Best Buy TV Warranty Worth It?

[Johnny Vinyl]

Originally Posted by BTBuck1

whoa whoa whoa....i was just adding on to your reply.

I wasn't trying to punk you out or tell you how to do what you do.

Just giving friendly advice to the other posters.

You need to relax.

You quoted me and the first line of your response read like it was directed at me personally. If it wasn't, then I apologize. I've re-read it and can see (now that you explained it) what your intent was.

Hopefully no harm was done.....

[RazorFromHRSnet]

I worked for years in BestBuy in the Home Theater and Magnolia departments.

The more profitable your sale is the more room there is "to play" with the price... if you just take the TV "naked" dropping the price of the TV won't happen; because they can just save the TV and sell it to the next person who's gonna buy it with a surround system, BD player, installation, and Monster Cables.

Best way to get a good price from them, in my opinion, is:

1. Be a reward zone member
2. come prepared with some printouts from reputable sellers (even though Amazon is not matched it can give you ammo)
3. Put together a package - look at everything you need to buy. Consider the accoustic research brand cables or Rocketfish if you need an HDMI, an extra $10 on cables in best buy over monoprice.com may save you $100 on a TV. If you are looking for a surround sound system, a BD player, etc, buy them then, too. The more you are buying the more room they will have to play. If you are getting delivery service, installation, etc, even better.
4. Pay with a Best Buy credit card - if you can, and take advantage of no interest financing. Even if you have the cash to pay, keep it in the bank earning you 2% and pay it off the month before its due... or just pay it off the first month you get the bill. Either way it makes you a "better customer" therefore more deserving of a deal.

5. After you've gone over all those things ask about a "package deal". IMO my managers and I were always much more willing to work with people on a price after going through that than I was with a guy who'd come in with an Abe's of Maine printout who'd say "No, just get this TV for me and give it to me for this price."

[TVguy86]

I was a tv repair guy and i have seen the bad side of not having an extended warranty all too many times. You will always hear the other side as well. The people who have never had any problem at all with their television.
All but one of the tvs in my house are tvs that someone didnt buy an extended warranty on and decided to buy a new one becasue the repair was 1/2 the price of the tv.
I have a 27 inch lcd that the repair was going to be 450 bucks
I have a 42 inch plasma that the repair was going to be 600 bucks
I also have some tube tvs but they are really not in this particular conversation.
I have stated this in other posts before.
I assume that the 400 dollar warranty is for 4 years.
sooo
400/48 = 8.33. So for 8.33 a month you can have a worry free HDTV for 4 years. Sounds like a deal to me.

In the end will you regret not buying an extended warranty if you dont get it and your tv possibly breaks? Or will you regret more the 400 dollars if you never have a problem.

[gearyt]

my understanding is that you can purchase
the extended warranty cheaper from Sony Direct
no matter where you purchased it..

[My_Two_Cents]

The simple answer: NO, it is not worth it. You can search this forum and find multiple threads discussing this very topic. Today's flat screen TV's have a 2-3% failure rate, and most of those failures fall within the manufacturer's warranty period. You can read-up on this here:

http://www.consumerreports.org/cro/c...eng0712rpt.htm

http://www.eetasia.com/ART_880048791...T_5c94f943.HTM

So, odds are greatly in YOUR favor that you will never need an extended warranty, and don't let anyone try to convince you otherwise (true, some folks will have horror stories, but they are the exception, not the rule). However, some want that piece-of-mind just in case the unlikely might happen, and if you fall into that category then I'd steer you toward anyplace other than BB (or any other B&M store) for getting an extended warranty. The prices they charge are double what you should be paying (unless you can talk them down on the price of the set in exchange for purchasing a warranty). Anyway, if you really want to get a warranty, then read through this thread from AVS:

http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?t=1027267

It will give you several places online where you can get a warranty for a lot less than what BB charges. Good luck in whatever you decide to do.

