Vizio, a maker of low price flat panel LCD and Plasma HDTVs has modified its factory warranty on new Vizio televisions, less than one week after the HD Guru reported how in-warranty repairs by Vizio and other “no name†brands of HDTVs could cost consumers additional dollars, in the form of shipping charges for repairs or replacement. Vizio will now pay the shipping back to its facilities if its 42†and larger HDTVs that can’t be repaired during a single on-site warranty service call.
The HD Guru spoke today (August 2) with a Vizio customer service representative about its policies. The HD Guru was informed that Vizio would make one attempt at the customer’s home to repair a broken Vizio HDTV (30†or larger). If the HDTV is not repaired on the visit, the customer must send the set back to Vizio. If the television is less than 42†the customer still pays the return freight (during the one-year factory warranty), however, its policy has been changed for its sets that are 42†or larger. Now Vizio pays the return freight, if the (42†or larger) HDTV was purchased new (not refurbished), and needs repair within one year of purchase. The customer service rep added its flat panel HDTVs will not be repaired, but will be replaced with a new (not refurbished) unit after being received at Vizio. (Within the warranty period if its other listed conditions are met.).
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The revised added portion of the Vizio warranty now reads (bold added by the HD Guru)
“Service
During the one (1) year warranty period, VIZIO will, at its option and sole discretion, repair or replace defective parts, which may be new or remanufactured, including replacement of the entire unit. Please note that it may be determined that the unit cannot be repaired and must be replaced. In this case, the Customer may be required to ship the product to the service center indicated by VIZIO when the return authorization is provided. For displays forty-two inches (42″) and larger, VIZIO will cover the transportation charges to replace the unit. For displays under forty-two inches (42″), the Customer is responsible for transportation charges to the service center. VIZIO will be responsible for the return transportation charges from the service center to the Customer. VIZIO is not responsible for the de-installation or re-installation of the product.â€Â
All other Vizio (in and out of) warranty policies are unchanged. As stated the July 28th “Your New Disposable Flat Panel HDTV†article, it still costs $1079 for a carton, shipping, parts and labor for an out-of-warranty repair on a 42†Vizio LCD HDTV, just $20 less than a new unit.
Copyright 2007 HD Guru â„¢ All Rights Reserved
I have a Vizio 42″ Plasma over 4yrs. Old…no video but sound and tuner still functions…had a good surge suppressor with…several times early on tv went out completely and would not come on. Decided to unplug for awhile then plug back to see if there was a built-in reset ….everytime it did this I reset tv by doing this and it worked fine….till tonight high humidity maybe?insect?heard a loud arc in tv then no picture but still sound….not even going to bother with tech….going to look at myself….oh yes before anyone decides to open one up remember there is still the potential to be electrocuted even if it’s unplugged(capacitors)…possible 100,000 volts plus….like most I’ll call and write the company about my dissatisfaction …if nothing then ….call retailer…then BBB…then attorney general
Wayne- I have a 4-year old Vizio P42 (apparently I got lucky) that the picture went black all of a sudden. I still have sound, though. Your thoughts?
Is there any comparison of these tvs used with a (surge protected) UPS and used without? As noted by prior posters, these are highly-computerized electronic devices that could be REALLY sensitive to momentary power glitches. Yesterday after owning a 55inch LCD for well less than a month (from Costco) my wife said it had turned itself off; the FIRST thing that crossed my mind was “transient (line) power fail” – we’ve had these over the years where our computer/router UPSes will give a little beep as the power blips (the computers/router, of course, haven’t noticed them due to the UPSes). Anyway, another UPS is in the stars for us just for this tv.
Finally, most of the complaints above are for multiple-year-old devices; has Vizio (perhaps silently) addressed the problem? Costco certainly is selling a lot of Vizio tvs…
Wayne,
Can you fix the main board, y-, and x-boards? If not, then you would have to fix by replacing the complete boards. For my p50hdtv10a, these three parts cost $600 for parts alone, not including labor. Are you serious?
