Here we are almost exactly ten years after the last television acquisition and we have embarked on the purchase of another. What fun! Ten years ago a diagonally measured 32" went for from 450 to 600 dollars. We found a Toshiba at that time at Sam's club and purchased it for around $460 before tax. It has been an very very uneventful ten years. Nothing has gone wrong until recently. We are now watching the equivalent of a TV egg-timer. The picture fits nicely inside those encroaching black bands.Is it worth it to fix? NO. The cost is prohibitive even when comparing against the price of a new set.
In an earlier blog I discussed the on-coming switch to digital HD broadcasting. We are still looking, as of today, at a date in June 2009. It looks like this family will ready to herald in the change with a new set. As I mentioned at that time, I upgraded our sets to digital buy using the money back vouchers from the Federal Goverment to buy two set-top decoders. Digital makes the older sets look even better.
I will start with the conclusion of the story first. This is so that those of you who wish to start looking up prices and what-not on the net can do so without reading about how the 'butler did it' with the candlestick in the pantry. I'd like to see that scene myself!
After a lot of shopping the local Orlando area and looking all around the Internet for a good price we settled on buying from Amazon again. I have had NOTHING but good luck with Amazon and its' suppliers. I have purchased full-sized speaker systems, stereo and Dolby receivers, and other sundries over the past five years. What has made that decision easier to do is the usage of the Amazon Visa (Chase Manhattan) card. After spending a pre-set limit in a given period of time, a voucher for $25 credit is mailed to me. We had two of these waiting in the wings.
The winner in the TV sweeps is Samsung. We purchased a 42" Plasma (the newest model in this series) for a listed price of $709.96. Remember that I can deduct the $50 in vouchers directly from the price of the unit. We looked at the set at local stores and even at our BJ Warehouse (which I highly recommend to you over Sam's). There was no question that upon REALLY close inspection, the brightness and sharpness of an LCD set beat out the plasma. No one has yet built a set that will beat the plasma for black blacks and incredibly warm and lifelike color. The sharpness is there too, but just a LITTLE subdued. On the other hand, our local stores could not even come close to the price from Amazon (even discounting the vouchers we had).
I checked the UPS website last night and was pleased to see that the set is on its' way. We anticipate an arrival shortly. Just before it arrives, I will double-check to make sure that I am here to help the driver lug this thing into the house......IT CANNOT IN ANY WAY TRAVEL ON ITS' SIDE...ESPECIALLY A PLASMA. Please remember that. The picture tube we all remember no longer exists. The tube is the whole screen which you see from the front. Imagine what would happen if the screen were to crack. They might as well just take the thing back on the same truck. It remains vertical at all times. I will just have to wait until my wife gets home so that we may put it in its place together. BTW....The old Toshiba has to weigh over 120 pounds. This unit is coming into the house in a shipping carton at 74 pounds. New technology has meant a drop in the weight.
New technology also means a cooler operating set. If your flat screen is too hot at the top cooling vents you NEED to find out if there is a problem. Early plasma sets had mini-fans built into the sets. You can imagine what kind of a racket they made when going bad.
Buy a name brand. Buy as expensive as you can and still be in your budget. Don't jump at names which sound familiar, but now have been taken over by unpronounceable companies from South East Asia and China. These sets may SEEM familiar, but I guarantee that there will be heartache down the road.
Use your computer and find reviews. They are available. Read them. Observe what others are warning about. And then digest this little gummy bear; no matter how careful you are with brand names, even the best ones may arrive D.O.A. The better brands will replace the set instead of fighting about repairing it. Now I am going to tell you to do something I have NEVER done.....Buy the extended warranty. Don't be foolish. These machines are no longer televisions. They are computers with viewing screens designed to do only one thing. If the manufacturer saves money along the way to save you in the purchase, the likelihood is that a half-baked part has been installed in a place of great importance....hence....D.O.A. I will not print the names of any such TVs. You must do your own homework.
Meanwhile, we are anxiously awaiting the arrival of the television. I want to run it for awhile on the Dish Network SD box before calling up about a switch to HD programming. I have an antenna good enough to get me excellent HD from my locals including all the PBS stations in the area. This will have to be the test of the set.
I wish you all luck. If the Gods are with us, it will be another ten years before I have to buy a new TV. This one seems to have about 22,000 hours on the plasma screen (some will say lots more...don't believe them!). By being careful when using the set (moving...moving in the living room....painting....rugs...flooring etc.)the set may just last 8? years......
Until next time ....
