Are cheap flat panels TVs worth buying?

[yashg]

If I ask a random person about which brand TV I should buy people would say Samsung/LG/Sony/Panasonic. No one would recommend brands like Videocon, Vu, AOC or Onida. Even Micromax and Moser Baer are also selling TVs! These brands are super cheap compared to the well known brands. For example Videocon has a 40 inch Full HD LED TV for 30K. I understand there will be differences in quality and the performance but is that really necessary for casual TV viewing?

Is it really worth paying for a big brand? What makes some of those brands so cheap? Where might they be cutting corners? I am not talking about fancy stuff like 3D and Wifi connectivity and smart TVs. Just regular good old televisions. Everybody seems to be providing 1 year warranty. Toshiba in fact offers 3 years warranty and is a cheaper brand. I have read many reviews of the big brands where the TV went bad just after the warranty period.

So what's the difference between a regular TV from the likes of Videocon and Samsung? Anybody using a flat panel TV from Vu, Videocon, Onida etc? How has been your experience been?

 

[asliarun]

This is actually a really good question! The LCD market keeps changing significantly every couple of years.

Examples - In the US, Vizio and Sharp have caused huge disruptions because they have introduced huge panels (70, 80 etc) at very reasonable price points. You can for example get 70 inch panels easily in the $2k and below price range. See here and here.

Even in the PC display market, panels with better than 1080p resolution were previously rare or super expensive. But suddenly, I see lots of Korean panels at very reasonable rates. Check out Monoprice for example. They sell 27" IPS 2560 x 1440 panels for about $350.

It is really worthwhile looking at all the options available. Even opinions formed a couple of years ago might turn out to be wrong considering how competitive and innovative this industry is.

 

[elangoas]

If I ask a random person about which brand TV I should buy people would say Samsung/LG/Sony/Panasonic. No one would recommend brands like Videocon, Vu, AOC or Onida. Even Micromax and Moser Baer are also selling TVs! These brands are super cheap compared to the well known brands. For example Videocon has a 40 inch Full HD LED TV for 30K. I understand there will be differences in quality and the performance but is that really necessary for casual TV viewing?

Is it really worth paying for a big brand? What makes some of those brands so cheap? Where might they be cutting corners? I am not talking about fancy stuff like 3D and Wifi connectivity and smart TVs. Just regular good old televisions. Everybody seems to be providing 1 year warranty. Toshiba in fact offers 3 years warranty and is a cheaper brand. I have read many reviews of the big brands where the TV went bad just after the warranty period.

So what's the difference between a regular TV from the likes of Videocon and Samsung? Anybody using a flat panel TV from Vu, Videocon, Onida etc? How has been your experience been?

Big brands are Samsung & LG which have their own display technology (For LCD & LED) ....

Samsung, Sony & few others share the same technology... Likewise LG has IPS display technology which is used by Panasonic & few other TV makers...


For Plasma, Panasonic, LG & Samsung use their own technologies.....

The rest are all borrowed....

Toshiba doesn't command a good market in India and hence the prices are cheap.....same applies to other not so big brands....But if you get straight 3 years warranty, you should take a hard look.... You are more secure for 3 yrs

 

[gauthamnaidu]

Companies which tend to invest heavily in R and D tend to be expensive... Not only that..More advertising also ends up on the customers head..

Micromax for example borrows technology from multiple sources and puts them together...so they dont have R&D costs..

 

[yashg]

Toshiba is not a cheap brand.

I didn't mean cheap in the low quality sense. It is priced cheaper than Samsung, Sony, LG etc. It is between the likes of Videocon and Samsung. Their 40" 3D LED is priced at around 50 while Samsung and all are above 65.

3 years back I got a full HD LG LCD for 25K, which was bargain then because back then full HD were expensive and general rule of thumb was as many thousands as inches for basic models. No problem so far with TV. One of my friends is using a Sony LCD for more than 5 years now and has now got a 47".

I also own two old Onida CTVs and before that I had the Onida 20XS which I had used for almost a decade. It was a workhorse and Onida serviceman was at my door the next day whenever I had any issues with the TV. So I was wondering if the same Onida quality and service can be expected for flat panel TVs.

I also see that Samsung, Sony etc have 32" HD ready TVs prices around 25K mark which is not far from 20K for an HD ready TV from AOC or Toshiba. So I believe I can at least expect the same level of quality and assurance from a cheap brand TV as I can expect from the lowest model of a big brand.

I was looking at replacing one of my old Onida CTVs with a 40" flat panel and the Videocon 40" Full HD LED at 30K is too tempting.
Buy Videocon VJK40FF-ZM 40-inch Full HD LED TV Online

But I am thinking getting a Toshiba with 3 years warranty will be a better option.
Toshiba 40 inch 40PB20 Full HD LCD Television - Buy Online @ Rs.32999/- | Snapdeal.com

 

[arvindrao15]

You should surf through the internet and read reviews of different brands and I am sure you will get a good idea about what you should go for.. good luck

 

[rpanand25]

"Is it really worth paying for a big brand? .

So what's the difference between a regular TV from the likes of Videocon and Samsung? QUOTE]


I think those FMs who own brands other than the Big three or four(Sony,Sammy,LG,Pana) should give feedback as to whether other brand TVs such as Videocon, Sharp,Toshiba etc perform well particularly with respect to specific models and which are cost effective also. It should be based on user experience and would be useful to those who donot want to spend a bomb upwards of 50K on a TV which at the most comes with a warranty of three years paid or otherwise. And may fail anytime afterwards particularly the panel. While we cannot expect a life of 10 years upwards of CRT, at least 5-7 years life would be desirable as it is not annual purchase.

