FRAMINGHAM (03/09/2000) - Dell Computer Corp. in Round Rock, Texas, says certain laptop computers sold between Feb. 1 and Nov. 30 last year may have flawed memory modules that can cause data to be lost or corrupted.
The problem crops up only when affected notebooks are brought out of sleep or suspend mode and the system hangs or shows a Windows blue screen error.
A Dell spokesman said today that certain Latitude laptop corporate customers as well as consumers who purchased some Inspiron laptop models have been told about the problem via letters sent out starting two weeks ago. The problem can be fixed with a workaround in the Basic Input/Output System or with a replacement of the memory module.
Dell has arranged for users to run memory tests to verify if their machines are affected. If they are, Dell will arrange to replace the memory module. The test can be downloaded from Dell's support site.
The memory modules that may be faulty would be in the Latitude CPia, CPir, CPt, CPx and CS models and the Inspiron 3500, 3700, 7000 and 7500 models, the spokesman said.
The Dell spokesman would not estimate the number of letters sent out about the problem, but noted that Dell was the largest seller of laptops and PCs to medium and large businesses in 1999, according to numbers released today by International Data Corp. in Framingham, Mass.