To all I can Fix your Vizo Tv If It’s out of Warrenty. I Repair Vizio Daily and they are some good TV’s. But you really got to understand Warrenty, I here it all the time I just bought this TV!!!!!But I noticed Its really Three Things Can Be Wrong With Your TV. My Online Service will help you fix your television Over the phone for Non warrenty Vizio TV’s ONLY!! Please Email me for more information:maconmoneyinc@aol.com
I guess you do get what you pay for. My Vizio just died today. Totally dead, no light even on the name, no sound, nothing. It is around 3 or 4 but that is still not long enough for the price I paid. Customer Service was like, oh well.
Just to compare service. I have a Maytag Microwave that died one day last summer after a little over 3 years. I knew it was out of warranty but called them hoping they could give me some advice on if it was worth repairing or should I jusr replace (a new comparable model would cost about $350). They offered (I didn’t ask) to cover labor cost even though it was out of warranty. Repair person they sent was awesome. Cost me $26.32 for parts. That is a company I will do business with again! Not Vizio.
Guys I to baught a 50p at sams club about 2 and a half years ago, mt tv has not busted yet but it does turn off after a few minutes of having it on. I find that unplugging resets something and it works for a few hours sometimes. The longer you unplug it for the longer it stays on, I took really great care of my tv, if you saw it you would think its new I don’t understand why this is happening to it but I am concerned that it will go out like the rest of yours. Is my tv going to die is their anything I can do before it does????? Help any one and yes I did get the 1 year extended warranty but its been over 2 years NOW WHAT!
Just to add to the long list, I have had the same issue as many. Bought an L37 and had the “shutting off” Issue a few days after getting it, Vizio repair came out to fix, when he left it would not power on at all…dead.
Took that back to Costco, making the mistake of thinking it was a “one off” issue. replace with the same TV.
Well, 2 years later the 2nd one is doing the same thing..
For the many who post they got their Vizio and its been good for 6 months or a Year. Don’t hope that it will make it 2 or 3 years..Its just a matter of time.
Stay away from Vizio’s. I have a Vizio GV42L I bought in 06-08. In 09-08 sound came on but no picture. I contacted Vizio and they sent a repairman with a new main board. It didn’t fix it so Vizio sent me a new tv. In 12-08 the picture started with the black spot. In January of 09 I couldn’t stand it anymore so I called Vizio again. I had to take pictures and email them. About a week later I hadn’t heard from them so I called back and was told they were sending me another tv. Two weeks ago that tv started flickering, and when I say flickering I mean it is like watching a strobe light. I called Vizio and was told it is out of warranty so there is nothing they can do. When I called the repairman Vizio recommended, they asked for the model and serial number, they came back on the line and said they were sorry it was a bad panel and they don’t repair panels. I want to know how they know it is a bad panel after checking model and serial number??? Sounds like Vizio knew it was bad when it was under warranty and didn’t let me know! I now have an $1100 tv,less than 2 years old, that is trash. I am contacting the BBB and will NEVER buy another Vizio! I too also warn everyone I see not to buy a Vizio.
bought 42″ LCD HDTV 120hz in march. died in may.. 14 months later. I have vertical green lines on all the dark colors and pink fuzz on some light colors. not happy.
I bought an Insignia and within the first year it died. I got an exchange and within 13 months that died also. Nothing to do with caring for it since all of my other electronics have lived forever, or almost.
I bought a P42 from Costco during their March Madness sale in 2006. I noticed probably a year in that it would randomly turn off. It seemed to be sporatic but has gotten worse over time.
It wasn’t hard to find this site, after googling “Vizio 32″ plasma won’t turn on”. :( I have the same sob story as everyone else. I’m going to keep searching and see what else I can do.
