System76 Manufacturing Delays

[NathanZal]

This is a question for other System76 customers, not necessarily System76 itself. I know that you guys are doing the best you can, but sometimes that just isn't good enough.

My experience so far with the company has been cordial, but lately I've been getting the "maybe next week" pushback when I ask about my order. I've just gotten another "Maybe Friday or Monday" response, followed by a "no promises" response. I'm not happy.

I'd like to know what other customers are seeing. Are you getting your orders? Mine was for a Pangolin Performance, placed on October 28. First they delayed it to be sure I had 9.10 - even though that's the day 9.10 came out - then they ran out of the 16x9 screen, then it went into back order, then the backorder was delayed... now they can't ship because of the bottleneck caused by the previous delays. Each time I've been given a possible ship day which has been pushed back by the next delay. Will it ever end?

I'd be especially interested if you ordered your machine after October 28... and have it.

So, should I stick with these guys, or go buy a Mac? The PanP6, as I configured it, is perfect for my needs, and I'd hate to give it up.

Thanks for your time.

[jerickson314]

I ordered a Starling on October 30 and received it November 9. However, it did come with 9.04 rather than 9.10, which I knew about ahead of time as a result of e-mailing Tom Aaron. I decided to get it sooner rather than waiting for them to fix the wireless driver so they could install 9.10. I think the Starling comes pre-manufactured, though, given the labels in Chinese and the checklist they provided that included removing Windows driver CDs, so it may be faster to ship than the other laptops.

[3Miro]

I ordered a laptop from them about 9 months ago and it was shipped within a week, however, it wasn't a distro transition period.

[marshmallow1304]

I ordered my Pangolin (PanP5) on June 11 and it shipped on July 1. It was worth the wait.

[HotShotDJ]

So, should I stick with these guys, or go buy a Mac? The PanP6, as I configured it, is perfect for my needs, and I'd hate to give it up.I would definitely stick with System76. There really is nothing that they can do about the supplier issues, and the PanP6 (I own a PanP5) is a great machine. It would seem that you placed your order during a "perfect storm" of issues. But I assure you that it is worth the wait.

[imhavoc]

NathanZal,

You're dealing with a very small company. If you want a Mac, order a Mac. If you want a quality non-Mac machine shipped with Linux installed, with Linux support, and the best tech support I've ever experienced in 25 years of buying computers, wait for System76.

Life is full of trade-offs.

I know I would have gone nuts if my Daru2 had not shipped in a timely manner, but after living with System76 for the last two years, I'm unlikely to buy from anyone else -- and I'll deal with the wait if it happens when I order.

[NathanZal]

Great reply, thanks. No I don't want a mac - but I wondered if I should settle for one. I think that the consensus so far is wait for it, it's worth it. So that's what I'm doing. Thanks!

[japhyr]

I had a rough go when I ordered my computer, and I am happy I stuck it out. First UPS lost my order, then found the package in the last day or two before they would have had to replace it. I got the computer, and it started crashing. It was a hardware problem, an overheating graphics card. I had to send it back, but as others have said it was the easiest customer service I've ever dealt with from a computer company.

I got my Pangolin back, and have loved it since. I'm new enough to Linux that I still enjoy playing with installations on other computers, but I think that will fade quickly as I get used to a fully-supported package. S76 all the way!

Eric

[tschlemmer]

I order a Pangolin Performance laptop on August 28th and my order shipped on September 4th so I didn't have that long a wait for my new laptop.

[z06steve]

Ordered on 10/30, sent to manufacturing on 11/2. My order has also encountered several delays and delivery dates, starting to get a little concerned about things. However, no one else offers what they do and once I get it I am sure from all the comments posted I will not be disappointed, guess I just need to be patient.

Guess I should include that I ordered a Pangolin.

[Bromo]

I ordered a Starling Netbook on 11/16 and I was notified it shipped yesterday evening ( 11/18 ). Seems plenty fast enough right now, at least for that model.

I have owned a Serval Laptop for the last 2 years (SerP3), and it broke over the weekend. I called it in on 11/16. I was informed that the RMA# was issued on 11/18 and got it tonight (11/19) so I could ship in the computer.

Another note: If I asked a question, I got a useful response right away - which beats the pants off of any other computer maker I have worked with in the past.

And ... as I was readying the system to ship ... I decided to try to boot it one last time ... and it spontaneously started working again! I rebooted, and it is behaving. I suppose the threat of repair got the system to behave. :P Regardless, I got suggestions on other things it may be and I will try them this weekend and determine if I have to use the RMA# or not this weekend.

[z06steve]

Just got word my Pangolin shipped yesterday, can't wait :D

[stewpac]

I ordered my first sys76 laptop well between ubuntu distribution updates and it actually arrived about 2 weeks later. That laptop got stolen and I desperately needed a replacement ASAP. I talked to Tom and others there and I got the replacement in a couple days. I know they made special effort for me that they couldn't do for everyone but my point in telling that story is to demonstrate they have really great customer service. I will never order from anyone else.

While I know it sucks to wait for your new computer, I'd say two other things. You'll be happy when you get it - it's a quality product. Secondly, if you have a problem and you post it here, you'll get a very prompt response both from system76's thomasaaron and the community - much better service than you'd get from any other pc manufacturer. Ever try calling Dell? I've never bought a mac (and never will) so I don't know first hand how good or bad their shipping/service is. From what I've heard, they might have more responsive service (if you live near an apple store) than a small linux manufacturer like sys76 but you'll pay for it either by sacrificing your wallet or your soul.

[malachias]

I ordered mine on November 2, and it shipped today (november 23). In the interim I got two "it'll ship today, tomorrow at the very latest" and finally "we hope to get it done today (the 21st), otherwise we'll ship it on the 23rd". Not terribly satisfied with that. Apparently they received a batch of faulty LCDs, and there wasn't terribly much they could do about it, but the "today! or tomorrow latest!" thing bugged me.

On top of everything the darn thing won't start. The "Installing System" dialog hangs at 40% with "configuring target system...". I gave it a good 30 minutes so I'm pretty sure it's hung.

Anyone else had this problem, or know how to fix it?

[NathanZal]

Do you mean that it arrived today? You said "shipped," then talk about it not starting; a minor confusion.

After similar delays, my laptop shipped last Thursday. It's due to arrive Wednesday. I think that the production manager made some bad calls. I decided to stay with System76 because a) the system as I configured it is perfect for both my needs and my budget b) the overwhelmingly positive response from other System76 customers. I am going to write to management about this "it's coming in a day or two" mentality, and suggest that they will lose fewer orders by being honest with people. I ultimately decided not to ditch the machine because the production manager has issues; once it ships, one presumes that he will be forever out of the picture in any case.

Have you tried doing a clean install from a live CD? I would be absolutely crushed if my machine arrived DOA - especially after all this anticipation. I'm planning on having an install CD ready, just in case. I'm going to have to resize the /home partition in any case.

Good luck!

Cheers,

Nathan
--
"Love and Hate are two horns on the same goat" -- from the movie "The Vikings," 1958

[tu00tf]

Hi all,

Just wanted to chime in on this one: I ordered a PanP6 on 11/10 and was told it would ship on 11/20--which it did. The laptop is now in transit. No issues with the shipping estimate here!

Regards,
Ash