[T-boner]

Originally Posted by florad

Hello. I'm planning on purchasing a Samsung LED DLP HL67A750 tv. Unfortunately I have most of the money wrapped up in Best Buy gift cards, so I'm stuck buying the tv there. Is it worth the $399.99 price for the extended warranty? Also, has anyone had much luck bartering with management on pricing? At my local store they "claim" they'll only match local pricing. Best I've seen is $1,999 for the set, but I want to get it lower if I can. Thanks!

It's really only worth it if the tv actually breaks

[BTBuck1]

Once again, if it's a DLP and YOU KNOW THE BULB WILL GO AT SOME POINT.

Why not get the protection (WHICH COVERS THE BULB ONCE) and view it as pre-paying for your first bulb replacement + Protect the rest of it for 4 years!


These people who say "Don't buy it" they won't be there for you IF it breaks and definately WHEN the bulb goes.

[Spyder-Dan]

Originally Posted by florad

Hello. I'm planning on purchasing a Samsung LED DLP HL67A750 tv. Unfortunately I have most of the money wrapped up in Best Buy gift cards, so I'm stuck buying the tv there. Is it worth the $399.99 price for the extended warranty? Also, has anyone had much luck bartering with management on pricing? At my local store they "claim" they'll only match local pricing. Best I've seen is $1,999 for the set, but I want to get it lower if I can. Thanks!

If you can afford the extended warranty, I would suggest to buy it. You never know what could happen from one day to the next (example - lightning strike, power-outage, bad circut board, etc) and if anything unforseen were to happen, your tv would be covered. In addition, when I bought my Samsung HDTV (LN55A950) the rep at Best Buy said that after the 4 year coverage was over I could either get store credit in the amout of the price of the purchased warranty or I could re-new my coverage for another four years for half of the original price of what I paid. As far as bartering goes, you just have to be lucky enough to get a "cool" employee to help you out. What I suggest you do is tell the rep that you are thinking of buying a tv in a few days and are not too sure who it is you are going to buy from. That's what I did and the guy that was tending to me discounted $700 from the price of the tv, did not charge me tax (sales event) and gave me free in-home delivery along with 4 free Blu-Rays of my choice and I have 36 months to pay it off with no interest. I hope you have the same luck I did or better. Enjoy your new tv dude.

[runnerbl]

Extended warranties can be put in the same category of insurance (life, medical, auto, etc). We carry these insurances in the event that something unforeseen happens. I have paid in well more on my auto and house insurance than I have had to file claims for. Life insurance...I personally will never benefit from it.....People will argue that warranties are not the same but to me they are....you are paying fee in case something should happen that you will not be out as much money (if any) to cover the misfortune.

[lobo81865]

I never buy warranties on electronics. I do a lot of research, and buy the most reliable brands. I've never had a TV I bought fail me outside the warranty period.

The one exception I would make would be if I had a DLP TV, but I wouldn't touch those with a ten-foot pole because of the bulb problems.

[PanasonicPlasmaMan]

I would never buy any warranty.. Its just the kind of guy I am

[TVguy86]

This is the same arugement just in a different form.

LCD vs Plasma
Ford vs Chevy
McDonalds vs Burger King

Everyone who has an opinion always has the right one for you, and everyone else is wrong.



For the record Burger King wins hands down

[MDJ87]

not sure how much of this is true but I heard somewhere that if you buy the warranty but don't use it for the entire duration then you can get your money back in a store credit. once again i don't know how much of that is true but you might as well ask them

[brett_day]

NO!!...i had to threaten legal action against best buy when they were refusing to replace my tv, even though the warranty states that if they cannot get the replacement part within 60 days they will replace the TV!

Threatened legal action and had the better business bureau involved, 3 months after the 60 day period i finally got my tv replaced! You should not have to go through that crap! they should honor their warranty but they do not!

[RazorFromHRSnet]

Originally Posted by brett_day

NO!!...i had to threaten legal action against best buy when they were refusing to replace my tv, even though the warranty states that if they cannot get the replacement part within 60 days they will replace the TV!

Threatened legal action and had the better business bureau involved, 3 months after the 60 day period i finally got my tv replaced! You should not have to go through that crap! they should honor their warranty but they do not!

YIKES that's a pain in the ass. But if you hadn't bought the warranty at all you wouldn't have had the option for a free TV, or a replacement part that took more than 60 days to arrive. You'd just be on your own.