Bought a 32 vizio… no need to make up a story. Haven’t tried a tv repair yet! But my tv is 2 yrs old n now died! A mnth prior started turning off n on. N now nothing! No power! But yet my sister who bought same size tv for less money! Still works! No gimics… just pissed off I wasted my money on a piece of freakn crap!! And I bought my stupid tv at walmart!! No proof my ass! I’m looking at my broken proof! Those ppl writing that prolly work for vizio lol
Can Tom give us a part number for this $80 transformer? I’m an engineer and I never heard of such a device that automatically regulates the wild voltage fluctuations.
One more for the list of dead piles of junk. I bought a VX37L in Feb 2008 from Best Buy. Crapped out last month. Only turns on but to a blank screen. no buttons on the panel work nor does the remote. Cant turn it off
Looks like Ill be putting it up on ebay/craigslist for parts. Too bad getting replacement parts is so expensive.
WILL NEVER BUY A VIZIO AGAIN!!!!!! Im writing to the CEO.. those bastards have to hear us out at least!
I repair Vizio hdtvs under a service contract. They are a virtual company in LA. Some of the service manuals say Samsung. Most of the power supplies are built by LG. Everything is outsourced. Hdtvs are disposable. You love the falling prices. After one year, the value of the unit is one half of what you paid for it, and any service call is going to cost that much. Pay for the extra warranty service, or take your chances.
The old tube tvs had a much higher failure rate than the new semiconductor units. The game for vizio, and any other tv manufacturer is to make money on the warranty service, so you should be able to measure the reliability of a unit by the percentage price of an extended 2 year warranty compared to the price of the unit. Go out to Walmart and get some quotes. Pay attention to the details of the service contract. Vizio sells more units than anybody. Happy HDTVing and Good Luck.
OK, here it goes. I bought a 50″ plasma vizio. It lasted over 3 years. I was watching the TV and no pop or anythhing it just died. It was the power board. These problems are the same for most plasma, LCD’s or whatever. The power board should cost no more than $350 (they want the old one returned or otherwise it is $500). The repair visit and installation about $190. Part of the failure in the new flat screens is because of the source. The power fluctuaton from your electric company. Voltage is not the same during the day as it is during the night. Solution: Buy a “transformer” for about $80 and plug it into your electric socket. It will regulate the wild voltage fluctuations. Then plug a power strip into the transformer that has surge protection. Do not chose the Monster strip they are the worst and will short out and cause a major problem (mine did). That is the best you can do for the moment. If you open the back of the Visio you will find all Panasonic and Sony parts. It is American only in name….that is it…all the parts are from the other major manufacturers.
I know this post will sound like a broken record but I too bought a Vizio 50″ plasma TV about 2 1/2 years ago. After shutting itself off, it just popped and the power supply died. No LED or any signs of life. Fuses tested good. No indication of shorts or burns. The only thing that got burned was me.
A lot of these posts on HDguru point out the poor service and warranty on Vizio TVs. I think the bigger story is that Vizio thinks that thinks 3 years is a normal service life for a TV, if your lucky enough to get to 3 years.
My Sony 32″ XBR is still working fine after 30 years of service. IMHO Vizio isn’t even 10% of the company that Sony is, no matter how cheaply they make their products.
i have a vizio 42 inch lcd tv..i need a backlight..can i buy one of these??
Hi, I’m also having problems with my Visio 50″ Plasma. We would turn it on and it had no Video and just Audio, we would leave it on for about 5 minutes, turn it off and back on again and it would be fine. Now there is just Audio, no Video at all. I know we all have been having kind of the same problems but no one has provided a solution besides a “Class Action Suit” & calling a service guy to come out for hundreds of dollars. Can we purchase a “Power Board”, “Signal Tuner”, “Y-Sustain” and fix it ourselves?? Does someone out there know if these are the parts to look into for the above problem, how to change these parts, where to get them and how much they cost so maybe we can get our tv’s working again?
Thanx!
