Topic: useful life of plasma / LCD TVs

[redline]

We all know that plasma/LCD TVs have a lifespan of X no. of hours. On paper, these TVs should outlast CRT TVs in terms of longevity. Yet we hear/read a lot of stories of of plasma/LCD TVs conking out in as short as two years. What gives? Is it really worth investing a lot of money on something that will not last 5 years?

[barrister]

You're talking about the old CRTs.  Don't assume that the new CRTs are made the same, because they don't make CRTs the way they used to.  

The new CRTs won't last long either.  I bought a Sharp 14" CRT in 2008.  It developed a buzzing sound in 2009, then it rested in peace in 2011.  They're not even attempting to make a good CRT anymore, since there's just no money to be made.

I bought my first flat panel in 2006, a 42 Panny plasma model 2005 (SRP was P160K; I got it for P130K).  I sold it in 2009 to a realtive, and it still works fine today.  I still see it once in a while when we visit for family occasions.  Still looks the way it did in 2006, no burn, no IR, no problems whatsoever.    

Firstly, I don't call it an "investment."  It's an expense, not an investment.  Secondly, I don't buy high-end stuff, so I never feel I'm spending too much.

Buy a low-end flat panel and you're going to get your money's worth.  Note that those low-end flat panel TVs are not really expensive.  They are in fact so cheap that Sony, Toshiba, Panasonic and Sharp have long been losing money on them.


TV makers see shakeout approaching
Kyodo
Tuesday, Jan. 31, 2012

The halcyon days of Japan's TV makers are long over. Now the business has become a drag on the earnings of the nation's electronics giants.

... "The prices of flat-screen TVs are falling rapidly," an official with a major home electronics store in Tokyo said. "Customers have become choosy because they are comparison shopping."

http://www.japantimes.co.jp/text/nb20120131a2.html

[badbadtz.carlo]

Just like in cars which is second to highest purchase an average person would ever make in his/her lifetime, di rin naman guaranteed it'll last more than 5 years on the average without forking out dough for PMS, replacement parts for wear and tear, and even repairs for parts which break, just like everything else in this world. There are lemons in anything that goes out of the production line, and those who push and abuse their units will most likely be the first ones to break their new toys.

If your an above average Juan who can afford to buy hdtv, don't go crazy buying units which you'll force you to pay for extended periods of time.

The way i see it, it really depends on your capacity to pay whether it's a good buy(investment). you'll be happy rin naman to buy a brand new Vios na you can pay nang magaang than namamatay ka na sa pagbabayad na Camry.

[DonMiguel85]

My old TV was a Samsung LA32R81BX which lasted from April 29, 2008 to May 1, 2012. The T-CON board suddenly gave out which resulted in the image looking like a white film negative. The TV was used an average of 30-40 hours per week.
Parts and labor would have cost over 6K so I opted to just get a new LCD TV. Apparently this was a common problem in many pre-2009 Samsung models.

[Valiente]

I just wish too plasma has long life just like my Panasonic 21" CRT TV whose already a decade old now and still doing fine. Decades life is already a very worthy life for the money paid. My 17" Viewsonic CRT Monitor died at around a decade too. It served 10 years of glorious natural color reproduction that I even made it as my bedroom TV, simply amazing. I've got trust for CRT longevity. Now, I've bought a 17" Philips CRT Monitor as a replacement costs around 2k pesos brand new, hard to find these days, which has an outstanding color reproduction too that can't even be matched by the Panasonic CRT. I am amazed by CRT Monitors for PC because they were able to reproduce lifelike colors that are not produced by CRT TVs. But Sony CRT TVs is close to it. My brother is using a Sony CRT TV.

When my Panasonic CRT TV retires, I will be buying a Panasonic Plasma TV which I will be saving due to its gargantuan price. I bought my Panasonic CRT TV brand new 10 years ago at around 13,000 pesos, but its color reproduction is not amazing. Now, if I could afford the flagship series of Panasonic plasma, around 30-40,000 pesos. It is 4x expensive than my CRT, I just wish that it would last 4 decades too to pay for its amount. One decade can be good already as long as the quality of color reproduction is stunning. Nevertheless, Panasonic CRT TV will never match its quality. CRT TV color has a very unrealistic color, calibration is needed.

As a summary, I have tested CRT has long life, I simply wish it will be the same effect for Plasmas. Goodbye good CRT Tvs, hello Plasma TVs!

[chris69ners]

My Pana 42PV70 is approaching 5 years already! Problem free from day one!

63K pa ang price dati when I bought it around October of 2007. I'm hoping that my Sammy 51D450 will last as long.

[Stagea]

I am amazed by CRT Monitors for PC because they were able to reproduce lifelike colors that are not produced by CRT TVs. But Sony CRT TVs is close to it. My brother is using a Sony CRT TV.

I had dual Diamond Pro CRT Monitors from NEC a decade ago. They produced neutral (almost correct) colors at 2048x1536 each.

The closest CRT TV I've seen is the Sony KD-34XBR960. This TV is stunning when running 1080i, better than the far majority of Plasmas and LCDs in PQ. The only problems being that the screen size is too small, and people didn't like the fat cabinet.

Notice the deep deep blacks in this screenshot. You can't even see the black bars:


Only the Sharp Elite TVs have managed to exceed this, thus far.