How long can or will an LCD TV really last? bulb? Ext. warranty? long

Just how long can an HDTV LCD flat panel TV last? Forget about technology
for now, just the TV life.

Please bear with me here...

I've had an NEC 2610 CRT that was top of the line when it came out (mid
1980's I think, '82 or '86 rings a bell...) screen went black, took it in
for free lifetime sservice from where I bought it, and they reheated some
solder joints and costed me nothing. I had a similar problem about 2 yrs
ago... had back problems so never took it in for free repair this time, (2nd
floor bedroom) I instead put up with a 5" color TV on the nightstand next to
the bed for nearly 2 yrs--good enough for me. Still have the NEC.

Bought a bedroom set that came with a free 27" stereo JVC and am using that
now, probably expensive when it came out and had 0 problems with it, but
looking to get a Toshiba 42HL196 LCD HD. Ironically, my 80yr old mom's
Toshiba 19" died after 15-20 years and she's using the 5" now! So will pass
the 27" on to her.

Will LCD's last as long? I am looking for something that will last me 10
years or so. I know technology will pass it by but am not concerned with
that, moreso reliability or longevity.

Has anybody had any LCD's running long hours that have lasted comparably?
And since bulbs are rated around 60,000 hours, it sounds like these don't
fit my 10 year plan. Based on hrs/day, if they really lasted as long as
projected, I'd be looking at only 6-7 years. Would something else go wrong
before then?

Because of the size and hassle shipping it for repair, and especially
considering the hours of use per day, I thought about a loooong extended
warranty, thinking that maybe the bulb would go in a few years, or something
else. I know that warranties are tons of profit for sellers, but isn't a
couple-few hundred dollars worth it? I have a laptop that came with a 3yr
warranty and the main board's been replaced 2x, HDD once or twice, etc, and
the 3yrs I renewed for 2 more because of all this (about $3000 in parts
replaced already, so 2 more years at about $100/yr for my only computer is
worth it to me.)

I've seen Mack 3yr ext. warranties as low as $130 or $210 with bulb warranty
(up to 2 replacements) but the warranty actually extends the factory
warranty to 3yrs total on the bulb and 4yrs everything else (is this
correct?) And there are repairtech or repairmaster 5 year warranties without
the bulb warranty for around $150-$175. Are there any opinions on different
brands of extended warranties, details, loopholes, etc?

So, on a $2500 TV that I'd like to keep for 10 years, will it last that
long, would a $150-$200 warranty be wise, and is a bulb warranty wise on an
LCD run about 20hrs per day? How accurate can the mtbf's be? It would be
heavily used, and sometimes in a dusty smokey setting if that would affect
matters.

Any comments greatly appreciated. Thanks.

Purchase the extended service with the product and keep it updated, consider
in home agreement rather than carry in.
Nominal lifetime varies greatly depending on manufacturer and specific
products.
Lamp and ballast failure seem to be common as well as power supply and
occasionally controller circuit assemblies.
Check the manufacturer web sites for specifications and do a "Google" for
the brand and model number you are interested in regarding reports.
Some of the AV forums may give you more insight into querks of particular
makes and models. Common well know names usually have better support and
longer probable lifetime than off brands, FYI.
"Mark" wrote in message
news:[email protected]
Just how long can an HDTV LCD flat panel TV last? Forget about technology
for now, just the TV life.

Please bear with me here...

I've had an NEC 2610 CRT that was top of the line when it came out (mid
1980's I think, '82 or '86 rings a bell...) screen went black, took it in
for free lifetime sservice from where I bought it, and they reheated some
solder joints and costed me nothing. I had a similar problem about 2 yrs
ago... had back problems so never took it in for free repair this time,
(2nd floor bedroom) I instead put up with a 5" color TV on the nightstand
next to the bed for nearly 2 yrs--good enough for me. Still have the NEC.

Bought a bedroom set that came with a free 27" stereo JVC and am using
that now, probably expensive when it came out and had 0 problems with it,
but looking to get a Toshiba 42HL196 LCD HD. Ironically, my 80yr old mom's
Toshiba 19" died after 15-20 years and she's using the 5" now! So will
pass the 27" on to her.

Will LCD's last as long? I am looking for something that will last me 10
years or so. I know technology will pass it by but am not concerned with
that, moreso reliability or longevity.

Has anybody had any LCD's running long hours that have lasted comparably?
And since bulbs are rated around 60,000 hours, it sounds like these don't
fit my 10 year plan. Based on hrs/day, if they really lasted as long as
projected, I'd be looking at only 6-7 years. Would something else go wrong
before then?

Because of the size and hassle shipping it for repair, and especially
considering the hours of use per day, I thought about a loooong extended
warranty, thinking that maybe the bulb would go in a few years, or
something else. I know that warranties are tons of profit for sellers, but
isn't a couple-few hundred dollars worth it? I have a laptop that came
with a 3yr warranty and the main board's been replaced 2x, HDD once or
twice, etc, and the 3yrs I renewed for 2 more because of all this (about
$3000 in parts replaced already, so 2 more years at about $100/yr for my
only computer is worth it to me.)

I've seen Mack 3yr ext. warranties as low as $130 or $210 with bulb
warranty (up to 2 replacements) but the warranty actually extends the
factory warranty to 3yrs total on the bulb and 4yrs everything else (is
this correct?) And there are repairtech or repairmaster 5 year warranties
without the bulb warranty for around $150-$175. Are there any opinions on
different brands of extended warranties, details, loopholes, etc?