Class action investigation:
Here is a law firm exploring a class action law suit:
http://chimicles.com/case/vizio-televisions
TimothyMathews@chimicles.com
I know nothing about the firm, but I figured it couldn’t hurt to report to them that I have had the same issue a lot of folks have. Might be worth a quick note.
My 32″ plasma was dead at 13 months. I did manage to get Vizio to fix it. The only thing I did was threaten to call the Attorney General in an email, they called the next day and said they’d fix it, which they did. That was about 7 months ago and it’s dying again! Every time I turn it it turns itself off immediately. I feel like I’ve been knocked down and mugged.
Did I mention this just happened (blank screen -wouldn’t turn off – now won’t turn on)and an new episode of LOST is on in an hour? Thanks for NUTHIN Vizio, YOU SUCK!
Add one more Vizio GV47L FHDTV to the list of dead soldiers. 2007-2010. RIP.
THIS IS UNREAL. There has GOT TO BE a class action suit coming!
Bought my Vizio VX37l in the beginning of 2008 (about two years ago) and it is now dead… I turned it off went I went to bed one night, and that was it. It WILL NOT turn on at all. I paid around $900.00 for it, and got it through Circuit City (without an extended warranty.) Boy, was that ever a poor decision… So now I am out a TV, and can’t really afford to get a new one any time soon. Thanks Vizio, you SUCK!
bought our vizio about three or four years ago. about one year later, it started to make a strange noise every now and then. i would turn it off and it was gone. now, three years into owning it and it turns off for no reason at all. i have no quams about it…glad i got three years out of it, but i wont be getting another vizio.
my 42inch vizio craped out on me after 4 years from manufacturing date.I understand your frustration. but when i opened up the back of this vizio tv all the parts inside are made by lg electronics.
wilma and I bought one of these pieces of crap- and it breaks down constantly-
Vizio Plasma 42″ from Walmart – DEAD at 1 year 5 months. No warranty – no return. I feel like such a stool sample!
I had the same problem as all of you with my VIZIO p50. Less than a year and a half no picture, and to repair cost more than buying a new one. I wrote to the company and spoke to them on the phone.The problem is I’m still paying for that piece fo crap. translation of a year warranty. we stand behind our products for a year because we know that it won’t last any longer than that.
I found some names and numbers for anyone thats interested
39 Tesla
Irvine, CA 92618
United States
Founded in 2002
Phone:
949-428-2525
Fax:
949-585-9563
William Wang Founder, Chief Executive Officer and Chief Technology Officer
Kyle Wescoat Chief Financial Officer and Vice President
Rob L. Brinkman Vice President of Operations
Jeff Schindler Vice President of Marketing and Business Operations
Wow! I would read all this crap after buying the Vizio 42inch XVT 240hz at Wal-Mart 3 days ago. Ive read so many good reviews but apparantly I didnt read enough. Luckily Wal-Mart has a 3 month return policy so I’ll just play it by ear for now. I even called Vizio’s warranty department and they said I can get the extended warranty just as long as I do it before the one year warranty they give expires. This is scary stuff man I may just take it back to Wal-Mart and get a Sony or a Samsung.
We have owned a vizio p42 for about 6 years…apparently the older ones seem to last longer. Issue is no video, only audio. Monkeying with on/off switches helps until today, Jan 10, no luck. Vizio support says “it has lasted it’s useful lifetime” and the issue is the TV should always be turned off at the switch, not just via the remote control.
I find the concept of $1500 disposable electronics morally wrong. Reading these posts it seems the newer the sets, the shorter time they last.
Hacks me off.
Jack.
