Where To Buy Your Plasma TV

The best place to buy your plasma or LCD TV really depends on you. If you search the various on-line stores you can certainly beat the high street price by quite a bit. If you look somewhere like Ebay you can sometimes cut a bit more off of that.

If you were buying something that is £50 in the shops, £40 in web stores and £30 on Ebay you could perhaps justify the risk as being worth it for the gain. But if the TV your after is £1000 and Ebay sellers have it for £800 then of course you have to consider what to most people is an enormous risk. Personally for items such as this I would steer well clear of the likes of Ebay unless you know the seller and trust them completely.

One method that has worked for me on several occasions is to visit the major brands on-line, who also have a high street presence. Find the best price for the TV you want then ring the store and ask if they will match it. They often do! And then often knock some more off if you take the extended warranty. Nice.

Recently I purchased a Samsung from Currys. The price was £999 + £200 for the appropriate stand. They had an on-line price of £799. I rang the store and told them that I was after a Plasma TV but that I was worried about it going wrong and wondered and hoped that they did an extended warranty for my peace of mind(grin). The sales person was salivating by now at the prospect of an extended warranty sale and a pat on the back from his manager. I then popped the question about matching the on-line price. After checking with the manager he came back and said it would be no problem at all.

Remember that at this stage I have not said I will be buying the extended warranty, merely I have expressed a strong interest. Off I go to the store and note they have got an 'in store only' offer for a half price stand when purchased with a £999 or more TV. So I thought I would be cheeky and ask, because it was a £999 TV although admittedly I was only paying £799. No problem came the reply. So to summarise I know have the on-line price (£200 less), the in store only offer on the stand (£100 saving). I said to the sales person that I really appreciated his help and time and that I was ready to buy it all from him.

He then said, “and of course you want the extended warranty as well?”. I said I would love the extended warranty because he explained all the benefits so clearly that I would be a fool not to take it. Unfortunately I think I have already spent too much and would just like the TV and stand. Off he trotted to see the manager and comes back with (are you ready for this) a £50 discount off of the TV if I take the extended warranty (about £279 if I remember correctly). And I would be able to pay for the extended warranty, interest free at £6.99 a month.
I put my hand on my chin as if deep in thought and said well perhaps if I could have a year interest free on the TV instead of 6 months I could stretch to it? Off he went and came back with a, “no problem sir. Shall I do the paper work?” I replied, “Definitely you have been most helpful. I shall be writing to your manager to tell him so as well.” And in case you are wondering I did.

So just a little bit of thought and planning and I have got £350 off the store price, equivalent to £150 off the internet price, a sales person to ring if I get stuck and the backing of a major high street retailer. And in case you think I am a “big meanie” let me point out that the sales person was chuffed to bits with the sale. He even phoned me after delivery to check I was happy with it. Currys is a big company and who really cares about them. I am sure that on the same day they sold hundreds of TVs without any discount.

And in case you are wondering I have had the repairman out twice in 6 months. I think the moral is to shop around, do your research, make a plan and buy were you are most comfortable. Laviva Online Store

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