Is it really worth buying high-value televisions?

nivlacbot

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Might seem like a philosophical question but hear me out..

I had a Panasonic plasma TH-42PV8D bought in 2009 for 46K INR.

This week one cursed day, it refused to start and would just sit there blinking twice.

Long story short - service technician visits - says it is a "back light issue". However to repair it, the parts are no longer being manufactured since Panasonic has exited the plasma business.
He then offered me some hope that the company may offer a trade-in after factoring in depreciation; but a few days later, even that is retracted. So basically if i can lay it face up, it is an expensive coffee table.

I've escalated up the panasonic chain but not too hopeful.

In my family I have had a couple of 50+ inch LCD Samsung screens go kaput within 1-4 years.
  • So it seems the televisions are not being made as they used to.
  • The cost is huge
  • Service is questionable. Repairs are pricey/impossible.

So now I'm wrestling with whether it makes to go big-50K+ again or go for a smaller cheaper set, knowing that its days are numbered.

Thanks
 
Might seem like a philosophical question but hear me out..

I had a Panasonic plasma TH-42PV8D bought in 2009 for 46K INR.

This week one cursed day, it refused to start and would just sit there blinking twice.

Long story short - service technician visits - says it is a "back light issue". However to repair it, the parts are no longer being manufactured since Panasonic has exited the plasma business.
He then offered me some hope that the company may offer a trade-in after factoring in depreciation; but a few days later, even that is retracted. So basically if i can lay it face up, it is an expensive coffee table.

I've escalated up the panasonic chain but not too hopeful.

In my family I have had a couple of 50+ inch LCD Samsung screens go kaput within 1-4 years.
  • So it seems the televisions are not being made as they used to.
  • The cost is huge
  • Service is questionable. Repairs are pricey/impossible.

Sorry to hear that your TV is dead, but great that the TV lasted 8 yrs of duty..

So now I'm wrestling with whether it makes to go big-50K+ again or go for a smaller cheaper set, knowing that its days are numbered.

If you want a big screen, at affordable prices (<=20K), consider LED HD projector..These don't compare with main stream projectors for brightness, but can give you a big screen experience for less, if you can control the ambient light in your room..I have been using one for the last 6 months and happy with it..

Am also a victim of the Sony LCD panel issues in less than 4 yrs time..
 
Difficult question to answer really, because if big brand TV lasts 4 years, i have heard the smaller brands lasts 1.5-2 yrs.
My Samsung 6 series LCD lasted 4 years before its motherboard failed. And the cause really seems overheating (because I could black marks on the metal chassis just below the motherboard). Samsung could have easily installed a heatsink or fan on the main IC, but they didnt. I don't think they want their TVs to last long.
We need more TV parts stores like narayanitech.com who stock used TV parts
 
Two days ago, my four year old forcefully threw a hard plastic ball at my 50' panasonic plasma of 5 years and broke its panel. As one would guess, no replacement panels available.

After getting used to the Panna's excellent natural picture quality, I will be totally disappointed at any led tv's at the same price as my plasma, ie 50000/-

So an expensive upgrade is probably on the cards. Is it worth it ? Am not thinking about it at the moment :D
 
I don't think they want their TVs to last long.

Precisely - too frequent to be coincidence, more like by design. Not sure why there is no consumer protection in 2017 in India.

Looks similar to organized loot, you're hooked onto good PQ and you need to pay 50k-1L periodically for your next fix.:mad:

My childhood was spent with a Sony TV that I can't remember ever breaking down.. ever. I would imagine it is still working like Wall-E somewhere.
 
If you want a big screen, at affordable prices (<=20K), consider LED HD projector..
One of my cousins just switched to a projector and was raving about it. I did watch it for like 15 mins - there are pros of course but wasn't taken by it.
  • PQ: Maybe my cousin had a cheaper projector, but the clarity was a bit blurry for my taste.
  • Gaming - I have a Playstation that isn't getting much exercise lately (just like me) however I would like to have that option
  • Can't have darkness in the main room all the time.

Is there any link with a pro-con analysis TVs vs projectors? - would like to evaluate this option.

Am also a victim of the Sony LCD panel issues in less than 4 yrs time..

Et tu sony? There goes my last option. What ever happened to the fable of Japanese electronics:sad:
 
@ssf, ouch. My heart is always in mouth when my kid picks up a throwable object around my TV.

+10 to the panasonic PQ. That's what is making the decision much harder.
 
One of my cousins just switched to a projector and was raving about it. I did watch it for like 15 mins - there are pros of course but wasn't taken by it.
  • PQ: Maybe my cousin had a cheaper projector, but the clarity was a bit blurry for my taste.
  • Gaming - I have a Playstation that isn't getting much exercise lately (just like me) however I would like to have that option

Is there any link with a pro-con analysis TVs vs projectors? - would like to evaluate this option.

Here are few threads that you can run thru to evaluate options.. These are only LED HD PJ..I have the E-gate P 531..

http://www.hifivision.com/home-thea...get-setup-27k-inr-pj-egate-p531-1280x800.html

http://www.hifivision.com/home-thea...-projector-avail-india-discussion-thread.html

[*] Can't have darkness in the main room all the time.

Understand.. But can you atleast control the lighting, say by not hitting the screen ? If so, you can very well run the PJ in the room..