Red – Green pixel problem
I purchased this 47 XVT 120 Hz in January 09. After a few months, in March ‘09, the picture was saturated with red pixels, a little at a time until it got worse. I contacted Vizio; they sent a local authorized service to change the computer board inside. TV worked fine for a few months then the same thing happened again. Vizio sent a brand new set as warranty exchange, which took 10 (too many) days to receive that was in July ’09. In December ‘09, my picture issue appeared again. Suddenly the entire display was saturated with all green pixels instead of red. I took a picture and sent it to Vizio along with my complaint issue; lets see how they handle this after I had two lemons. I do not believe in extra warranty, if a product cannot make it through a few years without problems there is a definite issue. However, problems can happen in mechanical and electronic components. The question is how does the manufacturer handle the issues that are known and come up with a solution finally. I have to say I have another Vizio 42 in XVT that I bought a few month earlier (prior to Jan’09) and I never had one single issue with that. This seems to be a 47 in issue of what I can tell. Please, if you have a problem contact Vizio so they can prove that service is a big part of selling a product. I will keep you posted on the outcome.
Wow, why didn’t I see this page BEFORE I bought my Vizio. I literally just got my 32″ Vizio home from the store today. The sales guy said it would last 10-15 years. This piece of crap didn’t even last 10-15 days. It mysteriously turned off about an hour ago and will not turn back on for anything. At first, I thought it had to be something fairly minor…a cord came off, power supply is no good, etc. I tried multiple outlets and have taken cords off and put them back on with no changes. The yellow light is on the bottom of the screen, so it is not the power. However, the screen remains black.
Luckily, I am well within the timeline for the store’s return policy. Even if the TV turns back on at some point, I do NOT trust this brand and will be happy to pay the difference and upgrade to something more reliable. This is ridiculous….there needs to be a recall or something.
Bought a Vizio VPP332 32″ plasma from Walmart July 08 and it started developing on/off problems for a few months. Died this week and got the Vizio bs treatment. Vizio not going to be around in a few years with this kind of rep building up, and don’t think they care after dealing with them and researching the Vizio Pop of Death on the web.
BTW ticstat-I build my house and have 25 years as an electrical designer for one of the largest electrical contractors in the south. My house is wired with Cat 6, 5e and fiber optic throughout. Personally installed the grounding system with 6 10ft 3/4″ coppering grounding rods. Far above code. Ain’t many houses with a better grounding system around. Did’nt save my Vizio tv….
oh ya forgot to mention its a 42″ plasma
i bought my vizio new on sept 26 08. turned it on last week and there was a line in the screen about 3/4 of the way over. its on all chanels. contacted vizio and the said i didnt buy the extended warenty. so they wont help bought at wal-mart they wont even look at me. payed 750.00 dollars for it new.no one will help running up aginst walls all round. am disabled and live on ssi saved for 2 years to buy tv. store said it would last atleast 10 years. now what? guess they have us right where they want us. contacting atorney general but dont think that will lead to any good
Greetings,
I would suggest that you folks make sure that your antenna port coax is grounded. That your TV antenna is grounded. That your AC power supply is grounded. That you have a decent surge protector between your tv and power source. That you have all appliances ported to your tv properly grounded. It would even make sense to put a wave shaper in line with the more expensive models. FYI a surge protector is worthless if it isn’t plugged into a properly grounded socket. A backup UPS is worthless if it isn’t plugged into a properly grounded socket. I even had a customer that moved into a new house and the house wasn’t properly grounded. Get a socket tester from Lowes for about $5 and check your electrical. With these fragile surface mount circuits every thing must be grounded. This means EVERYTHING!! people! You can’t plug a modern expensive device into a crap electrical supply.
Are there any 37″-40″ LCD or Plasma Tv’s with a CableCard slot made in 2009 models? Which Brand?
