Extended Warranties???

mrbofus
mrbofus Posts: 297
edited January 2010 in Electronics
Greetings,
Just wondering how you all feel about extended warranties on new electronic equipment.
Greg
Sharp Aqous 40" LCD
Onkyo TX SR-507 AVR
Onkyo DX-C390 CD Changer
POLK RTI8 Mains--Cherry
the rest...in process...slowly!!
Post edited by mrbofus on
· Share on FacebookShare on Twitter

Comments

  • tcrossma
    tcrossma Posts: 1,301
    edited January 2010
    I never buy them
    Speakers: Polk LSi15
    Pre: Adcom GFP-750 with HT Bypass
    Amp: Pass Labs X-150
    CD/DVD Player: Classe CDP-10
    Interconnects: MIT Shortgun S3 Pro XLR
    Speaker cables: MIT MH-750 bi-wire
    TT:Micro Seiki DD-35
    Cartridge:Denon DL-160
    Phono Pre:PS Audio GCPH
    · Share on FacebookShare on Twitter
  • shack
    shack Posts: 11,154
    edited January 2010
    A total waste of money. The only thing I ever bought an extended warranty on is my home heating/cooling system and the laptops my kids needed for college (high-end graphic use)...and those both saved me a bundle. Some suggest that it may be worth it on high end TVs...and they may be correct. But I would never purchase one on A/V gear or run of the mill electronics because they are not critical items and can easily be replaced with used gear for less than the cost of the warranty. Most electonics will fail within the warranty period or run for extended periods of time with no issues.
    "Just because you’re offended doesn’t mean you’re right." - Ricky Gervais

    "For those who believe, no proof is necessary. For those who don't believe, no proof is possible." - Stuart Chase

    "Consistency requires you to be as ignorant today as you were a year ago." - Bernard Berenson
    · Share on FacebookShare on Twitter
  • unc2701
    unc2701 Posts: 3,587
    edited January 2010
    Consumer reports had something on this awhile back- the expected value is only positive on them for rear projection DLP/LCD TV's (and maybe projectors?) and the Applecare warranty.

    I'd add that if you're the sort of person that loses/drops phones, they're also worth it there.
    Gallo Ref 3.1 : Bryston 4b SST : Musical fidelity CD Pre : VPI HW-19
    Gallo Ref AV, Frankengallo Ref 3, LC60i : Bryston 9b SST : Meridian 565
    Jordan JX92s : MF X-T100 : Xray v8
    Backburner:Krell KAV-300i
    · Share on FacebookShare on Twitter
  • mrbofus
    mrbofus Posts: 297
    edited January 2010
    shack wrote: »
    A total waste of money. The only thing I ever bought an extended warranty on is my home heating/cooling system and the laptops my kids needed for college (high-end graphic use)...and those both saved me a bundle. Some suggest that it may be worth it on high end TVs...and they may be correct. But I would never purchase one on A/V gear or run of the mill electronics because they are not critical items and can easily be replaced with used gear for less than the cost of the warranty. Most electonics will fail within the warranty period or run for extended periods of time with no issues.

    Thanks Shack,
    thats my thinking as well but it has been a while since I have purchased New electronics so I thought I would throw out the question.
    -Greg
    Sharp Aqous 40" LCD
    Onkyo TX SR-507 AVR
    Onkyo DX-C390 CD Changer
    POLK RTI8 Mains--Cherry
    the rest...in process...slowly!!
    · Share on FacebookShare on Twitter
  • ryanjoachim
    ryanjoachim Posts: 2,046
    edited January 2010
    I never bought them either, and when I was working Electronics at my local Walmart (don't laugh!) I always persuaded customers to not buy them also. An extended warranty for a $200 tv a few years ago was ~$75. This was for tube tv's, which as we all know tended to last anywhere from 5-50 years easily.
    MrNightly wrote: »
    "Dr Dunn admitted that his research could also be interpreted as evidence that women are shallower than men. He said: "Let's face it - there's evidence to support it."
    mystik610 wrote: »
    Best Buy is for people who don't know any better. Magnolia is for people who don't know any better and have more money to spend.
    My System:


