im wondering if you you add warranty or not when buying your gear for home theatre.

if so what motivates you to add it on ?

if not why not?

NOTE:please vote .... would be nice to get a good amount of votes/opinions.

5 years on Pioneer TV and extra year via CC on top of Ht gear warranties.

Always whenever there's an option for it. My track record is that I always end up regretting it later.

If you're buying a 2000$ television set, always get at least a 3 year, if not a 5, nowadays they seem very likely to break so you get a new model anyhow.

My next TV I intend to get a full 5 year on, even if it costs me a few hundred extra, it's worth it.

Scott L writes...

My next TV I intend to get a full 5 year on, even if it costs me a few hundred extra, it's worth it.

Indeed. I miss the good ol' days when electronics seemed to last a lot longer and we didn't expect them to fail within a short period of time. My gf's good ol' CRT TV just died recently after 20+ years of use.

Everything i've ever bought has the maximum allowed warranty :-)

Puffy!

I bought some powerboard, about $120 with all the you beaut surge protection stuff...apparantly if something blows up from a surge, they will cover $100,000 worth of equipment. I guess that's a pretty good warranty.

Yes I know it wont cover general faults of the equipment but power surge related problems cause their fair share of equipment faults.

schism78 writes...

they will cover $100,000 worth of equipment.

question is will they pay if it happens? does anyone know if these are worth it?

Well on the packaging it says if it can be proved that your equipment was plugged into the powerboard and a surge screws it up, they pay up.

But yeah, never heard of it happening before or if people get paid out...maybe I wasted my money lol The one I got you can also run your antenna through. As they say, probably have more chance of being hit by lightning...

Conspiracy:Theory writes...

My gf's good ol' CRT TV just died recently after 20+ years of use.

How good were the old CRT's... we're still using a 68cm Sony (days before inchs were used LOL) as a bedroom TV. It was bought in 1990, and only had 1 minor repair. Still going strong!

Konazz writes...

How good were the old CRT's... we're still using a 68cm Sony (days before inchs were used LOL) as a bedroom TV. It was bought in 1990, and only had 1 minor repair. Still going strong!

slightly off topic but anyhoo...

a mate of mines parents still have some ancient tv, the sort of one where you have to push the buttons on the tv itself (no remote) and there is an audible 'click' when it changes channels.

last time i went there i noticed a digital set top box sitting on top.

'Why do you have that?' i asked them, 'with your tv you wont get HD channels or anything...'

my mates old man (who wont admit to not knowing anything about technology) turns around and says 'No way! just look at it! The reception is alot better than it was!'

makes me laugh even now.

I would only consider an extended warranty for the purchase of a LCD or Plasma screen.
For everything else I believe it is not worth the extra expense.
I currently have:
1st Amp - 15 yr old, had one fault while still under manufacturer warranty.
2nd Amp - 11 yr old, purchased 2nd hand
TV - 13 yr old
CD player - 12 yr old
DVD player - 1.5 yr old
Speakers - 13 & 8 yr old
Subwoofer - 12 yr old purchased 2nd hand
Tuner - 16 yr old purchased 2nd hand
Turntable - 20+ yr old purchased 2nd hand and finally in need of repair

Ask anyone that has worked in shops that sell these products, extended warranties use to be one of their best ways of getting extra money out the customer as previously not that many were claimed against. I think that may have changed a lot lately especially with LCD and Plasma screens.

I don't worry about expensive surge protectors with equipment warranty, as others have said they will usually find a way to get out of paying.

I have all my PC and Hi-Fi/ Home Theatre equipment plugged into one of these. www.oo.com.au/Power_Surg...-__P4432C760.cfm still provides some protection without costing to much. (I just bought another 3 when they had free shipping)

SnakeByte writes...

I have all my PC and Hi-Fi/ Home Theatre equipment plugged into one of these. www.oo.com.au/Power_Surg...-__P4432C760.cfm still provides some protection without costing to much. (I just bought another 3 when they had free shipping)

A better way to protect your self is to purchase an true on line UPS (not a Backup UPS) mine is an APC 1500VA Smart UPS and cost about $ 1200.00 I installed it because I had a surge board that didn't stop a lightning strike to the power pole killing my $ 15,000 Nakamichi, which then cost $ 4000.00 to fix. I was fortunate that time as I put it on house hold insurance as I was able to prove (other items were killed in the process) it was a power issue. I come from a computer background and I always maintain the customers with the least issues with there servers are the ones that install proper on-line UPS'S.

ushi007 writes...

last time i went there i noticed a digital set top box sitting on top.

'Why do you have that?' i asked them, 'with your tv you wont get HD channels or anything...'

my mates old man (who wont admit to not knowing anything about technology) turns around and says 'No way! just look at it! The reception is alot better than it was!'

makes me laugh even now.

Well firstly he would receive the HD channels but they just would'nt be shown in HD resolution. Mind you that if they bought a HD Set-Top box.

And of course a digital signal is going to look better than an analogue one (unless you have some kick ass reception), so the reception and picture quality would be better.

Huntz02 writes...

Well firstly he would receive the HD channels but they just would'nt be shown in HD resolution. Mind you that if they bought a HD Set-Top box.

yep youre right, but i meant 'quality' not channels. damn typo.

he was implying that his new awesome reception was HD.

wow so diaappointed ....180+ views and only 39 votes.

is it that hard to click a choice?

Resindawg writes...

is it that hard to click a choice?

lol yes.

