Which specifically strikes some 17 inch displays on laptops (read Inspiron series) is indeed a cause for worry. LCDs are not exactly cheap and when you have purchased the laptop long ago (seriously out of the warranty) then you have even more cause for concern. But since we must plead guilty to our fair share of Dell bashing, we must give credit when its due as well.

As the accompanying photograph shows, the LCD starts getting worse from then on as the number of lines keep getting increased. My laptop which would be more than 2 years old (purchased in the US of A) was not just out of the goegraphical location for support but also completely out of warranty.

Luckily, Dell has agreed to replace such faulty LCDs completely free of cost immediately for all laptops purchased less than 3 years old. All you need to do is email vertical_line@dell.com. Make sure to mention your service tag number when you do.

While this was quite considerate of them, what made me even more happy was that I did not have to stay without my beloved laptop for a few weeks while they fixed and mailed it back. One fine morning , I got a call from their tech rep who asked me if I was home and then they sent a person who vroomed in with a brand new LCD fixed it in 10 minutes.

According to Dell, all the affected machines shipped between December 2004 and December 2006. Apparently, this is the same issue already corrected on the 17-inch LCDs shipped with their Inspiron 9200, 9300 and Dell XPS Gen 2 laptops.

Way to go Dell, you just made me recommend you to two others who were in the market for a new laptop and were seriously wondering about the service issues that people complain about. Oh and if you already had it fixed (from Dell) and they charged you, then contact them anyway, they shall refund you the money too.