How Long Should Your new TV last? - Page 4

chickenbutt · ‎03-09-2010

VaBelle35 wrote:
All electronics are disposable now. Because technology changes so quickly and the next version comes out in less than a year, the sooner your unit dies or stops working effectively, the sooner you upgrade to the next version.

I upgraded to a new TiVo Bolt in April 2016 when they were released. In November it died. It only has a 3 month warranty. Technically they didn't have to replace it, but I purchased a one year package and I had an expectation that the unit would last at least one year. They agreed with my rationale and agreed to send me a refurbished unit. So far, so good. But really, this thing should not have died in 5 months.

Oh wow, sorry that happened. I also bought my Bolt last April. (fingers crossed) So far, so good.

I do love the Bolt! It's faster than the Premieres and offers so many more cool things like 'Quick Mode' and 'skip'. I use both of those a ton.

Hope your 'new' one hangs in there! Stuff like this should last many years. My Premieres are 5 or 6 years old. I used my old Series 2 Tivos for eight years before upgrading to the Premieres and that was just because technology seemed to have exceeded their ability. But they still work, aside from that tuning problem due to changes with cable.

Bridgegal · ‎03-09-2010

We bought a new plasma TV when we moved into this new house 10 years ago and it still works fine. As do all of the appliances that came with the new house. Our LG (POS) fridge works but it doesn't drop the ice into the bin and some of the plastic shelves have cracked and they don't 'glide' like they should. We bought it. UGH.

itiswhatitis · ‎05-27-2016

@CelticCrafter wrote:
We had a Vizio that was about 4-5 years old, it would suddenly get really loud and then turn itself off and back on again or it would go mute or sometimes it sounded like someone talking through the back of a running fan.

We replaced it a couple months ago.

I've heard some say we're lucky if we get seven years from today's t.v.'s.

*Call Tyrone*

itiswhatitis · ‎05-27-2016

@haddon9 wrote:
We have a 60" Samsung flat screen in our family room that was purchased 7-10 years ago. I was just discussing this the other day with DH and neither one of us can remember when it was purchased.

The picture is great...really fabulous but we just noticed a small white dot on the screen about a week ago. You can only see it when the screen is dark and the TV is on. Now that single dot has expanded to 5 small white dots. This has me worried that the TV is starting to fail. We'll see how long this will be but I guess we've been lucky to have it as long as we have.

It won't go away. It will get worse and you will have to replace it.

*Call Tyrone*

itiswhatitis · ‎05-27-2016

@newjersey wrote:
I have a living room console tv that still works. I bought it in 1995. It's an RCA.

@newjersey you won't ever get that quality again. However if your tube were to ever die out on your, I doubt there is anyone who could even fix it.

*Call Tyrone*

Tinkrbl44 · ‎08-23-2010

@Q4u wrote:
Oh this is a subject matter that has bothered me for years. If you can get ahold of a book written (I think) in the 60's called "The Waste Makers" by Vance Packard, it is a very well done book detailing this. Yes, items are built to only last a few years.

We bought a suite of furniture years ago and in doing so met the owner of the (well known) furniture store. We were impressed with how well his furniture was built and the warranty. Talking with him, it turns out he used to work for another very well known furniture store as one of their National Upper Management. He said he attended a meeting where they were discussing what to do about the life of their product. At the time, their product lasted about 20 years and they felt they needed the public to come back into their store and buy more furniture but it was lasting too long! They decided to downgrade their product to last 7 to 10 years! And they did that! And that was the reason this man quit and started his own furniture company.

And yes, it is all about the profit margins.... greed... and it's well planned!.

@Q4u

Well, you may not like it, but the purpose of ANY business is to make a profit. Repeat business is the name of the game. Of course, "normal" wear and tear is going to vary from home to home.

Since you think furniture manufacturers are evil and greedy, what's YOUR suggestion for how this industry can improve sales? Charge more money? Wouldn't that (in many cases) be pricing themselves out of the market? What's the answer?

SharkE · ‎08-19-2010

probably 5-10 yrs.

glb613 · ‎03-09-2010

Most TVs are good for so many hours of use. So, if you have the TV on for 18 hours a day 7 days a week, it won't last as long as one not used as much.

Q4u · ‎03-17-2010

@Tinkrbl44 wrote:
@Q4u wrote:
Oh this is a subject matter that has bothered me for years. If you can get ahold of a book written (I think) in the 60's called "The Waste Makers" by Vance Packard, it is a very well done book detailing this. Yes, items are built to only last a few years.

