Ouch! cracked Plasma TV front glass

[Tony Hwang]

Hi, Any one experienced this? Accident occurred(falling object off the wall) hit the glass and cracked it making spider web. Picture is still normal. When I called two TV repair shops I was told, not worth the trouble replacing the glass panel. I can claim on my house insurance(never claimed anything) SWMBO says, buy a bigger new TV. This is 58in. Panasonic set a few years old. What should I do I am wondering. For new one I am leaning to LED one this time. Less power consumption, whole lot lighter than Plasma set. Any opinions/advices? TIA

[Metspitzer]

I went with a Plasma because it is better at viewing from the side. If your old one is 58, I am guessing you have a large viewing area.

Power usage for Plasma could be a much as 5 times the cost. Even more if you crank up the eye candy settings.

[krw]

Replace. Another plasma.

[Dean Hoffman]

Bunch of stuff here: >

[Pete C.]

It's Panasonic, parent company matsuSHITa, if it's more than a week old they don't want to know about it. I once had to harass matsuSHITa techs in NJ for two weeks to get some docs on a 3 year old OEM monitor. Ditch it and get something Korean, LG or Samsung. Both are good, I'm fond of LG.

[krw]

No, the name of the corporation is Panasonic. Matsushita is no longer.

A lie. I have two Panasonics (both 42"), one is five years old. At three years, they replaced the power supply, on their dime, including labor for the tech to drive 100miles (round trip). The warranty was one year, yet they covered it with little fuss. When I wanted another set, there was no question that it was going to be a Panasonic.

Since you don't even know the name of the company, or who the "techs" worked for, the rest of your story is doubtful.

[Ed Pawlowski]

Plasma is good if you watch mostly in darkened settings. It has high reflectivity and will show the glare of lights in the room and sun coming in windows.

LED and LCD fare best in brighter conditions. Use much less energy too.

As for brands, I have one LG and three Samsung and I'd not hesitate to buy either brand again.

Want to save sales tax?

I've bought a couple of items from them. Fast delivery, free shipping on most items.

[Metspitzer]

I don't know about LG TVs but I have a 27 inch 400 buck LG monitor. I also have a 20ish 100 buck Acer monitor. The Acer has clearer text than the LG. I would not get another LG monitor.

[krw]

I disagree. I find plasmas are much brighter and are viewable in a wider range of conditions.

[clare]

If it is the smooth front Panasonic it is a second glass screen and you can just remove the broken glass and keep using the TV. That extra glass front sure protects the actual plasma screen!!!. Might not be hard to put a new glass or plexi sheet on yourself either - have not looked closely at mine to see what would be involved.

[clare]

The good panasonic stuff is still about as good as it gets - but more expensive than the equivalent LG or Sammy. Gotta love a company who's name is "Lucky Goldstar"

[clare]

We have the smooth front Panosonic Plasma in our living room - large bow window on the side wall, and absolutely NO glare issues. Much better than the old Sanyo CRT it replaced.

[gregz]

I don't buy shiny front tvs or monitors. I never cared for the plasma look. Too artificial looking. I bought a cheap coby currently. It looses contrast quickly from the side. I can feel the heat from hot screens as I walk past them at dealers. Most recommend better names as far as fixing goes. At least I can adjust the custom color controls on my coby to get good color fidelity without bloated over saturated garbage, what might look impressive in the showroom, but anything but natural. oh, it takes a while after you turn it on for the controls to work, but it always turns on !!

Greg

[Doug]

I tend to agree with new LED. Heck I only have a 40" LCD with HD programming and I love it. Personally I will only consider Samsung tv's.

[Tony Hwang]

Hmmm, Any one has Sharp LED one?

[brahimdd68]

[harryagain]

Panasonic. I have had lots of trouble with faulty remotes. (Two in two yars) And they were VERY unhelpful. Accused me of spilling wine on it. (Never have wine in the house)

[bob haller]

first as to homeowners insurance......

whats your deductible? if its 5500 bucks you will still be out 500 bucks, and making a claim on your insurane may cost you big time in higher rates. plus the price of big screen tvs have dropped a lot, from costs 3 years ago..

your replacement tv might not cost much more than the deductible.

personally i like the look and less power consumed by LED tvs.

go to say wall mart and some other stores and draw your own conclusions.

[bob haller]

obvious typo 500 buck deductible

[Ed Pawlowski]

Wow, I have a $200 LG monitor and it is sharper than any in my house or at work. I'd definitely buy another LG. I like my LG TV also, but Samsung is at least equal. My wife's Samsung monitor is not as good as my LG.

I have to wonder with any brand if they have improved or cheapened them based on the differences of our experience. My LG monitor is about 5 years old.