Dell extends warranties for Nvidia flaw

Author: Gareth Halfacree
Published: 20th August 2008

GeForce GPUs fitted to certain laptops have a known design flaw, so Dell is extending the warranty by 12 months.

If you've been concerned by the news that a range of Nvidia GPUs used in laptop computers may suffer from a design flaw, there's some good news at last – at least, if you're a Dell customer.

First spotted by Engadget it appears that, in reponse to admissions from Nvidia that a range of previous-generation graphics chips developed for use in notebooks have a serious design flaw that adversely affects the product lifespan, Dell has announced that customers with laptops containing affected chips will have their warranties extended by an additional twelve months to cover any failure in the GPU.

The link on Dell's blog includes a list of laptops covered by the warranty extension – and, therefore, known to have the GPU glitch. The list includes the Precision M2300, M4300, and M65 models, the Inspiron 1420, Latitude models D620, D630, D630c, D820, and D830, and the Vostro 1310, 1300, 1510, and 1710 models. Those of you who have shelled out for a top-end Dell XPS will be less than impressed to hear that a pair are included in the watchlist – the M1330 and the M1530.

Although the warranty extension program hasn't officially launched, Dell's chief blogger Lionel Menchaca is advising that details will be “available in the next few weeks,” and that he will share details via the Direct2Dell blog as soon as any are made available to him.

Do we have any readers with laptops included in the list from Dell, or did you all manage to dodge that particular bullet? Share your thoughts over in the forums.