Vizio Flat Screens?

Any feedback on these? I'm looking at the 1080p/120hz flat screen LCD to put in the bedroom but would rather not waste my money... anyone here have one that can shed some light?

thanks!

http://img408.imageshack.us/img408/1295/img0609j.jpg

Sorry about the glare with the flash. Picture from the ad for my 360 on CL. It's a 5 year old 26" vizio. 720p with the 360, but it's a 1080i tv. I don't have the box or anything so I don't remember the refresh rate or anything. I like it. I have heard mixed reviews tho, since it's WalMarts brand. Only thing on mine is the coax cable input is loose so if you move it too much, the picture gets all staticy.

I have two of them and could not be happier unless I bought American-made. We have a Vizio VA26L 26" LCD 720p in the bedroom and a Vizio VX37L HDTV10A 37" LCD 1080i in the living room. Both work great and we really enjoy the absence of glare. Both have multiple HDMI connects for cable and ATVs, RGB connects for monitor use on the Mac Mini, and the older S-Video/Component/RCA connects for our older VCR/DVD/Gaming boxes (when needed). For the price they really are a great buy. They are two electronic items that I have no complaints with.

I'm sure A/V snobs will say they suck for some technical reason or another. I really am not that into watching television professionally so keep that in mind. They both look killer compared from the 32" Sony Trinitrons we had before these.

All the Vizio's that I have seen are first rate. My friend has one of the older 42" 1080i Vizio's and loves it. Been working great for 4+ years now. Not one issue.

I've never owned one, but I know they get good reviews, especially for the price.

Vizio is a privately owned company, primarily Taiwan investors; not owned by Walmart.

They had what I would call some major issues with their plasmas in the early years and I'm pretty sure they totally got out of the plasma market.

At the price point, they make a fine TV. However, they are one of the brands I call "throw away" TVs. Others include Polaroid and Westinghouse. They are termed "throw away" because they do not produce parts to repair their product. If they fail after the warranty period, you are just out of luck. You will throw it away and get a new one.

I am not a fan of extended warranties. But with these brands, I do recomend it. You can quite often get one of these brands with extended warranty for several hundred dollars less than the name brands.

Several friends have Vizios and I have no problem recommending this brand for those on a tight budget and for those whose TV is not one of the focal points of their home lives.

Personally, they'd get my money a long time before Samsung ever sees another penny from my pocket.

bobtomay said:

Personally, they'd get my money a long time before Samsung ever sees another penny from my pocket.

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OK, you can't just step away from a post leaving a sentence like that There's a story there that I have to hear.

cwa107 said:

OK, you can't just step away from a post leaving a sentence like that There's a story there that I have to hear.

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I have a story about their customer service, as does anyone that has had the misfortune of having to deal with them. They are the worst in the electronics industry, bar none. My story went on for over 6 months with a broken $1,000+ piece of equipment. I've read too many other stories since of folks waiting 2-4 months and longer for warranty issues to be taken care of.

There are plenty of brand names that I don't really look at. But Samsung added themselves to my list which includes Brake-O and Alvin Lee as the only ones I've banned from ever receiving any of my money again.

bobtomay said:

Personally, they'd get my money a long time before Samsung ever sees another penny from my pocket.

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The more I hear about other folks problems with Samsung (and my own 52" Samsung plasma problems)...the more & more I agree!

I had to laugh (and probably agree) when you included Polaroid & Westinghouse in your "throw-away" brands list! Those are two "old" brands that used to have great reputations...but reps. that have definitely taken a beating as their products have slipped in quality & innovation.

- Nick

bobtomay said:

I have a story about their customer service, as does anyone that has had the misfortune of having to deal with them. They are the worst in the electronics industry, bar none. My story went on for over 6 months with a broken $1,000+ piece of equipment. I've read too many other stories since of folks waiting 2-4 months and longer for warranty issues to be taken care of.

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Duly noted. Thanks!

I was seriously considering a Samsung when I was shopping for my current TV (Sharp Aquos). Glad I didn't make that mistake.

cwa107 said:

Duly noted. Thanks!

I was seriously considering a Samsung when I was shopping for my current TV (Sharp Aquos). Glad I didn't make that mistake.