 

[gsmart329]

I remember videocon was offering 50 inch FHD LED for 58k+ 3 year warrenty + 1000 cashback. it looked very nice deal

 

[rpanand25]

http://www.hifivision.com/television/46706-e6-best-led-panasonic-has-ever-produced-6.html

Pl go thru this thread. Soorya G had bought Panasonic L50B6D for around 64K and it may even be lower now. Three year warranty and with big brand name. Infibeam is selling for 63K.

 

[mowgli80]

The difference is not necessarily in quality but mostly in features and image quality. I am not a TV expert but I think the cost differs based on several factors e.g refresh rate, contrast ratio, full LED backlighting vs edge led, IPS panel etc. The difference is not limited to hardware but also in software i.e. image processing (like BRAVIA from Sony), upconversion quality of SD to HD (requires a decent processor) etc. Some companies like Sony and Samsung do charge premium for brand name but its not just that.

Casual TV viewing is vague term. If you watch a sport channel, you may require TV with better refresh rate to prevent streaking. If you mainly watch travel or NatGeo/discovery, better image processing might be your priority. All in all, if a cheap TV offers you features which are compatible with your viewing habits, go for it.

 

[TheSeeker]

I remember videocon was offering 50 inch FHD LED for 58k+ 3 year warrenty + 1000 cashback. it looked very nice deal

i know a person who had purchased a 55" videocon LED last year after demoing several other brands' TVs, and had got 8 pairs of 3D glasses, and a few other freebies in the deal! don't remember the price.

 

[Dirac]

The difference is not necessarily in quality but mostly in features and image quality. I am not a TV expert but I think the cost differs based on several factors e.g refresh rate, contrast ratio, full LED backlighting vs edge led, IPS panel etc. The difference is not limited to hardware but also in software i.e. image processing (like BRAVIA from Sony), upconversion quality of SD to HD (requires a decent processor) etc. Some companies like Sony and Samsung do charge premium for brand name but its not just that.

Casual TV viewing is vague term. If you watch a sport channel, you may require TV with better refresh rate to prevent streaking. If you mainly watch travel or NatGeo/discovery, better image processing might be your priority. All in all, if a cheap TV offers you features which are compatible with your viewing habits, go for it.

The led panel needs to have good motion processing. This is apart from the native refresh rate. Though this produces side effects, but reduces the smearing in fast panning shots especially while watching sports.
Here comes the advantage of high end panels compared to cheap ones.
Cheap panels could be showing bright and colorful still shots. But when there is motion on screen they fall apart.

 

[k11]

Interesting discussion. I was also thinking the same thing.

The problem among lower priced ones are that no one knows who is the best among them. They are not reviewed or released in international market.

A High end Micromax (just an example) could be on par with low end Samsung or even better than some Sammy models. LED panels are cheap nowadays and Videocons/Micromax share them anyway. But hard to evaluate the package, as the previous poster said the processing also makes a big difference.

Also I find most reviews for bigger TVs, 46+. Smaller ones have few reviews.

 

[yashg]

Also I find most reviews for bigger TVs, 46+. Smaller ones have few reviews.

That's what I have noticed too. That's why I search for reviews based on model number without the size. So instead of 32XYZ00 or 42XYZ00 I only search for XYZ00 and we can safely assume that other than size everything else would remain same for a given model.

 

[rpanand25]

Don't be too sure about that. In some brands the basic specs(other than size) and even the panels(IPS,VA etc) change within the series. Just check the facts after you have read the review of a bigger size model to form a correct opinion.

 

[Rockfella]

One thing which I don't like about Toshiba is that they don't mention their panel type in specs.
A Sony will always sound better than a videocon to your neighbors. = TRUE! hyeah:

Toshiba is not a cheap brand. It is a premium Japanese brand.
Regrading your question there is no fix parameter s for which brand provides value for money and which is not. 2 different sayings come to mind
1. Sasta roye bar bar , mehenga roye ek bar.
2. Unchi dukan feeka pakwan.
A Sony will always sound better than a videocon to your neighbours.

 

[greenhorn]

In my opinion, almost any electronic item has become a service instead of a product. Unlike our parents time when you bought a TV or a stereo and it worked for a lifetime, You buy a TV or a phone or a computer until it becomes obsolete or dies (1 -3 years or so).

While the product features are important, it becomes more important to look at it from the TCO aspect of it, and the warranty terms become very important. What is their dead pixel policy? What is their buyback policy? what is their warranty duration.If these players have a good answer to these, they just might get a good foothold.
You get the idea.

 

[dino29]

In my opinion, almost any electronic item has become a service instead of a product. Unlike our parents time when you bought a TV or a stereo and it worked for a lifetime, You buy a TV or a phone or a computer until it becomes obsolete or dies (1 -3 years or so).

While the product features are important, it becomes more important to look at it from the TCO aspect of it, and the warranty terms become very important. What is their dead pixel policy? What is their buyback policy? what is their warranty duration.If these players have a good answer to these, they just might get a good foothold.
You get the idea.

Very true, now days quality of products is very bad

 

[k11]

Actually what I have noticed is that there is a lot of difference in bigger TV sizes, but coming to smaller TVs the gap might be narrow. Small TVs from LG, Sony are not the same as bigger TV sizes, there are some bad models also.

Outside of some exceptions like Sony HX850,etc most smaller size models from big brands are not spectacular. Some smaller LG, Sammy, Sony, etc are also not on par with their bigger brothers.

Question is there a possibility where a good small Videocon/Micromax/AOC/etc be on par with a small lower end LG/Sony/Sammy.