bigboss
Moderator
rocketrazor said:
+1, especially when they've price matched after including Total Digital's delivery charge.
bigboss said:
Many thanks bigboss I will start investigating in a few weeks time once I know the tv is a keeper and i'm completely satisfied with it, definately something i'm going to get done this time though.
bigboss said:
Yes they were very happy to arrange delivery for me but the only reason I didn't go with that option was the extra wait to get it delivered to my home address, after having a look on the system it would have been Friday 19th before they could deliver it to me so for the sake of one final trip to the store I thought it was worth going to pick it up and get it sooner, I didn't really want to wait that long for it to arrive.
Oldboy said:
thats understandable, don't think I could wait that long either, though don't think I could fit the 55" in my car so would have to wait!
If your in Essex mate where is your nearest John Lewis. Mines Stratford or blue water in Kent. Just thinking for any future purchases and possible price match arguments if they decline.
One thing I forgot to say about my trip to John Lewis on Saturday was that I got a chance to see the Samsung PS51F8500 plasma tv in store and noticed a few issues. This was new into the store as it wasn't there last week when I visited and immediately I noticed a prominent Samsung logo etched into the screen towards the bottom right hand corner of the screen, it looked to me like it had been showing a Samsung demo and that was the cause of the logo. Could just be extreme IR but it was noticeable that the feed had been changed to standard tv yet the logo was very clear even when just glancing at the set, could just be the shop setting causing it but thought it was worth mentioning as I didn't expect it from this tv.
I also noticed a really strange effect of the screen in general that I have never seen on any tv before...the tv was displayed at chest height and when you moved nearer to it the bottom of the screen darkened to black, the same was true if you crouched too so this tv seemed very particular when it came to off axis viewing height wise. Didn't seem a problem from left to right but it did seem very height sensitive which I hadn't experienced before, any idea what might be causing that?
The IR on the Samsung did reinforce to me that plasma probably wasn't the ideal tech for my needs though.
I also noticed a really strange effect of the screen in general that I have never seen on any tv before...the tv was displayed at chest height and when you moved nearer to it the bottom of the screen darkened to black, the same was true if you crouched too so this tv seemed very particular when it came to off axis viewing height wise. Didn't seem a problem from left to right but it did seem very height sensitive which I hadn't experienced before, any idea what might be causing that?
The IR on the Samsung did reinforce to me that plasma probably wasn't the ideal tech for my needs though.
Oldboy said:
Ricky Jennings seems the obvious choice. He's local to you and by all accounts very reliable and professional.
You might also consider Jules @DisplayCalibration.co.uk. He calibrated my TV. His prices are very reasonable and he's extremely thorough. He's based in Leicester, but will travel. He'll charge you petrol money for the journey down to Essex, but his calibration prices are lower than most, so you might still save money overall.
Either way, you'll be in safe hands.
rocketrazor said:
Yeah I did get the boxed measurements for the tv and made sure that it will fit, thank god it's not a plasma tv or there would be no hope of getting it in upright!
My nearest store is Ipswich rocket but bear in mind it's a John Lewis At Home store and not a usual John Lewis department store, I found out last night that plans are in place for a proper store to come to my home town in the next few years which is good to know.
As my experience has shown it pays to do some research before embarking on a price match with John Lewis and as long as you are sure of your facts you should get a deal, have you made any more progress in deciding which way you may go when it comes to a new tv then?
strapped for cash said:
Many thanks Strapped I will contact both in the near future and look at getting it done quite soon, i'm eager to see the results pre and post calibration for sure. Am I correct in thinking calibration is limited to 3 inputs so for example Bluray, Tv and 3D? That's all I really need anyway as games don't really need a calibration of that extent imo.
Oldboy said:
I was advised by a JL sales guy that Samsung pay JL to run their demo material on a constant loop using the Dynamic preset. (I wasn't allowed to test other material, which seemed a strange approach to TV sales.) This probably accounts for the severe IR you saw. (I'm aware of your previous experiences, so I understand your anxiety.)
The Samsung's AR filter is designed to reject ambient light from above, hence the strange effect you saw. It's only an issue if you're up close and viewing the TV from a fair height. The VT65's filter performs in a very similar way.
