Would you buy a DEMO Plasma TV?

[Voodoo Child]

Here's the situation:

I'm building a new house and for the basement I wanted to buy a 60" Pioneer Elite Kuro PRO-151FD Plasma TV.
This is bar none the best plasma on the market and it should be for the price ~ $6700.00
Turns out that Pioneer is no longer going to make the Kuro TV as there simply wasn't enough demand for a TV in that price range.

Soundsaround is the only distributor (as far as I know) in Calgary for the Pioneer Elite TV's. They have no new TV's left, only those on display in their stores.

I can't seem to find a new model anywhere: Calgary, Edmonton, Vancouver, Regina, etc.

So my question is would you buy the floor model?

The TV has been on display for a year the rep tells me.
So realistically it's on for 10 hours a day, 7 days a week....for a total of ~3500 hours of use so far.
I couldn't find the expected life of the panel, but Panasonic quotes 100,000 hours so I would hope that Pioneer would be close if not the same.

This means is has used roughly 4% of it's life expectancy (based on Panasonic's numbers) so in my mind that is not a lot of time.

I'm torn on what to do.

Please pass your comments and thoughts along.

Thanks

VC :thumbsup:

[Mitsu3000gt]

I would avoid buying anything fround Soundsaround except in the most dire of circumstances. If anything ever happens to that TV you are pretty much guaranteed to be SOL. I think the only reason that store had any customers was because of their exclusive rights to sell Pioneer Elite products in the area.

Panasonic owns the Kuro technology now, and uses it in their high end TVs, so I would start looking there if you would prefer to buy new.

Also, if you are using this in a dedicated theater environment (i.e. light controlled), I always recommend buying a projector that will give you similar if not better performance on a screen size of your choice for the same or less money. You need to be able to kill all the ambient light though.

[syeve]

Originally posted by Mitsu3000gt
Panasonic owns the Kuro technology now, and uses it in their high end TVs, so I would start looking there if you would prefer to buy new.

Also, if you are using this in a dedicated theater environment (i.e. light controlled), I always recommend buying a projector that will give you similar if not better performance on a screen size of your choice for the same or less money. You need to be able to kill all the ambient light though.

Exactly.

Nathan? Where you building buddy?

[Voodoo Child]

Originally posted by Mitsu3000gt
Panasonic owns the Kuro technology now, and uses it in their high end TVs, so I would start looking there if you would prefer to buy new.

Also, if you are using this in a dedicated theater environment (i.e. light controlled), I always recommend buying a projector that will give you similar if not better performance on a screen size of your choice for the same or less money. You need to be able to kill all the ambient light though.

My basement is a large open area (L shape) with media area, bar area and games area. All one room but I will have blackout blinds on all of the windows. It is a walk out basement but it will face north so I will never get any direct sunlight. With the blackout blinds I will be able to keep it very dark.

My worry with a projector is the quality of the picture with watching TV with the lights on or even semi light.
I've been to K&W to see their projectors and media rooms and see the value and quality you get in a dark environment. With the lights on though, the quality really washes out.

When I have friends or family over I don't forcee us keeping the lights off so we can watch TV.

I've been looking at the Panasonic Vierra TC-P65V10 as an alternative. Great reviews and a little cheaper than the Elite.

Thoughts?

Hey Syeve, it's Nate! Building up in Aspen Estates. Will be in by July 1st.

[Mitsu3000gt]

Originally posted by Voodoo Child


My basement is a large open area (L shape) with media area, bar area and games area. All one room but I will have blackout blinds on all of the windows. It is a walk out basement but it will face north so I will never get any direct sunlight. With the blackout blinds I will be able to keep it very dark.

My worry with a projector is the quality of the picture with watching TV with the lights on or even semi light.
I've been to K&W to see their projectors and media rooms and see the value and quality you get in a dark environment. With the lights on though, the quality really washes out.

When I have friends or family over I don't forcee us keeping the lights off so we can watch TV.

