a door stop.

First Name : Glenn
Which Dell model do you own? : Inspiron 5100
Have you experienced overheating problems? : Yes
When did the problems start? : After 2 months
Did The Solution solve your problems? : it got better but i have to repeat it often
What were your temps. before & after the fix? : 50-70
Will you buy from Dell again? : perhaps
Additional Comments... : this issue should be resolved ASAP. This is not workable (atleast for me it isnt)

First Name : Leander
Which Dell model do you own? : Inspiron 5100
Have you experienced overheating problems? : Yes
When did the problems start? : From the beginning. When I watch DVDs or DIVX movies for example ...
Did The Solution solve your problems? : I didnt got a solutions...
What were your temps. before & after the fix? : Sometimes, the CPU goes to 77°C
Will you buy from Dell again? : Yes, but nog laptops Im afraid ... I alsoo have a PowerEdge an a lot of desktops, no problem with the cooling of these... Only with the two Inspirons 5100 and even with a latitude..
Additional Comments... :

First Name : Werly
Which Dell model do you own? : inspiron 5150
Have you experienced overheating problems? : yes
When did the problems start? : 3 months after
Did The Solution solve your problems? : kinda
What were your temps. before & after the fix? : before 55 after 38
Will you buy from Dell again? : yes
Additional Comments... :

First Name : Jonathan Owern
Which Dell model do you own? : Inspiron 5100
Have you experienced overheating problems? : yes
When did the problems start? : Jan/Feb 2004
Did The Solution solve your problems? : The Dell technicians solution (change the motherboard) did nothing. He did not clean the heatsink, despite our request (based on what we had read on teh web about this problem)
What were your temps. before & after the fix? : High 60s when idle before. Mid 30s after blowing air through the vents.
Will you buy from Dell again? : Maybe. Lots of other good experiences with Dell computers. I just wish they would admit there is a design problem with this model and do something about it.
Additional Comments... :

First Name : Ken
Which Dell model do you own? : 5150
Have you experienced overheating problems? : Yes
When did the problems start? : about a month after I got it
Did The Solution solve your problems? : barly temps are still on the high side.
What were your temps. before & after the fix? : 58 degress idle and 77+ under load. After fix its 48 Degress and 70 under load.
Will you buy from Dell again? :
Additional Comments... : They need to add more venting on this system only 1 true vent hole isnt enugh to cool a 3 gig laptop.

First Name : Lawrence
Which Dell model do you own? : Krzewinski
Have you experienced overheating problems? : YES
When did the problems start? : August 18, 2003
Did The Solution solve your problems? : Not entirely. Dell keeps replacing the heat sink and fan. Theyve replaced the motherboard, CPU, three heat sinks and fans and it is now back at the repair depot being repaired yet again.
What were your temps. before & after the fix? :
Will you buy from Dell again? : Unknown
Additional Comments... :