About 5 years ago I purchased a 32 inch TV from a large chain store.
I went in, looked at a large variety of makes and models, compared picture quality and picked out the one I wanted.
When I got it home I connected the wires, plugged it in, and turned it on.
The picture was great, exactly the same as in the store and I was a satisfied and happy camper.
I thought that was the way it should always be...
I thought wrong.
That was then, this is now.
My wife and I recently purchased a new home.
We have always enjoyed going out to the movies and always felt that it was better than sitting on the couch staring at the same old walls.
The driving distance is much further now so we figured it was time to try the movie at home routine.
With that in mind, we decided to treat ourselves to a brand new TV.
We went back to the same store with the expectations of another great experience.
Times sure have changed.
The first thing I noticed was that all the TVs were set to the same channel.
This seemed odd but it didn't set off any alarms.
The fact that it was not a normal channel also went unnoticed by me.
I found out later that the TVs were all set on a Blue Ray movie, which enhances the picture quality and emits stronger and brighter colors in order to attract a buyer's attention.
So much for comparing picture quality between brands, plus we had now been exposed to the first step in a master plan of deception.
We decided on a 46 inch LCD which we wanted to mount on the wall.
Picture quality looked great and because it was a top of the line brand name we felt a comparison with other models was not necessary.
OK, now we have our TV.
We knew we had to buy a mounting bracket and we figured that we were done at that point.
Wrong!! The first question from our salesman was, "Do you plan on using HD?" Of course we did, so he informed us that we now needed to purchase special HD cables.
He said we needed 2.
One for regular HD, and the other for a Blue Ray or similar component.
What good is a new TV without HD so we said OK and added another $150.
00 to our purchase.
Next question was "Do you want the special surge protector?" Without it you are risking your investment.
So, for another $150.
00 I protected our investment from the dangers of electrical surge.
If it wasn't for the fact that we were moving to a new house which I am not familiar with, I probably would have skipped the special surge protector.
I just didn't want to take the chance.
We are now at $300.
00 over the cost of the TV and wall mount.
The icing on the cake was the last question.
"Do you want your TV calibrated?" What the heck is that? Could you explain that to me I asked? He took us to another area where there were 2 TVs on a wall.
The one on the left was set at the default setting which is done at the factory.
The brightness, tint, colors and contrast were all set very high to produce a flashy, eye catching effect to draw the attention of would be buyers.
Every TV In the store was set at these default settings which is how they are shipped from the factory.
Can you live with these settings? Yes you can.
It's still a good, clear picture.
He then proceeded to "calibrate" the TV on the right.
With a few clicks on his remote and a reboot of the TV, the picture that appeared was absolutely amazing.
Each TV showed the picture of a mans hand.
The one on the left was clear and colorful; the one on the right looked real! The color was a perfect flesh tone and you could actually see the wrinkles and indentations in the palm.
I could not believe the difference.
I asked how much will it cost to calibrate and when he said $200.
00, I lost it.
How can you sell a product and intentionally hold back on the quality just to make the customer have to "upgrade", at a rather steep fee, to get the best that the product has to offer? Where are the signs that tell you these TVs don't come with the HD cables which are needed to view HD and are rather expensive? Where are the signs saying that without the special surge protector your TV is a sitting duck? Where are the signs that say these TVs are not calibrated and in order to get the best picture possible you need to shell out another $200.
00 bucks? When you buy an item like a TV you usually stretch your budget a bit to get the one you really want.
I was not prepared for the necessary add-ons.
If I had known that up front, my choice of a TV may have been different.
My wife and I still enjoy a night out at the movies.
The drive really isn't that bad after all.
The theater picture looks like HD, it has protection from those sneaky electrical surges, and it is calibrated to the highest quality.
Best of all, everything is included in the price of the ticket.
I feel I got the "better buy".
No rip off here.
Except maybe for the price of the popcorn, but that's another story.
I went in, looked at a large variety of makes and models, compared picture quality and picked out the one I wanted.
When I got it home I connected the wires, plugged it in, and turned it on.
The picture was great, exactly the same as in the store and I was a satisfied and happy camper.
I thought that was the way it should always be...
I thought wrong.
That was then, this is now.
My wife and I recently purchased a new home.
We have always enjoyed going out to the movies and always felt that it was better than sitting on the couch staring at the same old walls.
The driving distance is much further now so we figured it was time to try the movie at home routine.
With that in mind, we decided to treat ourselves to a brand new TV.
We went back to the same store with the expectations of another great experience.
Times sure have changed.
The first thing I noticed was that all the TVs were set to the same channel.
This seemed odd but it didn't set off any alarms.
The fact that it was not a normal channel also went unnoticed by me.
I found out later that the TVs were all set on a Blue Ray movie, which enhances the picture quality and emits stronger and brighter colors in order to attract a buyer's attention.
So much for comparing picture quality between brands, plus we had now been exposed to the first step in a master plan of deception.
We decided on a 46 inch LCD which we wanted to mount on the wall.
Picture quality looked great and because it was a top of the line brand name we felt a comparison with other models was not necessary.
OK, now we have our TV.
We knew we had to buy a mounting bracket and we figured that we were done at that point.
Wrong!! The first question from our salesman was, "Do you plan on using HD?" Of course we did, so he informed us that we now needed to purchase special HD cables.
He said we needed 2.
One for regular HD, and the other for a Blue Ray or similar component.
What good is a new TV without HD so we said OK and added another $150.
00 to our purchase.
Next question was "Do you want the special surge protector?" Without it you are risking your investment.
So, for another $150.
00 I protected our investment from the dangers of electrical surge.
If it wasn't for the fact that we were moving to a new house which I am not familiar with, I probably would have skipped the special surge protector.
I just didn't want to take the chance.
We are now at $300.
00 over the cost of the TV and wall mount.
The icing on the cake was the last question.
"Do you want your TV calibrated?" What the heck is that? Could you explain that to me I asked? He took us to another area where there were 2 TVs on a wall.
The one on the left was set at the default setting which is done at the factory.
The brightness, tint, colors and contrast were all set very high to produce a flashy, eye catching effect to draw the attention of would be buyers.
Every TV In the store was set at these default settings which is how they are shipped from the factory.
Can you live with these settings? Yes you can.
It's still a good, clear picture.
He then proceeded to "calibrate" the TV on the right.
With a few clicks on his remote and a reboot of the TV, the picture that appeared was absolutely amazing.
Each TV showed the picture of a mans hand.
The one on the left was clear and colorful; the one on the right looked real! The color was a perfect flesh tone and you could actually see the wrinkles and indentations in the palm.
I could not believe the difference.
I asked how much will it cost to calibrate and when he said $200.
00, I lost it.
How can you sell a product and intentionally hold back on the quality just to make the customer have to "upgrade", at a rather steep fee, to get the best that the product has to offer? Where are the signs that tell you these TVs don't come with the HD cables which are needed to view HD and are rather expensive? Where are the signs saying that without the special surge protector your TV is a sitting duck? Where are the signs that say these TVs are not calibrated and in order to get the best picture possible you need to shell out another $200.
00 bucks? When you buy an item like a TV you usually stretch your budget a bit to get the one you really want.
I was not prepared for the necessary add-ons.
If I had known that up front, my choice of a TV may have been different.
My wife and I still enjoy a night out at the movies.
The drive really isn't that bad after all.
The theater picture looks like HD, it has protection from those sneaky electrical surges, and it is calibrated to the highest quality.
Best of all, everything is included in the price of the ticket.
I feel I got the "better buy".
No rip off here.
Except maybe for the price of the popcorn, but that's another story.
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