Looking for people w/ experience buying large electronics online, should i risk it?

Question

interested in buying 50" plasma tv online. want to hear stories of experiences with this sort of purchase before i make the move. please provide both positive and negative experiences and any input you think might be helpful to me in making a decision to purchase on-line.

Answer 1

Before you decide to purchase from a particular company, look them up on www.resellerratings.com. This site contains feedback on all kinds of online retailers from actual customers (I tried to submit a review once, and they required an invoice number and contact info so they could verify that I wasn't someone from the store sending in bogus spam reviews).

If the store has a poor rating, there is usually a common theme (like they said a TV was in stock and, when they didn't buy the extended warranty, they were told that the TV was on backorder - they then spent months in backorder limbo or eventually cancelled the purchase, which the company made difficult). If there is no rating, don't take the chance on being the first person to submit a poor rating from being ripped off.

I have bought a lot of high-dollar items online (got a $2000 Sony HDTV a couple of years ago from EggHead.com - free delivery and it arrived three days after I ordered it). Just make sure you're dealing with a reputable company and you should have no worries.

Answer 2

ive just brought a 42inc lcd television online, first i checked out the sight and then looked into any reviews from customers who had brought from web site.  made sure payment protection was on. I ended up saving two hundred pounds and teley was delivered within 3 days and the deliverer was free.

Answer 3

Buying anything that produces an image online is risky.  The picture quality may not be what you want, etc.  Have you gone to a store and looked at the exact model?

Another con of buying something huge online:

It arrives, doesn't work, you're responsible for return shipping costs with most places.

Answer 4

Define "online".  Do you mean from an unknown buyer or just online period?  I bought mine from BestBuy online and it was delivered in tip top shape.  I've bought smaller electronics like DVD players from refurbished distributors.  I had a good experience and they were just some small unknown company.

Personally I would be extremely weary of buying anything like a 50" plasma from an individual person online.

Answer 5

If its from a reputable place like circuit city and such you should be okay

Answer 6

Searching for reviews of the company you want to buy from is a good way to weed out some bad ones.