I've been looking at the Panasonic Vierra TC-P65V10 as an alternative. Great reviews and a little cheaper than the Elite.

Thoughts?

Hey Syeve, it's Nate! Building up in Aspen Estates. Will be in by July 1st.


Thats right, even with a really bright projector, if you are going to want to have lights on and entertain people at the same time, it won't be your best choice. You lose contrast really fast with ambient light. For dedicated theaters though, you can get an amazing picture for such little money these days.

My guess is you'd never tell the difference between that Panasonic and an Elite. The Kuro's were great TV's but IMO they charged a bit too much of a premium for them back in the day. Any of those ultra high end plasmas are going to look stunning in your basement. Also, since plasmas use glass, don't direct any light onto them if you can help it as you may see the reflections.

Hell, for $6500, you could get a great projector, screen, and a 50+ inch plasma all together. Drop down the screen for movie nights, or raise the screen and use the plasma when guests are over and you want to use the lights and other amenities you have in your basement.

[Intent_Fire]

Personally, I would never invest in a demo unit, that is ALOT of usage on that panel.

I would probably Invest in a LED TV if I was in your position.

http://www.bestbuy.ca/en-CA/product/sony-sony-60-1080p-120hz-led-hdtv-kdl60ex700-black-kdl60ex700/10138994.aspx?path=377a807e3fc7bc8ad2ec05f60ec47a99en02

Unless of course hes offering you something crazy. Like around 75% off.

[Weapon_R]

That is a drop in the bucket on a plasma. Most plasma TVs today have at LEAST 60,000 hours of life. That's 7 years of continuous usage, 24 hrs a day, 365 days a year.

On the back of the TV should be a build date. Take that number and do your calculations as you did in the first post as your worst case scenario. It probably has a long life ahead and you'll replace it well before it burns out. It'll come with the same warranty as a new TV and if you pay with your credit card, most will double that.

Hopefully the price is right.

[LLLimit]

I picked up a demo Sharp 37" LCD from when Sears downtown was shutting down, so that's been 2-3 years now?

-Regular tv watching
-ps3
-laptop
no problems and the remote was unused.
Just like the day I brought it home in the back seat of my car, wrapped in clingwrap.

[spikerS]

the screen itself is probably going to be fine, the real question is, how much have the buttons and stuff been pushed. That is where the real wear and tear will be.

another thing to check, is looks where all the color and contrast settings ect are. are they maxed out or close to it? If they are, could be a sign of something bigger going on. look for a reset button and check things out after doing a reset.

[HondaKid]

Mitsu3000gt said it all, have to agree with him, my experience has been much the same.

Nothing beats a projector for the WOW factor, sports and movies do come alive big time.

If you want a better price on a TV think about Vann's in Montana, quick one day trip and you save plenty of $$$$. Pannys are made in Mexico for example, so only GST and PST to pay at the border. No Montana sales tax as well.

A 65" Panny V10 for just over $3,000:

http://www.vanns.com/shop/servlet/item/features/463046648/panasonic-tcp65v10

TC-P54Z1 (Silver) for just over $4,000z:

http://www.vanns.com/shop/servlet/item/features/463219286/panasonic-tc-p54z1

Check CostCo USA for a better selection and price on projectors than here in Canada.

And you still have more than enough for a projector, screen and sound system.

[cmodem]

I was in your boat. I bought a 50 inch before they were all gone.

Its been a year and works absolutely fine.

Just use the break in images found on avs forums http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?t=1107017 to cycle through the colors and see if there are any dead phosphors or miscolored ones or burn in.

The panel should last you long enough that you'll want a new tv anyways.

Give it 5 years and the 3d tv's without having to wear glasses will be probably norm.

Also did soundsaround not have any monitor versions of the tv? only diff is no rf tuner and stands.

[trliniar]

This tv was on sale for $3500 - $4000 on boxing day.... cant remember the exact price.... So No I wouldnt get this TV as a demo model