This looks like a potential business opportunity for solution providers and system builders:
…(L)ater Dell. At work, we're probably switching to HP or generic boxes for people's desktops. We have RFPs out to server vendors for blade servers or whatever. Rackable looks pretty good to me, DC power with 88 servers per rack. Or we might just go with no-name boxes for them, too.
Why is this customer switching from Dell? Well, you can read the whole thing, but here's a sample:
Dell was a pioneer in letting customers self-configure exactly what they want. But now there are so many different entry points, it's very difficult to create the same system twice in a row. Then there is the home user, small business, large business, etc. You can get significantly different prices depending on how you identify yourself. It telegraphs to me that Dell is pretty much out to trick me into paying too much, and I have to waste a lot of time digging for a better deal.
For one customer, at least, many choices were a good thing. But complexity can be annoying, suspicious, and a bad thing. And failing or DOA systems, which he also has experienced from Dell, has him looking elsewhere for technology.
