Dell 99 servers are back:

http://configure.euro.dell.com/dellstore/config.aspx?c=uk&cs=ukbsdt1&l=en&oc=PE842010&s=bsd

(Remember there is carriage and VAT to add but they still represent
excellent VFM)

sponix

In article , wibble@email.com 
says...

> Dell £99 servers are back:
> 
> http://configure.euro.dell.com/dellstore/config.aspx?c=uk&cs=ukbsdt1&l=en&oc=PE842010&s=bsd
> 
> (Remember there is carriage and VAT to add but they still represent
> excellent VFM)
> 
> sponix
> 

It was a two-day offer that ended on Tuesday -- the red info beside the 
pic says so. Worth trying, if you want one though -- often a phone call 
will get an offer after it's ended.

s--p--o--n--i--x wrote:

> Dell 99 servers are back:
> 
> http://configure.euro.dell.com/dellstore/config.aspx?c=uk&cs=ukbsdt1&l=en&oc=PE842010&s=bsd
> 
> (Remember there is carriage and VAT to add but they still represent
> excellent VFM)
> 
> sponix



Don't hold your breath I placed an order for a desktop from them on 
Monday and yesterday they sent me a note canceling my order saying it 
was a pricing error.

"s--p--o--n--i--x"  wrote in message 
news:430ed8c4.4420625@news.individual.net...

> Dell 99 servers are back:
>
> http://configure.euro.dell.com/dellstore/config.aspx?c=uk&cs=ukbsdt1&l=en&oc=PE842010&s=bsd
>
> (Remember there is carriage and VAT to add but they still represent
> excellent VFM)
>
> sponix


Shame that it turns a 99 machine into a 170 machine

On Fri, 26 Aug 2005 10:15:34 +0100, Livewire
 wrote:


>It was a two-day offer that ended on Tuesday -- the red info beside the=20
>pic says so. Worth trying, if you want one though -- often a phone call=20
>will get an offer after it's ended.


A friend ordered one yesterday afternoon and had an acknowledgement.

sponix

"Rob Convery"  wrote in message 
news:3n8610Fad44U1@individual.net...

>
> "s--p--o--n--i--x"  wrote in message 
> news:430ed8c4.4420625@news.individual.net...
>> Dell 99 servers are back:
>>
>> http://configure.euro.dell.com/dellstore/config.aspx?c=uk&cs=ukbsdt1&l=en&oc=PE842010&s=bsd
>>
>> (Remember there is carriage and VAT to add but they still represent
>> excellent VFM)
>>
>> sponix
>
> Shame that it turns a 99 machine into a 170 machine

and you need to add a network card if you are going to use it as a server, 
and an OS, but I guess something like Linux would be suitable cheap 
alternative.

>> Shame that it turns a 99 machine into a 170 machine
> and you need to add a network card if you are going to use it as a server, 
> and an OS, but I guess something like Linux would be suitable cheap 
> alternative.


It should have a network card built in btw so no need to add one.

In article <KEBPe.96496$G8.35051@text.news.blueyonder.co.uk>, 
paulos@google.com says...

> >> Shame that it turns a £99 machine into a £170 machine
> > and you need to add a network card if you are going to use it as a server, 
> > and an OS, but I guess something like Linux would be suitable cheap 
> > alternative.
> 
> It should have a network card built in
> 
> 
> 

Yes it has, although you have to look on the full specs to find out.

In article <R9BPe.96487$G8.35241@text.news.blueyonder.co.uk>, shack69
@hotpop.com says...

> s--p--o--n--i--x wrote:
> > Dell £99 servers are back:
> > 
> > http://configure.euro.dell.com/dellstore/config.aspx?c=uk&cs=ukbsdt1&l=en&oc=PE842010&s=bsd
> > 
> > (Remember there is carriage and VAT to add but they still represent
> > excellent VFM)
> > 
> > sponix
> 
> 
> Don't hold your breath I placed an order for a desktop from them on 
> Monday and yesterday they sent me a note canceling my order saying it 
> was a pricing error.
> 

It was a legit price -- Dell do these cheap deals sometimes.

Any codes for free or reducing shipping costs?


"s--p--o--n--i--x"  wrote in message 
news:430ed8c4.4420625@news.individual.net...

