New LCD HDTV - Warranty or no?

J

Joshua312

New member
Hey guys...



I have been wanting an LCD HDTV for a while now and couldn't pass up the offer I found yesterday while at Best Buy. I ended up picking up the following TV...



Samsung - 32" 720p Flat-Panel LCD HDTV - LN-T3242H



Works great so far and looks really nice with my Xbox360 hooked up to it; but my question is I did not pay for the extended warranty which is like $100 for four years. I heard that these extended warranties on LCD's are basically scams and Best Buy never actually stands by them. Should I get the warranty or no? The lady claims they will come to my house and do any repairs, dead pixels, etc...



I have 30 days to decide whether to add it or not and would appreciate any feedback.



Thanks!
 
I wouldn't normally waste my money on extended warranties as for the most part, that is where they make the most money. I'm not familiar with the defect/repair rate for LCD HDTVs, but I'm so glad we purchased the extended 5 year warranty when we purchased our 62" DLP Rear-projection Mitsubishi. At the time, HDTVs were still quite expensive, as our set cost more than $6,000. The TV has been problematic from the beginning (despite it being Mitsu's top of the line) and right now we are waiting for a repairman to come out and fix it. The few hundred dollars it cost for the warranty in our case has paid for itself. Even if it wasn't an expensive repair, imagine the hassle of lugging out a huge, heavy TV to get it repaired. I'd have to rent a truck and go through a lot of trouble just to get it fixed.



In your case, your TV is small enough to be easily carried by 2, probably even 1 person. Plus, LCDs are probably a lot less problematic than rear-projections. And if your TV ever goes bad where the repair costs don't justify doing so, you've only lost $900 + tax. That's easier to swallow than something that costs almost as much as a small car. So in your case, I would opt out on the extended warranty also.
 
Thanks for the replies thus far guys... The thing which makes me think twice is I actually walked out the door with this TV for like $630 after price matching. So paying $100 or 1/6 of the original cost seems a little silly to protect it for 4 years, by then if I need to replace a 32" the price will be even lower for a new TV just as CRT's became "disposable"
 
Just run the hell out of that baby for the next few days. If anything is going to break it will likely be sooner rather than later. If it does shoot craps, then tell retailer you want a new unit as it is defective issue and not a repair issue. Repair issue means you're waiting.
 
BlackElantraGT said:
Even if it wasn't an expensive repair, imagine the hassle of lugging out a huge, heavy TV to get it repaired. I'd have to rent a truck and go through a lot of trouble just to get it fixed.
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Surely you can get people to service projection TV's at your house on a non-warranty basis--why would you have to lug it anywhere to get it repaired without a warranty?
 
Since 1985 I have had at least 15 different types of TV's and not one of them stopped working. I have had a big screen projection TV for five years and 42 inch LCD TV for seven months with not a problem. As someone stated earlier they make more money on the warranty plan than they do on the TV since they have to provide nothing. Just watch your TV and put the warranty money aside for later. You can spend it on the upgrade for the next TV.
 
Setec Astronomy said:
Surely you can get people to service projection TV's at your house on a non-warranty basis--why would you have to lug it anywhere to get it repaired without a warranty?
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I'm sure someone can come and fix your tv in-home, but from my understanding the in-home service was usually more expensive. Keep in mind, it's been a very long time since I or any family member of mine had a TV repaired, and whenever we did (CRT tv, not big screens), we had to take it into the repair shop. Plus it ain't cheap to fix a TV, and at some point it's like a car... it might cost more to fix than it is worth.
 
BlackElantraGT said:
I'm sure someone can come and fix your tv in-home, but from my understanding the in-home service was usually more expensive. Keep in mind, it's been a very long time since I or any family member of mine had a TV repaired, and whenever we did (CRT tv, not big screens), we had to take it into the repair shop. Plus it ain't cheap to fix a TV, and at some point it's like a car... it might cost more to fix than it is worth.
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My grandpa actually use to own a TV repair shop and they did a little of both, as you said. My dad worked there as a teenager, so it's great now because people give him their broken CRT's and DVD players and say if he can fix it just to keep it because it is cheaper for them to just get a new one. :xyxthumbs
 
My buddy purchased a new Camry. He bragged on the "great" deal he got on the extended warranty. I asked him how much? He said $1600, regular price $2600 (inflated of course to make it sound like you are getting a killer deal) So the dealer will take that money, deposit it into a high interest account and make money off the people who buy the warranty. In the end for the dealer its 100% profit, and if someone files a claim 6-10 years down the road, they have taken your $1600 and turned it into $2500. So it costs them nothing, even with claims.
 
