ksmith: (gimme a break)
ksmith ([personal profile] ksmith) wrote2009-03-13 08:13 pm
Entry tags:

They know when you have money

But sometimes they don't care whether you do or not.

Houses. Pets. Appliances.

After many false alarms, I think the old TV is well and truly down for the count. It's an oldie, an RCA XL100. According to the sticker in the back, it was made in June 1987.

Power went out sometime this afternoon. I came home to find the TV screen dark. Tried to turn it on and get it to talk to the cable box again. Repeated fail. Called Comcast, who bounced me to RCA tech service. Called them, and learned that I needed the original TV remote in order for them to help me. AFAIK, the original is long gone, and according to the person I spoke with, it is a discontinued item.

Odds are that I will be visiting Best Buy tomorrow.

Currently listening to the Hawks on this curious device called a radio.

[identity profile] dancinghorse.livejournal.com 2009-03-14 02:47 am (UTC)(link)
Sympathies. My TV wheezed and died a few weeks ago. I was too busy to go to town, so ended up ordering from amazon.

Them there newfangled flat screens is teeeeeeeny.

[identity profile] kristine-smith.livejournal.com 2009-03-14 02:56 am (UTC)(link)
They're light, too. I think that even if I get a smaller, cheaper model, I'll wind up with a better picture that I have now.

Make that, "...a better picture than I used to have."

I do not want to spend a lot of money now. This could have waited a few more months.

[identity profile] dancinghorse.livejournal.com 2009-03-14 03:00 am (UTC)(link)
That sums it up. I wish it could have waited another six months.

I got a 22-inch to replace a 25-inch. It's too small for the place where the old TV was. I'm planning to get a cable so I can put it on the other side of the room, tuck the boxes and the stand in a corner, and open up that whole end. It will be like having a new room.

The picture quality is much better, ditto the sound.

[identity profile] kristine-smith.livejournal.com 2009-03-14 08:34 pm (UTC)(link)
I had a 25-inch, and replaced it with a 32-inch. But you only get the full 32-inch experience if you change the view to "Cinema," which cuts off the very top and bottom of the picture. But I still have much better than what I had.

You were right about the size. This set is like a really big LCD monitor, and only weighs 34 pounds. The old console set had a wood cabinet, and I swear weighs over 200 pounds.

The corner looks cleaner and brighter. I didn't like having my hand forced, but the room looks better.

BeastBuy.

[identity profile] elmunadi.livejournal.com 2009-03-14 06:25 am (UTC)(link)
Please don't do BestBuy. You'll likely have better luck and better quality for cheaper at Costco, without the attempted upsell or poor customer service on returns.

Of the non-well-known brands, Vizio is actually quite reasonable. (Of Course, Panasonic is my "go-to", but Samsung, LG, Sony all have good warrantees and good picture.)

Re: BeastBuy.

[identity profile] kristine-smith.livejournal.com 2009-03-14 08:37 pm (UTC)(link)
The nearest Costco is a little distancy for me. But point taken about Best Buy. Last thing I feel like dealing with now is a hard sell.

Video display device

(Anonymous) 2009-03-14 09:43 am (UTC)(link)
Only one television?
How Quaint.
There is the living room TV, the bedroom TV, the office video editing setup, and the new laptop with built in TV tuner and the ham TV set (transmit and receive)
Then there is the broadcast antenna, the cable box, the Dish TV satellite antenna, as well as the six foot dish for radio astronomy that can get TV off the network sat feeds if you have a black box or two.
Rolf

Re: Video display device

[identity profile] kristine-smith.livejournal.com 2009-03-14 08:38 pm (UTC)(link)
Only one television?
How Quaint.


What can I say? I like to go outside once in a while.