Et tu sony? There goes my last option. What ever happened to the fable of Japanese electronics:sad:

The cost of the panel was 75% of what i paid for the TV :sad:.. Didn't replace the panel.. Juz living with it (Shifted the TV to bedroom)..
 
I also have a projector that I use when I watch movies. But I think it can not be used as a replacement of TV considering it is not practical to keep the living room dark all the time we watch. We all understand now that brands like Sony, LG, Panasonic and Samsung have failed the consumers. They deliberately keep something that is bound to disturb the product within 3-4 years in order to increase their turnover.
Rather than spending lacs in above brands, I would put my money on a large panel but comparatively newer brands like TCL, VU, Noble Skiodo etc with extended warranty.
Ofcourse you need to be more careful and do a lot of research to understand who will honor the warranty.
 
I think 5 years is a reasonable time and most plasma/lcd/led tv's last that much. Anything more than that is a bonus. We need to be careful though, by installing surge protectors and voltage stabilizers !!!
 
I also have a projector that I use when I watch movies. But I think it can not be used as a replacement of TV considering it is not practical to keep the living room dark all the time we watch.

I think you can.. Few things i would like to share here, slightly OT..

- In a living room, the projected image on screen mainly suffers due to direct light hitting the screen (vinyl screen), where the images look washed out.. Depending on the light you use, you can block it with cardboard's cut in precise sizes around the light.. This will improve situation 50% of the time..

- Next, is the reflected light of glazed floors seeping in thru windows/doors.. You can also block this with dark curtains..

After all this, there will still be some light in the room for you to move around, but reasonably dark room to enjoy the projected image..

This is purely based on experimenting in my living room for day time watching...
 
Have been trying to replace my 51 sammy plasma 51e8000 (superb pq btw) which i bought for 80k to something bigger and am just amazed at the prices. have demoed leds but nowhere near as good pq (except brighter) as the plasma and prices more than 1 lac. Wish now if i would have invested in a 65' plasma at that time.
 
We need to be careful though, by installing surge protectors and voltage stabilizers !!!

I did spend on these too. But these are just insurance if the telly itself is suicidal.

Also at 5 years, that comes to 10-20k a year - cost of ownership. Is there a regulatory body that should be stepping in - preventing these BigCos from profiteering by dumping inferior quality products in India :(

Think about the e-waste that this must be generating. :eek:
OT: The panasonic technician said that when you buy a new tv, the dealer would take care of disposing the old one. Is this true?
 
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Ah Well! The original question remains unanswered :)

Is it really worth buying high-value televisions?

While most of us suggest PJs, some of us may not afford it - maybe for the price, personal choices, room sizes and orientation etc. PJs may be cheap, but do they offer better PQ as some of the better ones? What are the overheads? How many moving parts? TVs give you a bundled option and if the companies are irresponsible as many have said, back to the question then - do we really stop buying high-end TVs?:sad::confused:
 
I think you can.. Few things i would like to share here, slightly OT..

- In a living room, the projected image on screen mainly suffers due to direct light hitting the screen (vinyl screen), where the images look washed out.. Depending on the light you use, you can block it with cardboard's cut in precise sizes around the light.. This will improve situation 50% of the time..

- Next, is the reflected light of glazed floors seeping in thru windows/doors.. You can also block this with dark curtains..

After all this, there will still be some light in the room for you to move around, but reasonably dark room to enjoy the projected image..

This is purely based on experimenting in my living room for day time watching...

I completely understand that and even doing that during the day time. I have thick curtains with blackout clothes. What I am saying is that a TV can be used with passive watching as well, where two people are watching TV and other members are just chatting or doing something else. You can watch the TV with full light but a projector needs your full attention. Hope you understand what I am trying to say.
 
The panasonic technician said that when you buy a new tv, the dealer would take care of disposing the old one. Is this true?

The sony dealership that I went to assured me of the same too.
 
Think about the e-waste that this must be generating. :eek:
OT: The panasonic technician said that when you buy a new tv, the dealer would take care of disposing the old one. Is this true?

The motherboard inside your TV if in good condition, might fetch some value.. Hope they are compensating you for that.. At-least a little..This can be re-used for other TV's with faulty motherboard..

I completely understand that and even doing that during the day time. I have thick curtains with blackout clothes. What I am saying is that a TV can be used with passive watching as well, where two people are watching TV and other members are just chatting or doing something else. You can watch the TV with full light but a projector needs your full attention. Hope you understand what I am trying to say.

Got it.. PJ demands full attention :eek:hyeah:
 
LCD being different medium has short life due to its physical nature. Just like CD Player lens etc. They are delicate too. making it compact for low foot print makes things even worse. Just a small loose contact in micro sockets inside and we get problems.

CRTs : We had Televista around '73 (One section Valve Tube, Black and white) Which was replaced by Nordmende in '86/87 which was replaced by Sony Trinitron in 2001. Which is still working. Family says to dump Sony and buy LCD I said NO :D. Brightness is still intact, so I presume Tube is OK. Average life of CRT can be said to about 15/20 years.

But I must say modern TVs are power saving and picture quality is superb comparatively.
Regards.
 
I think current generation LED TVS specially large panels are manufactured in a way that they fail within 3-4 years or after warranty is over. I have a 32" Sony LCD TV from the last 7 year and touchwood it is still working great. No surge protector etc. are used. CRT TVs no doubt are still working great from the last 15-20 years at my home town.
 
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