Buy a HDTV from amazon.com?

[uronmy49311]

not sure if this is the right forum or not for this, but i was wondering if anyone here has bought a new HDTV from amazon.com? i'm a little afraid of buying such a big (size and cost wise) item from an online vendor without the comfort of being able to run it back to the store if something is wrong with it or something happens to it within the first 30 days or so...

does anyone have any praise or horror stories i should know to help me make my decision? thanks in advance!

[zaina]

I bought two HDTV online but not from amazon. One from buy.com (42" Samsung plasma) and another from 6ave.com (46" Panasonic plasma). Both were safely delivered.

They were shipped by special carrier, not the regular UPS or Fedex. I’m sure these carriers are trained how to handle delicate items. When I got mine, they called me twice. A few hours before the driver called and asked if I will be available at home to accept the tv (he gave time frame). Then he called me again few minutes before arriving. They use a big truck (was 26 feet or bigger.)

You will get similar service when you order heavy household items from local stores such as refrigerator, washing machine/dryer etc.

[coolcolors]

[QUOTE=uronmy49311;2147711]not sure if this is the right forum or not for this, but i was wondering if anyone here has bought a new HDTV from amazon.com? i’m a little afraid of buying such a big (size and cost wise) item from an online vendor without the comfort of being able to run it back to the store if something is wrong with it or something happens to it within the first 30 days or so…

does anyone have any praise or horror stories i should know to help me make my decision? thanks in advance![/QUOTE]

Here something go to you local electroics store Best Buy or Walmart if possible and look at their HDtv and play with them and test them out and then go to Amazon and see if those match what your looking for. It’s always best to test in real life before buying cause just cause it looks good on paper doesn’t mean in the living room it will be good. Lighting in living room or entertainment does play a factor in how the LCD will look and display. So go do a real life test before buying a HDtv or Plasma tv…I think I read this in a pc magazine…

[Mr_Grits]

I purchased a Toshiba 72" HDTV from www.onecall.com (no affiliation)
with White Glove Service (delivery and setup). Arrived within two days and was contacted the same day by the vendor to verify arrival and satisfaction. Flawless transaction. The price dropped 1 week later and they credited me with the price difference without me even calling. I saved approximately $900 on the transaction and didn’t have to deal with the clueless local dealer.

[coolcolors]

My statement from above says for one to test the unit themselves not let the sale rep do it for you cause they want to sell and aren’t the best at telling you what your looking for. Best advice is if they have a similiar unit is test out it’s function and menu that will give you a better understanding of what you want and don’t want. There nothing with going and testing the HDtv in person it gives you more experinces what to look for and not to look for.

[bigmike7]

Yo-

After you have compared units at Circuit City or Best Buy - it may make perfectly good sense to buy online - be very careful with types of extended warranties - GE has one of the best ones out there for extended in-home service - and can be shopped for independently from the dealer that sold the unit (most folks don’t know that)-

Also - look carefully for reflections from the screen or the screen trim - it can be a real distraction - and if discovered after purchase - a real downer-eh!!

[uronmy49311]

i’ve compared already… i know which tv i want… i’m just not convinced its worth the risk of buying online… are there any horror stories i should know about out there? thanks

as far as that GE warranty… is that for ALL brands? seems wierd

[lakedude]

I’ve purchased 50" plasma monitors from Newegg and Buy.com with good luck. I’ve used Amazon for many things (but not a TV) and also had good luck.

Back when I bought mine places like Wal-Mart did not sell anything as nice as what I bought so I had little choice but to buy online.

Now Wal-Mart and BestBuy have some really nice stuff at reasonable prices so the incentive to buy online is not as great.

[coolcolors]

[QUOTE=uronmy49311;2149059]i’ve compared already… i know which tv i want… i’m just not convinced its worth the risk of buying online… are there any horror stories i should know about out there? thanks

as far as that GE warranty… is that for ALL brands? seems wierd[/QUOTE]

Well looks like you been doing your research and decided on what you want and where to buy. As in the end the choice where to buy or online purchase is left up to you in the end the buyer. If you decide to go online buying go with a reputable online service like newegg or amazon. Also Walmart, BestBuy also have online purchase as well. I think most electronics is 1 year unless you buy extended warranty but be suspicious of those as you should make sure to read carefully what they really cover and not get scammed. Horror stories only come from buying those one night suppliers.

[uronmy49311]

[QUOTE=coolcolors;2149502]Well looks like you been doing your research and decided on what you want and where to buy. As in the end the choice where to buy or online purchase is left up to you in the end the buyer. If you decide to go online buying go with a reputable online service like newegg or amazon. Also Walmart, BestBuy also have online purchase as well. I think most electronics is 1 year unless you buy extended warranty but be suspicious of those as you should make sure to read carefully what they really cover and not get scammed. Horror stories only come from buying those one night suppliers.[/QUOTE]

“one night suppliers”? what does that mean exactly? and what should i look for as far as extended warranty goes… i’m definitely buying at least a 3 year extension on the warranty. I noticed amazon offers a samsung warranty, but what would the difference be from that compared to one from Best Buy or Frys, or even target for that matter? i noticed their 3 year extension is only like $70 more which seems pretty sketchy… Thanks again