Go to ebay buy used psu and replace by self .15 min job
My Vizio 26 inch LCD hdtv won’t turn on anymore. Bought it less than 2 years ago. I don’t think anyone on here is lying if they say their Vizio broke.
most vizio plasmas we made by lg, so you can get the parts(for the most part, smaller sets is a bit harder)
I too have suffered from the pop of death. I bought a Vizio-VU42LF-1080p in the end of June 2007 through Costco. After 28 months(warranty was good for 2 years of course)POP and the TV faded to black forever. Costco could not help me and I know he tried as I could hear him speaking with his mananger. Vizio on the other hand (Thomas – badge # 75924) could not help me either. Even after I kindly told him that I know this is not the first time he has heard this complaint. I told him I got no response from ITI, that I had left 3 messages. HD Repair I spoke with Amad who told me a tech would call when in the area. I told him I would bring it in and he assured me a tech would be by. I’m still waiting I’ll give them to the end of the week. I asked Thomas to tell me what part I would need and that I would have it repaired myself. He refered me to Legacy parts 949-428-2567 & Encompass parts 800-432-8542. Both places were closed but I will try first thing tomorrow morning. I have a TV repair shop right downstairs from my apartment. He has serviced over 40 tv’s in the past for me. He came to my apartment and told me if I can find the paart he would replace it. He said the hardest thing with the Vizio TV’s is to get the right part. We’ll say what happens. I’ll pass on what conclusion I come up with.
Folks, read read read. The problems that you all talk about are pretty much standard for all makes and models. I learned my lesson with an Olevia 37″ in Dec 2005. It went 10 months and died. I got a replacement before warranty expired, and it is still running, but I learned my lesson: LCD Longevity has not been established the way CRT was. Better to buy 4 years of Vizio extended service for $200 than have an expensive paperweight in 13 months. From reading these stories, it is clear that many fail in 6months-3 years. So buy at least 2 years of extra coverage (about $100) for a total of 3 years of coverage and rest easy.
I’ve been through the same horror story as everyone else with Vizio. My 46″ 1080p FHDTV crapped out at 14 months. I called several times as well and the told me they could do nothing for me as I was out of warranty. The picture constantly has that black gradient ghost covering two-thirds of the screen. I’m laid-off almost a year and can’t afford to repair/replace the thing. Typically if I rap on the case a couple times the ghost goes away and the kids can watch it for a couple hours. Been rapping for 6 months now and it isn’t responding to my taps anymore. So being unemployed, frustrated and ripped-off I just lost it, got up and put my fist through the piece of shit. Gonna go drop it on WalMart’s doorstep next.
One thing is for sure, this was a valuable lesson. When I do get back to work I will research the company better as well as the consumer reports!
Good luck to you all.
you are right james. I do apologize, there are some techs via onforce who are very capable techs. My point though, which you agreed on, is vizio is cheap and is unwilling to pay for them.
To fred, yes, you can join onforce without a degree or being certified, but don’t think all techs aren’t qualified with onforce. I for one, have an a+, mcse, 4 year degree in computer system mgt, and several certs in computer/consumer electronic repair. I have been programming and fixing electronics for over 20 years, and I work for onforce occasionally. It is up to the buyer, eg Vizio, to choose the qualifications to do work for them, they happen to not give a @!#$ and will route the order to anyone who is willing to fix a tv for the cheapest price, vizio use to route work-orders for 90 dollars, now, I see them for 50 dollars, not worth the time to me to remove 128 screws, so I have stopped doing work-orders for them. But again, not all techs are unqualified on Http://www.onforce.com, actually, I would say more then 75 percent are certified a+, mcse, or certified from companies like dell, hp, etc, etc, etc.
OBITUARY: My 26″ Vizio passed away on June 16th, 2009. It met an untimely and tragic death and suffered from terminal white screen.
This young 26″ Vizio was born in China and was later adopted by Mr and Mrs. Wally Mart in Bentonville, AR in 2008. It later separated from the Walmarts and moved to Milwaukee, WI where it lived it’s short life.
26″ Vizio was a member of the Fraternal Order of Sponge Bob fanatics and enjoyed being connected to his good friend, an HP 6530b laptop.
Condolences can be sent to Tom at tomw@wi.rr.com (along with any suggestions on how to revivie or return 26″ Vizio to Mr. and Mrs. Wally Mart)