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Army soldier seeking advice

post #1 of 30
12/15/04 at 7:14pm
Thread Starter 
I'm an Army officer who just recently got orders to play my part in the GWOT (Global War on Terrorism for non-green-suitors) and heading to Afghanistan in a couple of months (the Army is kind enough to allow me to witness the birth of my second child before screwing me). Hoping to purchase a 9200 this weekend thru EPP (being military sometimes has its advantages) to keep sane over the next 12 months away from my wife and kids. Oh course I'll pretend to be bored and miserable when I call home (with Doom3/HL2 on pause)... Posted a similiar message in the unofficial buying giude, but I figured a wider audience was better.

Does anyone know of any "Military/Goverment" deals other than EPP (comes up as Member Purchaing Program when I use the Army code - but looks about the same as EPP) that's beneficial? Grabbed a $200 early bird coupon, but that's all I've managed to find.

I've given up on the Delf witch and didn't jump soon enough when the 20% coupons were plentiful.

Appreciate all you folks on this forum, I've learned more about laptops in the past two weeks than I could imagine. My first and only laptop had WIN 95 on it (remember that one kids? I came out after Windows 3.1). Man that make ya feel old...

Thanks.
--------------------
Dell Demension Desktop (dont even know the #)
P2, 266mhz <on it's last dying leg>
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post #2 of 30
12/15/04 at 7:32pm
haven't configured anything on AAFES.com, but you may try that.. i know they were having discounts there. and i believe you can use some coupons there as well. plus, no tax even if you are in a dell tax state.

aside from that, stop your sniveling. you joined the military voluntarily. yeah it sucks being away from family, etc, but if you want to whine about it, get a different profession. of course, whining is the favourite pass time of people in the military.

good luck

p.s. non-green-suitors = people not in the military
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post #3 of 30
12/15/04 at 7:38pm
hi, leave the dude alone, i'm from england i am joining the royal navy when i am old enough. i admire what your doing and good luck. it's good you joined to serve your country. laffing billy.....ur a strange person, he may have signed up but i mean wouldn't you snivel going to afghanistan.
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post #4 of 30
12/15/04 at 7:54pm
^^NO. anyone who signs the dotted line understands that they could deploy or go to war. if they think otherwise, they are complete idiots or people who just wanted to get free tuition thinking, oh i won't get deployed. it happened to lots of people during the 91 gulf war as well. especially in this day and age, anyone who signs up is foolish to think that they will not deploy for a year at a time. didn't criticize him for being in the service, just sniveling about it here.

does it suck, sure, but hey..you know foreign travel, excitement, adventure...all that crap. and to be able to bring a Dell computer with you (I have to keep it dell forum related) is a luxury that wouldn't have been available in the past.

BTW, i wouldn't waste your money on extended warranty with the computer since it's a war zone.
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post #5 of 30
12/15/04 at 8:23pm
Thread Starter 
Now, now gents. The beauty of being in the military that we grant everyone to have their opinion (even if it's one I don't agreed with). And believe me, I knew what I was getting into when signed all dozen of those proverbial dotted lines. But the Army and the world has changed drastically from when I entered 10 years ago... I've seen all the plesent places in the world: Korea, Bosnia, Kuwait (just prior to OIF).

Thanks for tip about the warranty, billy, it made me laugh. International support may come in handy though??? As for AAFES, yes you get free shipping and no tax, but customizing is a bit different from the normal site (some things seem better than H&O and EPP, some worse), and there's no option to include cupouns. Go figure. I guess that combat-pay will come in handy here shortly, paying the cc off.

P.S. All soldiers love to snivel, especially when cold and tired! (and when the US Defense Secretary is arround asking questions)

Peace!
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post #6 of 30
12/15/04 at 8:28pm
even with intl support, i wouldn't waste the money...there are always clauses in civil disturbances, war zones, etc. so it's really not worth the expense, unless you can avoid letting them know you have it there, shipping it to your wife to send in if you need warranty service.
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post #7 of 30
12/15/04 at 8:29pm
well if i was in the main army around about the 70's i would probably have told the main guy to **** himself and walk out with my friend. but now it's a whole new kettle of fish so i am joining the royal navy when old enough.
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post #8 of 30
12/15/04 at 8:47pm
norbx, you need to get out more
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post #9 of 30
12/15/04 at 8:51pm
@laffingbilly

what do you mean by that? we work different to wherever ur from (america i think) so we think different so you might find me weird but the feeling is mutual. anyways soldier, good luck with ur quest and stay safe.
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post #10 of 30
12/15/04 at 9:09pm
i'm from nigeria
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post #11 of 30
12/15/04 at 9:33pm
ok, either way, i put (america i think) wasn't entirely sure.
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post #12 of 30
12/16/04 at 5:43am
CDROM,