Cleaning Fool said:
In the end for the dealer its 100% profit, and if someone files a claim 6-10 years down the road, they have taken your $1600 and turned it into $2500. So it costs them nothing, even with claims.
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Um...that *is* the principle of insurance...have you heard of an insurance company that doesn't make money? All warranties are a form of insurance.
 
Not arguing the "form of insurance". I would rather see people, especially younger buyers, take that money, open a Roth IRA and start investing for there retirement. Take that $1600 and start compounding it over the next 30 years. I don't know any financial advisor who would recommend handing the dealer $1600 of your hard earned money, when you can take that money and put it to work for your own needs down the road.
 
Cleaning Fool said:
Not arguing the "form of insurance". I would rather see people, especially younger buyers, take that money, open a Roth IRA and start investing for there retirement. Take that $1600 and start compounding it over the next 30 years. I don't know any financial advisor who would recommend handing the dealer $1600 of your hard earned money, when you can take that money and put it to work for your own needs down the road.
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Except when you get that first repair bill of $3000+ dollars and it puts you in the hole. It works both ways. Sure that money can work well for you, but it can sure hurt too if the warranty is needed.



It's no different than auto insurance, life insurance, etc. That money can do much better somewhere else, but if you have a claim, it can save you tremendously.



I typically don't purchase the electronics warranties, but I really favor them for expensive items like vehicles, etc. which might have very high repair costs.
 
ZaneO said:
Except when you get that first repair bill of $3000+ dollars and it puts you in the hole. It works both ways. Sure that money can work well for you, but it can sure hurt too if the warranty is needed.



It's no different than auto insurance, life insurance, etc. That money can do much better somewhere else, but if you have a claim, it can save you tremendously.



I typically don't purchase the electronics warranties, but I really favor them for expensive items like vehicles, etc. which might have very high repair costs.
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Agreed! Something tells me that the $800 I paid for the extended warranty on my van wouldn't have covered: $3000+ for transmission and replacement, putting us up for 5 days/nights as well as feeding us for those days and renting a car. I guess maybe if I had put that in Apple stock it might have but......
 
Are these new flatscreens actually repaired? I know for LCD's the bulp can be replaced, but I was once told with plasma, and when LCDs get stuck pixels, the televisions are just replaced, and not repaired.
 
For this monitor I got a warranty for $30 for two more years, a few years ago. No problems. I would pass on it. I will be looking at HDTVs soon, Do you have any good web sites for information on them? What to look for, etc? Thanks
 
pgp said:
For this monitor I got a warranty for $30 for two more years, a few years ago. No problems. I would pass on it. I will be looking at HDTVs soon, Do you have any good web sites for information on them? What to look for, etc? Thanks
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When I was first looking at HDTV LCD's I didn't know where to begin. I looked at everything from Westinghouse, Visio, Sharp, Samsung, Sony, etc...



I would go to your local Best Buy or Circuit City and just look around at the picture to see what pops out at you. Keep in mind though, that picture may not look as great once you get home if you just have a regular analog/cable TV signal. I only have cable but get some Over the Air/DTV stations which look amazing. I can see the prime time shows on the major networks in HDTV, movies, and my Xbox.



I think once you see the Samsung displays you will be sold. They are absolutely amazing, I favor the "glossy" appearance they have.



I think the major thing about LCD Tv's is the calibration/display settings you set. Out of the box they look okay, but it needed some tweaking (especially for my games).



By the way, I just got home from the Apple Store and picked up a mini-DVI to vga cable and I'm typing this on my TV...wow, everyone needs one of these cables IMO!



For anyone looking at LCD wall mounts, take a look at monprice.com I ordered one for mine at a measely $30 shipped compared to the $200 Best Buy wanted. I am about to move my room around to set everything up how I want it...I will post pics to this thread when I get done to show you the picture quality I am getting.
 
Here are the pics of the current setup until I receive my wall mount. I will then have my desk 3-4 feet away from the TV so I am able to work on my Mac and have the TV not so close to me.















 
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