Bizarrely, the F8500 in my local JL was positioned at floor level, meaning you had to crouch or sit to see the image properly. I politely mentioned this to the salesperson, who replied "I know how plasma TVs work." He then proceeded to say he didn't understand why THX advocated using Movie mode; as he wanted a bright picture. I'm not having a go at John Lewis, because their service has been second-to-none, but you can perhaps appreciate why they sell few plasma TVs.
Oldboy said:
The TV will be calibrated for night viewing, day viewing, and 3D (though not every calibrator does this). These settings can be used across all inputs; so you can use any of the calibrated results to watch TV, BDs, play games, and so on. It's really about getting the TV aligned with the HD broadcasting and mastering standard (Rec.709), so all HD content is accurately displayed.
Oldboy said:
it looks like I'm stuck with my faulty gt50. My retailer is insisting on a repair route before offering a refund or replacement, even with my previous issues, as are panasonic. Looking at the sales of goods act there doing what's within scope as they are offering a repair. Given the issues I have had with the repair agent with my last one and it coming back worse than it went I'm obviously reluctant to go down this route. Not sure the credit card is an option either as the retailer is willing to look at the issue via the repair agent.
so it's lump it and see I think. Neither Panasonic or the retailer have the customer as there main focal point and I think as a result I will be boycotting both for any future purchases. There ok when all is right, it's when it goes wrong that it matters. It might also put me off purchasing from any independent small firm now, rather looking at a big chain for future purchases and seeing how it fairs with them. No doubt JL will be top of my list providing the stock what I want.
i can honestly say that this tv saga has been more stressful for me than moving house was and I have panasonic and my retailer to thank for that.
rocketrazor said:
I'm sorry to hear that mate.
I'd be inclined to go down the repair route. If things are no better, you haven't lost anything in the long run. If things improve then that's good. If things get worse you'd hopefully have a better case for a full refund. Of course there's no guarantee the last of these would happen, given the experiences you described.
Beyond that, can you escalate your claim with Panasonic? Insist on speaking with someone senior, as I know of a few disgruntled consumers that managed to break down Panasonic's front-line defences and achieve a satisfactory outcome. One AV Forums member was given a GT60 after repeated problems with an older Panasonic plasma TV. There are no guarantees this will all work out, but I'd dig my heels in out of general principle.
strapped for cash said:
I thought that might be the case with demo material but that may be different between stores as my John Lewis store only had the demo running on the 55F8000 and all other Samsung tvs were showing normal tv pictures. During my visit the guy from Samsung was there so I was able to pick his brains a little and something he said peeked my interest, Samsung ask retailers to only show Samsung demo material on their tvs and that one salesman got into alot of trouble when a customer asked him to swap over the usb sticks to show the Sony demo on the Samsung and vice versa in order to help him make a decision. Seems a bit OTT to me.
That's great info about the relative filters though, I had a feeling that filters may be the answer but I couldn't be sure and I'm no expert so thought it was worth asking what the cause could be. Could those same filters potentially cause a problem to those who may be considering installing above a fireplace for instance?
I was given free reign in my John Lewis with all the tvs I was considering and could test all inputs that had a signal so I don't know why your John Lewis wouldn't let you do this, in fact the store were so relaxed it was strange as most shops pounce on you like hawks and are reticent to even hand you the remote.
Very bizarre that the F8500 was at floor level in your JL too as my JL had very sensibly staggered the tvs with smallest tvs at the front at the lowest level (although all were on kit racks) with the biggest tvs at the back of the store at eye height with heights of the tvs going up as the screen size got larger. Seemed logical to me and meant you didn't have to sit on the floor like you had to...strange. I was surprised to only see a 50GT50 Panasonic plasma and the new Samsung 518500 as the only plasmas in store but I then you pretty much just explained why that was the case with your experience with that salesman.
rocketrazor said:
I'm saddened to hear that mate, I really thought they would do right by you this time.
Of course they are well within their rights to offer a repair before any other course of action is considered and you are correct the Sale of Goods act makes provision for this, it's only after a reasonable amount of times that the retailer attempts to repair the tv that they are under any obligation to consider another course of action. According to Citizens Advice they consider 3 attempts reasonable chance for an issue to be repaired.
