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Are Cheap LCD And Plasma TVs Worth Buying?

The arguments that no-name producers of the cheapest TVs make almost always revolve around the sense that big names spend the majority of their money on advertising and branding, and not enough money on making their technology any better than the no-names. Whether you buy a TV from a company you've never heard of or you buy a TV from the biggest name in the world, they argue, you're getting the same technology.

Whether or not you believe that the extra money is spent on advertising is irrelevant. Branding is about much more than advertising or TV spots. It's about making sure that your name stands for quality products. Big name brands have to ensure that they sell quality products, otherwise the free market forces them out of business. No-name cheap TV brands don't have any such internal restrictions.

When you buy a cheap plasma or LCD TV, you don't know what you're getting. In general, the practices of these companies are often unethical and involve production in third world countries, often under inhumane conditions. Their cheap LCD TV screens and cheap plasma TV screens don't last as long, aren't as crisp, aren't easily repaired, and don't have good warranty plans.

The colour quality on cheap plasma TVs is often gray and washed out in comparison with brand-name competitors. Furthermore, something known as "burn in" happens to many cheap plasma TV sets. A ghostly image gets burnt into the screen, making it difficult to watch anything else. This happens with most sets, but brand name competitors' plasma TVs last much longer. Finally, the cheaper a cheap plasma TV is, the more electricity it uses. Depending on how high your bills are, you could end up spending more on your cheap plasma television within a year or two than if you had just bought a brand name.

There are a few things to look out for regarding the cheapest LCD TVs. First, the colour black tends to be extremely washed out, which may ruin a TV experience. Second, they don't last as long. Cheap LCD TV screens may look exquisite in the store, but then lose up to 50% or even 75% of their brightness within the first two or three years. Finally, pixel failure is a major complaint in purchasers of cheap LCD televisions. When pixels freeze a certain color - blue, red, green or black - it can be a constant annoyance while you're watching TV!

If your television breaks down, you want to know that the repair people are familiar with your TV's model. The big brands spend their additional money on training repair professionals and maintaining useful customer support desks. This is part of their brand.

If you're considering buying a cheap television set, hopefully these words have convinced you to at least do your research before you make an impulse purchase. There are so many ways that cheap companies can pull the wool over your eyes with the promise of a cheap LCD TV or plasma TV for half the price of the name brands. You won't realize that you made a mistake until it's too late and your cheap television viewing experience starts to deteriorate.