I am planning on buying a 42″ Vizio tv and I was wondering if I should buy warranty with it. It is a Walmart warranty that costs about 88 dollars for 3 years. Is it a good idea to buy it?
6 Comments to “How likely is a 42″ Vizio LCD TV going to break?”
If you buy a cheap television then it is much more likely to fail than one made by one of the good brands. Usually these things break down just after the guarantee expires.
You should never have to buy an extended guarantee (warranty) because it’s rather obscene to expect a thing like a television set to fail within 3 years. That’s why shops sell these things, because customers instinctively know that cheapo tv sets are more likely to go wrong.
Buy a good one made by Sony, Philips or Panasonic then you can sit back and enjoy it for years without the bother of it conkng out and your having to chase up repairers and the hassle that goes with it.
Zach T on April 17, 2009
1st good idea is not to buy from walmart. Do you really think they are going to cover much for $88?
Vizios are one of the better off brands to go with, but buy from Circuit city or best buy and go with one of their warranty plans. They usually cover much more like surge and lightening damage, pixel burnout, plus usually if you get their warranty they will give you a discount on other things you will eventually need like cables, money off the TV when you switch to HD programming, blu ray players, surround sound systems. this is where your bang for the buck is. If you build a profitable ticket for Best Buy of Circuit City, their managers will want to take the business due to the fact that its a very slow time in retail. Walmart could care less if you buy their stuff…they are the number 1 retailer in the nation and they know people will shop there regardless.
Vizio is assembled in Los Angeles from generic parts from China and Japan. The quality control is .. spotty. For a few weeks, the units are decent and reliable. Then a power supply changes, control board changes, they buy the panels from a different vendor, etc., and the units appear to work – but have a shorter lifespan, have odd issues and behave totally different from the same model built the week earlier.
The more expensive brands (Sony, Samsung, Sharp, Pioneer) keep much tighter controls over things and make many of their own parts. The parts they buy from outside sources have strict standards and are tested before being put into televisions, then the televisions are tested.
So I would get the warranty if I were buying one of these models.
gcmusic22 on April 21, 2009
Don’t buy a cheap TV from Wal-Mart. I would honestly suggest saving up a few more bucks and get yourself an LG, Sony, or a Samsung.
Spend a few more bucks now and have a TV that you can be more confident in lasting into the future.
Consumer Reports has a long article about this topic Free at the library. Costs money online. THe Vizio’s used to be crummy. They are getting better. Many of the extended warranties are with 3rd parties who go out of business all the time; or they just decline your repair and you have no one to complain to. If this is a true WalMart warranty i would get it.
Yes, buy a warranty I my parents bought me a 26″ Vizio HDTV yestarday and we got the warranty just in case something were to happen to it. Buy the warranty to be on the safe side. I’m gonna go trade in my cable box towmorror for an HD box to get all the Channels in HD.
Buy the warranty
Popular Posts
What digital slr camera is best for amateur photographers?
The Tank on April 16, 2009
If you buy a cheap television then it is much more likely to fail than one made by one of the good brands. Usually these things break down just after the guarantee expires.
You should never have to buy an extended guarantee (warranty) because it’s rather obscene to expect a thing like a television set to fail within 3 years. That’s why shops sell these things, because customers instinctively know that cheapo tv sets are more likely to go wrong.
Buy a good one made by Sony, Philips or Panasonic then you can sit back and enjoy it for years without the bother of it conkng out and your having to chase up repairers and the hassle that goes with it.
Zach T on April 17, 2009
1st good idea is not to buy from walmart. Do you really think they are going to cover much for $88?
Vizios are one of the better off brands to go with, but buy from Circuit city or best buy and go with one of their warranty plans. They usually cover much more like surge and lightening damage, pixel burnout, plus usually if you get their warranty they will give you a discount on other things you will eventually need like cables, money off the TV when you switch to HD programming, blu ray players, surround sound systems. this is where your bang for the buck is. If you build a profitable ticket for Best Buy of Circuit City, their managers will want to take the business due to the fact that its a very slow time in retail. Walmart could care less if you buy their stuff…they are the number 1 retailer in the nation and they know people will shop there regardless.
Grumpy Mac on April 20, 2009
Yes – buy the warranty.
Vizio is assembled in Los Angeles from generic parts from China and Japan. The quality control is .. spotty. For a few weeks, the units are decent and reliable. Then a power supply changes, control board changes, they buy the panels from a different vendor, etc., and the units appear to work – but have a shorter lifespan, have odd issues and behave totally different from the same model built the week earlier.
The more expensive brands (Sony, Samsung, Sharp, Pioneer) keep much tighter controls over things and make many of their own parts. The parts they buy from outside sources have strict standards and are tested before being put into televisions, then the televisions are tested.
So I would get the warranty if I were buying one of these models.
gcmusic22 on April 21, 2009
Don’t buy a cheap TV from Wal-Mart. I would honestly suggest saving up a few more bucks and get yourself an LG, Sony, or a Samsung.
Spend a few more bucks now and have a TV that you can be more confident in lasting into the future.
Ed Atun on April 24, 2009
Consumer Reports has a long article about this topic Free at the library. Costs money online. THe Vizio’s used to be crummy. They are getting better. Many of the extended warranties are with 3rd parties who go out of business all the time; or they just decline your repair and you have no one to complain to. If this is a true WalMart warranty i would get it.
Mary G on April 27, 2009
Yes, buy a warranty I my parents bought me a 26″ Vizio HDTV yestarday and we got the warranty just in case something were to happen to it. Buy the warranty to be on the safe side. I’m gonna go trade in my cable box towmorror for an HD box to get all the Channels in HD.
Buy the warranty