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Regarding my comments above. Maybe Samsung LCD TV's are fine (don't have experience with them)...but my 52" Samsung plasma really stinks (as I mentioned in a December thread)...regarding "image ghosting"/"image retention".

- Nick

pigoo3 said:

Polaroid & Westinghouse in your "throw-away" brands list! Those are two "old" brands that used to have great reputations...but reps.

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Polaroid and Westinghouse make some of the worst TVs.

I don't have a problem with with Vizio, but they do have their problems. Vizio doesn't normally get voted for their quality, but more for their value. The only problem with that is that their prices have stayed relatively the same, while the industry's have had room to drop, putting them at about the same price. So, why get a Vizio, when you can sometimes find a better brand? I'm talking about real tv's, not ones that are small enough to be considered a computer monitor. If you want great quality from Vizio, one that is accompanied by equally great consumer reviews, you have to get a pricier Vizio. When it comes to the living room, I would rather spend a bit more money to get the best I could get. I would leave the second rate stuff for rec/bedrooms. With that said, the only 4 brands I seriously look at are Toshiba, Panasonic, LG, and Sharp. With the other brands, it seems like even though they have equally as great of a product, your luck with their problems seems to come at the flip of a coin. LCD/Plasma tv's are becoming so problematic that a review of 3/5 stars means that the tv is good. That's CRAP!

If you check LCD reviews(for quality, not reliability) for tvs 50"-55" and up, the best ones are LG, Panasonic, Samsung, and Sony.
42" - 49" = LG, Panasonic, Toshiba, Vizio, Samsung, Sony.
32"-37" = Panasonic, Toshiba, LG, Sony
Again, those are for initial testing for quality of what you're viewing.
For reliability, it's almost a luck of the draw. All brands have their problems, though some are plagued with them. I'll stick with Panasonic/Toshiba/LG/Sharp...they seem to be amongst the most reliable.

FWIW, I've had my Samsung LED TV now for almost a year and I love it. Works great.

schweb said:

FWIW, I've had my Samsung LED TV now for almost a year and I love it. Works great.

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There's no question Samsung makes some fine electronics.
Just pray you never have to call their support.

I would not disagree with idrinor's assessment.
While Mitsubishi has it's problems same as everyone else, I would add them to the list for those interested in one of those 60-80" rear projection units. They do have pretty good customer service. (I have never owned one myself.)

Couple of the other throw away brands would be Olevia & Insignia.

Geesh, I get dinged for saying it's Walmart brand. Sorry. My e-rep hurts too

What I meant is they are sold predominately at Walmart and its associates (Sams club in particular). If you ask the majority of people, they know Walmart for its Vizio TV's. Therefore it is common practice to associate Walmart with Vizio. Yes, I know online retailers have them and some Target stores do. But every single Walmart across the country has them.

Someone gave you negative rep for saying they are Walmart brand? That's just wrong.

I have a vizio plasma. They are indeed no longer making plasmas, and it's probably for the best.

I believe the only companies still making plasmas are LG, Panasonic, and Samsung. Perfectly happy with my samsung plasma, however.

The vizio: here's my take. For the price, the quality is top notch for the price on my particular t.v. It's not the best I've ever seen, in fact my samsung is my jewel. However, at the price point, the quality couldn't be beat.

That being said, it uses an LG panel (not sure if they do this for their LCD line), and suffers from terrible IR, and a recall was never issued on this. That won't be an issue with LCD, but it should be a warning that there could be some issues with any "throw-away" brand, and it may not be resolved.

In general, I don't recommend "throw-away" brands for the centerpiece of your living room or theater room, however, for a bedroom or pool room or something like that, they are a perfect budget-conscious solution.

s2odin said:

Geesh, I get dinged for saying it's Walmart brand. Sorry. My e-rep hurts too

What I meant is they are sold predominately at Walmart and its associates (Sams club in particular). If you ask the majority of people, they know Walmart for its Vizio TV's. Therefore it is common practice to associate Walmart with Vizio. Yes, I know online retailers have them and some Target stores do. But every single Walmart across the country has them.

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I think the other big place for Vizio is at Costco...they've had them there forever.

bobtomay said:

There's no question Samsung makes some fine electronics.
Just pray you never have to call their support.

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Yeah, I can totally get that. I'm keeping my fingers crossed, so far so good though!