I voted for 'no warranty'. I've had a pretty good run with electrical appliances, so i don't get warranty. If it fails after the warranty period i might cry, but that hasn't happened yet *touch wood*.

I'd only get warranty if i purchase an item which is maybe 3k+, if not, i wouldn't even think of it.

Extended warranty is just a tax on the stupid. Manufacturers warranty and my own insurance is more than enough.

Danny writes...

Extended warranty is just a tax on the stupid.

Wow big call!

calling 2 thirds of all voters who participated "stupid" seems to me to be a little harsh in this disposable world. but then not all of us are as lucky as some!

thanks for your input danny.

You needed an option "it depends on the warranty". Also depends on the cost of the item in question - $500 or $5000?

I bought my Samsung 32" LCD almost 2 years ago ($2K), and it came with a 3 year warranty which I deemed enough (I've actually just made a warranty call about it squealing in standby).

I'm thinking about buying a new Panasonic Plasma 8 series, and apparently they only come with 1 year warranty standard - so I'd probably want extra in that case.

Resindawg writes...

thanks for your input danny.

rofl, classic.

Its true that extended warranties are great earner for the stores. Almost always you can bargain hard with the warranty - my HTIB (sound system) 5 year warranty was $40 cheap imo.

IMO if I spend $5k on a tv and were to use HN interest free period then I would want that warranty to cover the period I was paying it off, so I would get it.

In terms of % failing within x number of years CHOICE has some figures which are pretty interesting.

I got an extended warranty on my TV 3 years ago as it was relatively new technology (DLP RPTV) and I had no idea how reliable it would be. Turns out that they are in fact very reliable and have had zero problems with it.

All my other HT gear has the normal manufacturer's warranty.

hoxygt writes...

In terms of % failing within x number of years CHOICE has some figures which are pretty interesting.

got a link?

ushi007 writes...

yep youre right, but i meant 'quality' not channels. damn typo.

he was implying that his new awesome reception was HD.

or he was implying that his new awesome reception was...well digital?

SnakeByte writes...

I have all my PC and Hi-Fi/ Home Theatre equipment plugged into one of these. www.oo.com.au/Power_Surg...-__P4432C760.cfm still provides some protection without costing to much. (I just bought another 3 when they had free shipping)

Thanks bro for the link, i just bought one as well.

I reckon i have at least $6,000 worth of equipment without any surge protector. I think $36 is wise investment.

Thanks again, what a bargain, so cheap even compared to ebay.:)

Depends on how much I invest in it. For my new LCD TV I did cause I spent over $2.5k on it so I figured I might as well chuck in a bit more to cover any issues that may arise in the future. Spent a couple more hundred to add 4 years on top of the 3 years manufacturer warranty. I'm no TV technician so I prefer the peace of mind.

Resindawg writes...

got a link?

Seems the CHOICE web site is down.

If you read any tv/ lcd/ plasma review they generally have a brand reliability breakdown of how many broke down within 12 months etc etc at the end of the review.

i voted yes but only if the cost of adding extended warranty is not detrimental to the overall price. i generally work it out on if the cost of a replacement/repair is considerably more than the warranty then i'll purchase the warranty. when shopping i'll query warranty costs and factor togethor the overall pricing.

(and a percentage scale comes in there somewhere but i can't think how to type it in :P)

You also need to be careful about the terms of the warranty. Not all warranties will send technicians out to your home - especially for non-metro people. Also READ the documentation - don't believe the salesperson (they do "make mistakes").

For large items in particular, look at the shipping requirements. For example, you may be required to ship it at your own cost in "suitable packaging" and transport method, and this itself can both be an expensive exercise and an escape route for them not to honour it. I know of one case in particular where the transport requirements were such that it was not worth claiming the repair.

What do people think of the extended warranties credit card companies give? I purchased a 46X3100 a couple of weeks ago and I declined the store extended warranty as I receive an extra 2 years when I use my credit card.

I don't know whether I should rely on that or not. Or if I should purchase the Sony extended warranty as I have up to 90 days to do so.

Has anybody ever claimed through a credit card extended warranty?

schism78 writes...

I bought some powerboard, about $120 with all the you beaut surge protection stuff.

most powerboard have a surge protector anyway...

I recently had a 4yr old LG plasma fail and it was covered by a 5 yr warranty.

What I couldn't understand was that they decided to repair the TV despite the costs of the parts that I could see on the internet costing about $700-800, plus labour.

I just assumed they would offer me $$ and write it off but they decided to fix a TV that would be luck to be worth a few hundred (working) second hand and a newer, much improved model could be had for about the same as what they would have paid to repair it.

Alicia writes...

Has anybody ever claimed through a credit card extended warranty?

thats a good question ...i wonder if they would pay up.

~Luke~ writes...

What I couldn't understand was that they decided to repair the TV despite the costs of the parts that I could see on the internet costing about $700-800, plus labour.

If they have the parts sitting around, if they don't use them, they are in effect worth $0.... so until they use up excess parts stock, why scrap your TV?

Bear in mind that it is highly unlikely that people would pay from their own pocket to get a repair, so if they aren't used in a warranty claim, those parts would just end obsolete and scrapped.

Conspiracy:Theory writes...

Indeed. I miss the good ol' days when electronics seemed to last a lot longer and we didn't expect them to fail within a short period of time. My gf's good ol' CRT TV just died recently after 20+ years of use.

My grandmas tv broke this week, 18 years, no issues.

The VCR is still going strong :-P (we have had dozens in that time).