> Dell 99 servers are back:
>
> http://configure.euro.dell.com/dellstore/config.aspx?c=uk&cs=ukbsdt1&l=en&oc=PE842010&s=bsd
>
> (Remember there is carriage and VAT to add but they still represent
> excellent VFM)
>
> sponix 

>> (Remember there is carriage and VAT to add but they still represent
>> excellent VFM)
> Shame that it turns a 99 machine into a 170 machine


I had a bit of a moan about that in the May issue of PC Pro:

Dell+del
Just as we were putting this column to bed, we received an email from Dell 
advertising a 'one-day special offer' server for 99. That sounded like such 
a bargain that it was bound to be too good to be true, and so indeed it 
proved. Now, we could gripe about the Celeron processor and the measly 256MB 
of RAM, neither of which really belong inside a server, but at this price 
such complaints would be churlish. No, the thing that annoyed us was that, 
once you would added in VAT and delivery, this 99 server suddenly gained a 
price tag of 173 or nearly double the headline price. Okay, many of you 
will be working for VAT-registered companies and can reclaim the tax, but 
even so that 99 server still cost 149. Yup, that's right, Dell was 
charging fifty quid to deliver a 99 server.

You might argue that because Dell often ships its products from Eire the 
delivery costs will be higher than for a mainland-based supplier. We would 
counter this by pointing out first that Dell's URL is www.dell.co.uk, so it 
advertises itself as a UK business and that it charges UK-rate VAT. If we 
were buying from Dell Eire, we would expect high delivery costs, but not 
from Dell UK. Second, Dell charges 8 to deliver a workgroup colour laser 
printer weighing 35kg, yet this 99 server weighs only 19kg and is 
considerably less bulky. So why the 50 delivery charge?

A cynical observer might see this as Dell deliberately setting a low price 
point in order to make its product look competitive, and then clawing back 
the profit through delivery charges. We asked Dell to comment, but we didn't 
receive a reply before the copy deadline. If it ever does reply, we will let 
you know the explanation. In the meantime, please be vigilant when you see 
headline-grabbing offers like this and be sure to check the total cost 
before ordering.



P.

Richard wrote:

> s--p--o--n--i--x wrote:
>> Dell 99 servers are back:
>>
>> http://configure.euro.dell.com/dellstore/config.aspx?c=uk&cs=ukbsdt1&l=en&oc=PE842010&s=bsd
>>
>> (Remember there is carriage and VAT to add but they still represent
>> excellent VFM)
>>
>> sponix
>
>
> Don't hold your breath I placed an order for a desktop from them on
> Monday and yesterday they sent me a note canceling my order saying it
> was a pricing error.


Isn't that the one that obviously was a pricing error though?

This is a genuine promotion (I got one last time)

-- 
Alex

Hermes: "We can't afford that! Especially not Zoidberg!"
Zoidberg: "They took away my credit cards!"

www.drzoidberg.co.uk    www.ebayfaq.co.uk

erics wrote:

> "Rob Convery"  wrote in message
> news:3n8610Fad44U1@individual.net...
>>
>> "s--p--o--n--i--x"  wrote in message
>> news:430ed8c4.4420625@news.individual.net...
>>> Dell 99 servers are back:
>>>
>>> http://configure.euro.dell.com/dellstore/config.aspx?c=uk&cs=ukbsdt1&l=en&oc=PE842010&s=bsd
>>>
>>> (Remember there is carriage and VAT to add but they still represent
>>> excellent VFM)
>>>
>>> sponix
>>
>> Shame that it turns a 99 machine into a 170 machine
> and you need to add a network card if you are going to use it as a
> server,


It has gigabit ethernet built in

-- 
Alex

Hermes: "We can't afford that! Especially not Zoidberg!"
Zoidberg: "They took away my credit cards!"

www.drzoidberg.co.uk    www.ebayfaq.co.uk

James & Sophie wrote:

> Any codes for free or reducing shipping costs?
>

Phone them up and argue.
It works
-- 
Alex

Hermes: "We can't afford that! Especially not Zoidberg!"
Zoidberg: "They took away my credit cards!"

www.drzoidberg.co.uk    www.ebayfaq.co.uk

"Rob Convery"  wrote in message 
news:3n8610Fad44U1@individual.net...

>
> "s--p--o--n--i--x"  wrote in message 
> news:430ed8c4.4420625@news.individual.net...
>> Dell 99 servers are back:
>>
>> http://configure.euro.dell.com/dellstore/config.aspx?c=uk&cs=ukbsdt1&l=en&oc=PE842010&s=bsd
>>
>> (Remember there is carriage and VAT to add but they still represent
>> excellent VFM)
>>
>> sponix
>
> Shame that it turns a 99 machine into a 170 machine


this spec is nothing more than a pc spec imo.

"Paulo De Souza"  wrote in message 
news:KEBPe.96496$G8.35051@text.news.blueyonder.co.uk...