I would offer the exact same advice that Strapped has given you and go down the repair route first as you are unfortunately obligated to do so anyway and take it from there. If the repair neither solves the issue or makes it worse then you are getting into territory where I think it's worth doing what Strapped suggests and escalating the matter with both Panasonic and imo the retailer because at that point you can easily argue that this is now an issue with a replacement set when the original tv purchased encountered multiple issues and that you have no confidence in the retailer being able to repair the tv.
Personally mate I would try to get Panasonic involved if the repair doesn't solve the issue and explain your bitter experience from day one of purchase and try to break through the front line of customer service as Strapped suggested, I don't think you are out of options yet but you may have to play the game a bit first in order to get a resolution. If you do contact Panasonic then it's worth considering making a record of all correspondence and try to contact someone higher up the chain from customer service, do some research and find the name of who you need to contact to address your concerns.
Thanks guys. The niggle I have is that after my 2nd repair last time which made the whole thing worse my retailer and panasonic were reluctant to replace my set then as the repair fault was 'within spec'. Only after a lot of kicking and screaming would they replace it. If they make it worse again I could be in a similar situation and might not be able to get a replacement. Unfortunately the retailer is very much saying they need panasonic to write off the tv before they can issue a replacement or refund.
its mainly an issue when watching football so I will probably end up sticking with it :wall:
its mainly an issue when watching football so I will probably end up sticking with it :wall:
rocketrazor said:
All I can say is that having been through Panasonics idea of customer service I can completely sympathise with your position, I went through a very similar story with my GT30 plasma and in then end I gave up with Panasonic and just concentrated my efforts on my retailer who was Richer Sounds and in the end I got a satisfactory outcome but not without quite a fight and needing to get senior levels involved as customer services proved useless. That experience was bad enough that I vowed not to buy another Panasonic plasma tv or indeed buy a tv from Richer Sounds.
It certainly sounds like the retailer you are dealing with is reluctant to do anything to help you despite knowing the history with the last set you had which isn't good enough really. By all means go through the repair process and if that doesn't solve the issue or makes things worse then I would be inclined to deal with Panasonic yourself and state your case to them, it's been a rocky road ever since you got the tv so there must be some way of getting a resolution?
I would be inclined to put my concerns in writing to Panasonic UK either by post or email and to make sure you direct your correspondence to the correct person, I'm sure that info must be on the internet somewhere or perhaps someone on these forums may be able to help you find the apprpriate person to write to.
All I can hope is that you get the tv either repaired or replaced/refunded soon but as ever keep me posted with how you get on. I know just how frustrating this situation is :wall:
gel said:
Yes mate got it last night :bounce:
Got a slight issue as need to lower the centre speaker now as the Vesa mounting was different on the Samsung and it's now a tight fit under the TV but it's up and running and just needs a calibration run through. Once I've lowered the centre I will put a few pics up to show you how it fits in.
Got to say though that 55inch was such a good idea, I put The Dark Knight opening on as a test disc and couldn't stop grinning as those iMax shots looked incredible. The detail on offer blew me away and that's without calibrating.
I was a bit worried with 3D though as initially there was some bad bleed in the bottom corners but after dialling back the backlight it was lovely. It demands a professional calibration though and that's my next step but right now I'm simply loving the F8000 and it's perfect for my needs.
After a calibration and few days with it I will put a short review up but I'm very impressed at it's clearly a leap forward from my old Sony HX853. I'm a happy chappy
Oldboy said:gel said:
Yes mate got it last night :bounce:
Got a slight issue as need to lower the centre speaker now as the Vesa mounting was different on the Samsung and it's now a tight fit under the TV but it's up and running and just needs a calibration run through. Once I've lowered the centre I will put a few pics up to show you how it fits in.
Got to say though that 55inch was such a good idea, I put The Dark Knight opening on as a test disc and couldn't stop grinning as those iMax shots looked incredible. The detail on offer blew me away and that's without calibrating.
I was a bit worried with 3D though as initially there was some bad bleed in the bottom corners but after dialling back the backlight it was lovely. It demands a professional calibration though and that's my next step but right now I'm simply loving the F8000 and it's perfect for my needs.
After a calibration and few days with it I will put a short review up but I'm very impressed at it's clearly a leap forward from my old Sony HX853. I'm a happy chappy
Ah nice one!
BenLaw
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bigboss
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