[Beta Man]

Originally Posted by PanasonicPlasmaMan

I would never buy any warranty.. Its just the kind of guy I am

If you get a projector from them, and the warranty covers one bulb replacement..... it move than pays for itself.

Otherwise I never get the warranties either

[ngkf7]

Originally Posted by Beta Man

If you get a projector from them, and the warranty covers one bulb replacement..... it move than pays for itself.

Otherwise I never get the warranties either

Yeah this is the only reason I got the warranty there. Bulbs are way too expensive.


On another note, I had a warranty with an old LCD monitor 4 years ago or so and when it was about to expire I took it to BB and said the button had fallen off (it actually did, I had it taped on so I could turn my monitor off/on). They called me a week later and said I get a new monitor because they can't replace the plastic button. I was very impressed, not only did I get a bigger and far better monitor, but they gave me store credit for the remaining difference in price from what I paid in July '04 (when LCDs were far more expensive as monitors).

Some people have some nasty stories about warranties, and others are fine. I never got the BB warranty with my Samsung though, and it's treated me very well.

[HeManster03]

i get this question all the time from friends/family/co workers/ and even some customers...should i buy the extended protection? whether its from me at ccity, when i used to work at best buy, or at sears or somewhere on an appliance or the lot. my simple answer is i always do, but they aren't for everyone. some examples...
1. i would never touch a warranty from stores like walmart/kmart because they are extremely deceptive..they are cheap in comparison to other b&m retail stores, but lack the necessary components of having value( you have to pay to ship your product back to the service center and other small things like that, which in my opinion should be part of the warranty)
2. ask to see some literature on the warranty that you are considering. also, go home and pull up the manual on some of the tvs that you are considering from the manufacturers website and look at the warranty disclaimers/troubleshooting list for potetial problems. did you know that NO tv manufacturer will cover power surges/spikes/brown outs or ANY type of screen burn/uneven aging/or any problems that may occur from not using the tv to its full potential? most people don't, but assume that it is covered.
3.if you lose power more than 3-5 times a year, and don't own a power conditioner( not a surge protector, a POWER CONDITIONER) then your pretty much a moron not to have an extended warranty.
4. find out if there are benefits to the warranty. its my understanding with best buys new protections that you can get a calibration included in the price of one of the warrantys, which is a great deal but i can't speak 100% to that since i havent worked there in a while. i can however say that the 3-5 or 2-4 yr cca plans on tvs at ccity get you a coupon book with 20% off a calibration, 10% off harmony remote and hd dvr tivo unit, 15% off a tv mount and/or tv stand/audio rack, 10% off home theather in a box/reciever/speakers, 10% off blu ray disc player( im not sure if ps3 is included in that, but i believe its just for stand alone players) and then 10% off 3 or more monster cable/nexxtech products.if your planning on buying some extras like that anyway, why not spend some money for peace of mind and save some cash on what you were gonna buy anyways?
5. yes i do buy protection on my products, but ive never once bought the longer plan, always the 2/3 yr for me. i can renew it after it expires and save money in the process.

in the end, it comes down to you as a consumer. do i personally, not as a retail employee recommend them? yes. are they for everyone? no. it all depends on your pocket book and if you prefer peace of mind

[mustang-gt-2002]

I'm on my 3rd HDTV from Best Buy in 2 1/2 years. the first 2 where westinghouse a 42" and a 47" piece of crap the first LCD 1080p HDTV's out. now I have a samsung LN46A650 and it's working very good. I payed arownd $200 for the 4 year warranty. tv 1 was $1,500 number 2 was $2,000 and my new one. the 3rd one $1,800 for my samsung. so yes it was worth it for me.

[hamz9561]

I worked selling retail electronics on commission. I would get an extra cash bonus for selling an extended warranty. I know that a lot of people would turn down the ESP (Extended Service Plan), but I usually ended ups lling quite few simply by breaking down the cost factor. I personally tend to buy ESPs if they are offered on major electronics purchases. I don't consider the fact of if it will fail, but when. This is just my $.02....