We bought a suite of furniture years ago and in doing so met the owner of the (well known) furniture store. We were impressed with how well his furniture was built and the warranty. Talking with him, it turns out he used to work for another very well known furniture store as one of their National Upper Management. He said he attended a meeting where they were discussing what to do about the life of their product. At the time, their product lasted about 20 years and they felt they needed the public to come back into their store and buy more furniture but it was lasting too long! They decided to downgrade their product to last 7 to 10 years! And they did that! And that was the reason this man quit and started his own furniture company.

And yes, it is all about the profit margins.... greed... and it's well planned!.
@Q4u

Well, you may not like it, but the purpose of ANY business is to make a profit. Repeat business is the name of the game. Of course, "normal" wear and tear is going to vary from home to home.

Since you think furniture manufacturers are evil and greedy, what's YOUR suggestion for how this industry can improve sales? Charge more money? Wouldn't that (in many cases) be pricing themselves out of the market? What's the answer?

Boy that's an aggressive post.... why? Own a furniture store?

Yes, totally agree that profit is the name of the game for any business, AND "profit" is not a dirty word.

However, to "game" the system by dumbing down the product so it wears faster in order to sell more rather than developing a sales approach that honestly gets out there and sells more of a product because it is the best product out there.... is cheating the public. The public doesn't know this is going on.... they only know that their couch has fallen apart and their recliner is dropping nuts and bolts to the carpet and it's only 7 years old.

I'm not talking about repeat business. I agree again, repeat business is the stalwart goal of any business. But to get the public in to buy more of your product by making your product inferior (lasting 7 years instead of 15) is morally wrong. They may get some repeat business... but once the public starts finding out about the dirty tricks to cheapen the product, the customers go elsewhere!

Since you think furniture manufacturers are evil and greedy, what's YOUR suggestion for how this industry can improve sales? Charge more money? Wouldn't that (in many cases) be pricing themselves out of the market? What's the answer?

I never said they were evil.... just greedy. You improve sales with excellent marketing and by having a better product. You encourage customer sales with a product that lasts. You charge a price with a reasonable profit and customers will seek you out.

If customers know they are getting a fabric that will not stretch out or split at the seams, cushions with a decent foam and engineered so they don't sag, and the frame is built well.... they will come. The answer is an honest product from an honest company. I've found such a company and am planning a sofa and chair purchase in the next year or so...!

*~"Never eat more than you can lift......" Miss Piggy~*

hckynut · ‎03-10-2010

@itiswhatitis wrote:
Most of us have some sort of electronic gadget (I guess). If we did not, I don't think we could communicate here.

How long do you think these items (recorders, tv's, radios, video games, etc.,) should last? I was talking to a neighbor who was telling me her woes about a flat screen tv she bought about a year going blank. I shared similar frustration with her, though my experience didn't deliver a blank screen. It just shut off when it wanted to and I couldn't turn it on until it was ready to do so. Yes, I put up with that for a while. She was trying to figure if she should have it repaired or if it was worth dumping it. It is out of warranty now, and this her dilemma.

Is planned obsolescence a good thing for consumers in the long run, or is it just old fashioned greed?

@itiswhatitis

Too many variables, starting with brands/models/hours of use, and of course, "abuse", whether through negligence or otherwise.

All electronics in this era are using much different components than decades of the past. Part of this is a good thing, and part of it, not so much. "Planned obsolescence"? As an electronic geek, I don't see that as even being possible, much less something any manufacturing company would want to see on "their brand's reliability and dependability", as viewed by consumers.

I've on tons of electronics, many most "normal" people didn't even know existed. An estimate for me would be that 95 to 100% of them were both reliable and dependable, and also lived up to the hype of their era.

Some electronics, as far as repair or replace, to me is very similar to motor vehicles, just not as expensive. At some point with an older vehicle, most people wonder, "I am putting bad money after bad money into this vehicle"? Would I be money wise to use that money to buy a new, or newer vehicle?

There is no "pat" answer to your question. I personally buy brand names in electronics that I have known and/or owned for years, many for decades. I have many electronic audio devices, still working with all the same functions as when new, and a couple of them I bought in the 1970's.

This is my opinion based on my decades of owning many brands/models, and following the world of electronics since the mid 1950's. My opinion is what I base all of my purchases of any electronic before I put down my money.

hckynut(john)