>>> Shame that it turns a 99 machine into a 170 machine
>> and you need to add a network card if you are going to use it as a 
>> server, and an OS, but I guess something like Linux would be suitable 
>> cheap alternative.
>
> It should have a network card built in btw so no need to add one.

I saw the option "Network Cards", and "Not included" was checked so I 
assumed it didn't have a network connection, guess it is onboard rather than 
a card.

paul ockenden wrote:

>>> (Remember there is carriage and VAT to add but they still represent
>>> excellent VFM)
>> Shame that it turns a 99 machine into a 170 machine
>
> Dell+del
> So why the 50 delivery charge?
> A cynical observer might see this as Dell deliberately setting a low
> price point in order to make its product look competitive, and then
> clawing back the profit through delivery charges.


There's also the issue of refunds, don't they refund the cost of the
item minus delivery charge?

They also add it per PC, so if you order 5x dell pc's and have to pay
5x 50 quid delivery charges ..  thats 250 on postage!

I only order from dell when they do a free delivery offer, and hopefully
a nice pricing error as well ;)

--
Mike

"Dr Zoidberg" <AlexNOOOOO!!!!!!@drzoidberg.co.uk> wrote in message 
news:3n88o8Fana5U1@individual.net...

>
> Isn't that the one that obviously was a pricing error though?
>
> This is a genuine promotion (I got one last time)
>


Yeah, my order got cancelled as well but what I object to (and I suspect 
many people aren't aware of this) is that the moment you give your card 
details to Dell they place what is known as an "Authority To Charge At An 
Undisclosed Future Date" against whatever card account you've used.

So if your available credit limit is 1,000 and you attempt to buy a 400 pc 
from Dell, you'll find that your available credit limit is reduced to 600.

That's fine if they intend honouring the order but they are notoriously slow 
in rescinding the Authority when the order is no longer live.  My order was 
cancelled on Tuesday but it's only today (Friday) that they've removed the 
Authority.

"Mike" wrote:

>
> this spec is nothing more than a pc spec imo.


Agreed.

In article <ZFIPe.96738$G8.67356@text.news.blueyonder.co.uk>,
Chuckles The Scary Clown  wrote:

>
>Yeah, my order got cancelled as well but what I object to (and I suspect 
>many people aren't aware of this) is that the moment you give your card 
>details to Dell they place what is known as an "Authority To Charge At An 
>Undisclosed Future Date" against whatever card account you've used.
>
>So if your available credit limit is 1,000 and you attempt to buy a 400 pc 
>from Dell, you'll find that your available credit limit is reduced to 600.
>
>That's fine if they intend honouring the order but they are notoriously slow 
>in rescinding the Authority when the order is no longer live.  My order was 
>cancelled on Tuesday but it's only today (Friday) that they've removed the 
>Authority. 


That's actually just how credit cards work normally.

What actually happens is that your give them (or any retailer) your card
number, which is passed to their acquirer (bank) for card authorisation.
They respond with an authorisation code (usually 6 digits - you'll see
it on most till receipts), which reserves the money from your credit
account for the retailed, although at this stage no money has actually
been transferred.

There is then a seperate step, called reconciliation, where the retailer
sends this list of authorisation codes to its acquirer (or a subset of
these codes if some orders were cancelled or whatever) to actually
transfer the money. Most retailers will do this nightly as part of batch
processing, although it's actually possible to do this late. Most
acquirers allow retailers 3 days before they cancel the authorisation,
at which point the money becomes available in your account again,
although this 3 days can vary by card issuer or acquirer.

It is possible to void a transaction with the acquirer, so releasing
the funds from your account, although if this done at all, it's usually
also done nightly. It's also not a required step, as unless the
authorisation code is reconcilled, the transaction is automatically
voided anyway.

It's not a conspiracy to punish you for cancelling an order, even though
it might look like it, and in fact if you phoned up your card issuer and
explained what was going on, they'd probably temporarily increase your
limit or manually authorise the next transaction anyway.

And also, don't worry about it being "an undisclosed future date".
Unless they are actually storing your card details, which would get them
in serious trouble if done without your permission, the authorisation
does only last a few days, so don't worry about them possibly charging
you a week down the line.

Ralf.
-- 
Ranulf Doswell | Please note this e-mail address
www.ranulf.net | expires one month after posting.

On 30 Aug 2005 12:32:29 GMT, usenet-2005-08@zion.ranulf.net (Ranulf
Doswell) wrote:


<snip>


>And also, don't worry about it being "an undisclosed future date".
>Unless they are actually storing your card details, which would get them
>in serious trouble if done without your permission,

<snip>

CC companies usually require that the retailer keeps the details for 3
years.