So, on a $2500 TV that I'd like to keep for 10 years, will it last that
long, would a $150-$200 warranty be wise, and is a bulb warranty wise on
an LCD run about 20hrs per day? How accurate can the mtbf's be? It would
be heavily used, and sometimes in a dusty smokey setting if that would
affect matters.

Any comments greatly appreciated. Thanks.

Thanks for replying.

The Mack is a 3 year in-home for $130 or $210 with a bulb extended warranty.
Someone said the Mack get added on to the end of the factory warranty, not
sure if true or not. But the mack bulb warranty starts at the day you buy
the TV.

I think a RepairMaster 5 year extended (starts the day you buy the TV pretty
sure) is around $149-$169. These prices are all third party prices, not
from where the TV will be purchased, and must be purchased I think within 30
days of TV purchase for the Mack, and I think maybe anytime before the
factory warranty ends for the RepairMaster.

RepairMaster: "This date of purchase warranty goes into effect from the date
of purchase giving you 5 years parts and labor coverage." and "Extensions
may be purchased on items you bought elsewhere, as long as such items are
still under warranty ." Another ad for RepairMaster says this: "This
extended warranty service plan extends the terms of the manufacturer's
warranty by five years from the date of purchase (DOP)." And:

"There is no limit to the number of repairs that can be performed on the
covered product. The limit of liability is set at the actual cash value of
the appliance in working condition at the time of the claim. ***This holds
true for each claim separately.*** Your service plan becomes effective as of
the date of purchase. The first 90 days of coverage is covered by the
original manufacturers warranty. After that the extended service plan kicks
in."

Not sure why they sound different for RepairMaster.

So if all above is true, it would be a total 4yrs for Mack for $130 vs 5yrs
for RepairMaster for $149-$169.

Now, is the Mack 3yr extended + 3yr [total] bulb for $210 better or worse
than the RepairMaster 5yr at say $165? Is 4 years + 3 years bulb better to
take than a 5 years general (that probably doesn't include the bulb?)

Any opinions on these choices, in regards to a $2000 LCD running 16-20
hours/day?


"Art" wrote in message
. ..
Purchase the extended service with the product and keep it updated,
consider in home agreement rather than carry in.
Nominal lifetime varies greatly depending on manufacturer and specific
products.
Lamp and ballast failure seem to be common as well as power supply and
occasionally controller circuit assemblies.
Check the manufacturer web sites for specifications and do a "Google" for
the brand and model number you are interested in regarding reports.
Some of the AV forums may give you more insight into querks of particular
makes and models. Common well know names usually have better support and
longer probable lifetime than off brands, FYI.
"Mark" wrote in message
news:[email protected]
Just how long can an HDTV LCD flat panel TV last? Forget about technology
for now, just the TV life.

Please bear with me here...

I've had an NEC 2610 CRT that was top of the line when it came out (mid
1980's I think, '82 or '86 rings a bell...) screen went black, took it in
for free lifetime sservice from where I bought it, and they reheated some
solder joints and costed me nothing. I had a similar problem about 2 yrs
ago... had back problems so never took it in for free repair this time,
(2nd floor bedroom) I instead put up with a 5" color TV on the nightstand
next to the bed for nearly 2 yrs--good enough for me. Still have the NEC.

Bought a bedroom set that came with a free 27" stereo JVC and am using
that now, probably expensive when it came out and had 0 problems with it,
but looking to get a Toshiba 42HL196 LCD HD. Ironically, my 80yr old
mom's Toshiba 19" died after 15-20 years and she's using the 5" now! So
will pass the 27" on to her.

Will LCD's last as long? I am looking for something that will last me 10
years or so. I know technology will pass it by but am not concerned with
that, moreso reliability or longevity.

Has anybody had any LCD's running long hours that have lasted comparably?
And since bulbs are rated around 60,000 hours, it sounds like these don't
fit my 10 year plan. Based on hrs/day, if they really lasted as long as
projected, I'd be looking at only 6-7 years. Would something else go
wrong before then?

Because of the size and hassle shipping it for repair, and especially
considering the hours of use per day, I thought about a loooong extended
warranty, thinking that maybe the bulb would go in a few years, or
something else. I know that warranties are tons of profit for sellers,
but isn't a couple-few hundred dollars worth it? I have a laptop that
came with a 3yr warranty and the main board's been replaced 2x, HDD once
or twice, etc, and the 3yrs I renewed for 2 more because of all this
(about $3000 in parts replaced already, so 2 more years at about $100/yr
for my only computer is worth it to me.)

I've seen Mack 3yr ext. warranties as low as $130 or $210 with bulb
warranty (up to 2 replacements) but the warranty actually extends the
factory warranty to 3yrs total on the bulb and 4yrs everything else (is
this correct?) And there are repairtech or repairmaster 5 year warranties
without the bulb warranty for around $150-$175. Are there any opinions on
different brands of extended warranties, details, loopholes, etc?

So, on a $2500 TV that I'd like to keep for 10 years, will it last that
long, would a $150-$200 warranty be wise, and is a bulb warranty wise on
an LCD run about 20hrs per day? How accurate can the mtbf's be? It would
be heavily used, and sometimes in a dusty smokey setting if that would
affect matters.

Any comments greatly appreciated. Thanks.