Buying a New Television?

Bought my 60" Sony at Sears. They threw in free delivery.

Amazon, delivered and basic set up. Beat the local big box store prices and no sales tax (yet).

Here are some links I found.

How To Buy an LCD HDTV

Making sense of the specs


They are somewhat old but I found them helpful.

It may be better to buy an item such as an HDTV from a brick and mortar store, so you can confirm it works before accepting it. Never much thought about it before, nor done so myself, but didn't know that most warranties do not cover screen damage. That is before a recent news story about the trials of a woman who purchased a new Samsung plasma TV from Walmart with an extended warranty.

Problem was it didn't work, and according to a news report, a Samsung tech sent to her home for warranty service discovered a few small cracks along the border of the screen. So Samsung wouldn't replace it as screen damage is not covered. Neither would Walmart accept it back for return, even-though, she had an extended warranty. That is until a local news station got involved, and Walmart suddenly had a change of heart, and took it back.

Which brings up the question of whether a retailer will exchange a new HDTV damaged from shipment. There is no real way of knowing until the buyer unpacks the set. So may be better to check it at the store itself before you leave?

You can watch the news story at Woman upset TV from Walmart wouldn't work.

Also make sure it has the right "Inputs" for what you want to use with the TV. HDMI, composit, Coax, PC, ect. A lot of lower priced TV's don't have them all or a lessor amount. or are missing some. Nothing worse then to get home and you can't hook up the Wii or play station or DVD

Electronic Express in person. Always look and listen before you buy

I would try amazon or costco. Best buy only has a 15 day return policy so I would avoid that.

Costco stores take back the costco.com items.

Paul

Bought several from walmart all shipped to home. They are all a lot lighter than those from just a few years ago so no problem setting them up. I agree with others that you need to go see and hear them in action.

Nebraska Furniture Mart has a great selection and prices are as low as anyone.

Bill.Winegard wrote:
Take a look at Amazon.com. Type in Flat Screen TV in search and then on the left select the size TV you are interested in. If nothing else it will give you a good guide for pricing before you visit a local store.
I have had great results with Vizio products but I think all of the major brands will stand up well long term. If you have any hearing issues, I would suggest that you turn the volume up in the store as this seems to be the one area that varies greatly between various TV's and vendors.

Ditto on the Vizio.
Albeit I was buying cheap flat screens for the RV, I've been thru 3 of them. The Vizio has lasted the longest and gets the best reception of channels from batwing antenna in the MH.

Go to the store to buy it. IMHO all these are crappily made. Some more so than others. Sound & viewing capabilities is what I found to be the big difference between them all. You need to see and hear them!

The first 2 I bought if you were laying down below the TV [couch]or off to the side of the TV [dinette]? You saw a black screen with barely recognizable solid black silhouettes moving around.:R

So when you go to buy one at the store, don't just stand directly in front of the TV display move over to the side of the TV, then bend down below it, and see if you still have a clear color picture.

Good Luck!