    TV: SAMSUNG UN55B7000 55" 1080p LED HDTV
    HTPC: Chromecast w/ Plex Media Server. Media streamed from Media Server.
    · Share on FacebookShare on Twitter
  • DForeman
    DForeman Posts: 468
    edited January 2010
    Many credit cards (if an item is purchased with it) will double the manufacturer's warranty. This feature is usually buried deep within a credit card agreement.
    Parasound P5 Pre
    Marantz AV 7703 Pre/Pro
    Outlaw 7500 Amp
    Marantz SA14s1 SACD/CD
    Rega Planar 2 TT
    Polk Audio Speakers: LSiM 705 Fronts, LC65FX Surround, LSiM 704c
    Oppo BDP-103
    · Share on FacebookShare on Twitter
  • cheddar
    cheddar Posts: 2,390
    edited January 2010
    I guess the basic thinking is that if you expect it to break (low reliability) or if the fix is very expensive, you might consider it. But I've never gotten an extended warranty and with all the money I've saved, I can easily replace even more expensive items if something goes wrong by just buying a new one. The strategy can hurt you early if you get a lemon, but if you refuse them all, eventually you end up saving a lot of money the more electronics you buy (especially useful for many of us on this site with upgraditis).

    That said, I did have to have warranty service on my plasma that failed after only about 30 hours of use. The service guy said that usually components like the power supply will fail early if they're bad. So one thing to think about is not to baby equipment too much in the early part of the included warranty period. I was doing the "200 hour" break-in period where you age the plasma pixels by running a looping set of full screen colors. It certainly pushed the set harder than normal use and may have contributed to the early failure. I would have been much more upset if light use nursed the component along until it was outside the warranty period.
    · Share on FacebookShare on Twitter
  • Knucklehead
    Knucklehead Posts: 3,602
    edited January 2010
    Yep, found out the hard way.......they are B.S.
    Polk Audio Surround Bar 360
    Mirage PS-12
    LG BDP-550
    Motorola HD FIOS DVR
    Panasonic 42" Plasma
    XBOX 360[/SIZE]

    Office stuff

    Allied 395 receiver
    Pioneer CDP PD-M430
    RT8t's & Wharfedale Diamond II's[/SIZE]

    Life is one grand, sweet song, so start the music. ~Ronald Reagan
    · Share on FacebookShare on Twitter
  • danger boy
    danger boy Posts: 15,722
    edited January 2010
    waste of your money.. spend that money instead on cables or media.
    PolkFest 2012, who's going>?
    Vancouver, Canada Sept 30th, 2012 - Madonna concert :cheesygrin:
    · Share on FacebookShare on Twitter
  • mrbofus
    mrbofus Posts: 297
    edited January 2010
    danger boy wrote: »
    waste of your money.. spend that money instead on cables or media.

    Advise well taken.
    Thanks all
    Sharp Aqous 40" LCD
    Onkyo TX SR-507 AVR
    Onkyo DX-C390 CD Changer
    POLK RTI8 Mains--Cherry
    the rest...in process...slowly!!
    · Share on FacebookShare on Twitter
  • anhchungdoan
    anhchungdoan Posts: 760
    edited January 2010
    mrbofus wrote: »
    Greetings,
    Just wondering how you all feel about extended warranties on new electronic equipment.
    Greg

    Just say "No" , period.

    Off the subject, If you know how much those F/I mgrs at auto-dealer earn per " ex-tended warranty" transaction, you will be sick, really sick.

    Those folks @ BB barely make nothing on the warranty. I do feel for them sometimes so if only a few dollars, I let them have it. Otherwise, it's useless.
    · Share on FacebookShare on Twitter