First of all check the coupon sticky on this board or do a search for Dell coupons & then build the system you want on all of the sites (EPP, Home, Sm Business) & see how the prices compare. The Mil site will not accept coupons but if you get a better price on dell home then you can call & complain (nicely!) about the Military site not accepting the coupon & hopefully the rep will give an equivilant discount (or more). I would forget about AAFES they are a rip off! They have almost the same Dell Laptop (8600) that I have, in the PX/BX here (Heidelberg, Germany) & it is nearly $800 more. I would recommend getting it shipped to you before you deploy as shipping to an APO address overseas is a royal pain (mine got lost!), also see if you can get complete care coverage for Afghanistan, probably can't but it's worth a try. Did you try the ASCP (Army small computer purchase) website? Don't know if that discount is any better than the regular Military one.

Hope you find what you are looking for & take care in Afghanistan.

Sue
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post #13 of 30
12/16/04 at 10:11am
Hey CDROM8, good luck overseas, I may be joining you in a few months when I finish my tour here.

Anyway, I just scored an 8600 using the military EPP code. I used the 20% deal they were running last week, the 12% + $100 rebate for the 4 year warranty/accident care, and a $100 off (base price was too low for the $200 off) coupon you can get e-mailed to yourself from the Dell ePP site.

So I got the WSXGA 1.6 PM with the MR9600, CDR/DVD player, BT, Dell 1450 a/b/g wi-fi card, minimal memory (256 mb) and HD (30 gig) for about $1500 out the door. The original price is around $2300-2400 including tax. Not too shabby.

I looked at AAFES, and it is nice that they don't charge tax or shipping, but their delivery times can be LONG! Plus I'm not sure if any of the EPP stuff works there, so the end price would still be higher.

Good luck!
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post #14 of 30
12/16/04 at 5:16pm
^^^agree that the bx/px's have good deals at times, but you can't always get the configuration you want. just pluses and minuses to everything. with that said, you have several options and all are worth a look to compair.

in the past, dell required international warranty coverage for you to bring a laptop from the u.s. to say if you were being stationed to germany. when i just purchased my 700m, i had lengthy discussion about the warranty policies, and was informed that it would be covered if i travelled overseas. it never hurts to ask, but i wouldn't be asking if warranty will be covered in afghanistan or any other war zone. 99% chance that it will not be, as all warranties and insurance things are more often than not, not covered in those kinds of zones. you could get complete care, and then just ship back to your wife to send into dell for you. now of course, if there is shrapnel or bullet holes in the computer, that may be difficult to explain ) just use the removable body armor plates from your vest...after all what's more important protecting yourself or the Dell?
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post #15 of 30
12/16/04 at 9:37pm
cdrom8 - stay safe, and be a credit to your unit. I've been active duty for the past 16 years, and do not grumble/whine, but suck it up & do my duty like any other flattop lifer; been to AFG a total of four times, on my next trip there if I see a guy with a new Dell laptop talking about notebookforums.com, I'll come over & say hello; I'll be the guy with facial stubble & local clothing &
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post #16 of 30
12/16/04 at 9:48pm
cdrom8. Take care of yourself while away. I'm very thankful for everyone in our milatary. I served from 1985-1989 in the USAF.

We all grumble a little bit every now and then. I know I do.

laffingbilly, if it weren't for the volunter armed forces then they would be drafting people.

John
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post #17 of 30
12/16/04 at 11:21pm
Thread Starter 
Hey great idea! I'm gonna request 2 sets of SAPI plates (one for me, one for my little 17" buddy). At only a $1000 a pop (a complete guess) I'm sure Uncle Sam would understand (even though I heard he's an Apple kinda guy).

Thanks for everyones' support!

Ofelas - I'll be the guy with the sanbagged desk down in Kabul. Not looking for any bronze stars or purple hearts. It just costs too damn much to keep adding ribbons every deployment. Thank YOU for your service! There needs to be more like us.
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post #18 of 30
12/16/04 at 11:28pm
You should be able to get Dellf coupons through your site, they can be better than the base discount, especially on the 9200 as it's not getting the bigger discounts by default.

And stay safe out there!
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post #19 of 30
12/16/04 at 11:32pm
laffingbilly, you have to realize that everyone who signs up for the military KNOWs they can be deployed. But it still sucks going to Iraq or Afghanistan.
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post #20 of 30
4/15/05 at 12:46am
I hope i dont see laffingbilly anytime soon. Id slap the shit out of you. The whole ****ing fifth fleet would too. Thank you.
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