FS Boxing Day sale for Prima Flat 27 Inch TV - Oh No!

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Dec 30th, 2004 9:36 pm

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Dec 29th, 2004 2:09 pm

sixer [OP]: Deal Addict; Sep 5, 2004; 4473 posts; 1043 upvotes; Guelph, ON

Dec 29th, 2004 2:09 pm

FS Boxing Day sale for Prima Flat 27 Inch TV - Oh No!

I have the worst luck and I couldn't believe it.

I ordered this for my parents as needed a cheap tv in their sitting room upstairs and how could you go wrong for $189. Got it no problem this morning from purolater, plugged in, for the first minute, very nice picture and quality,

then....two minutes later the lines are starting all over it!!!! No jokes, I'm like WTF? Like 10 black lines in the middle, and about 50 near the top, all messed up!!!
Unglugged, disconnected Rogers, etc. Still, same thing. Changed rooms and plugged in new socket, same thing. Called Prima, good customer service, said would send someone out to fix or could return to FS for refund.

I think Future Shop should not sell garbage like this, I couldn't believe it, 2005 and they can't make a tv, lol.
Well, my parents are staying with their 15 year old sears tv, haha. It still works fine, lol!!!!! Not much else on sale at FS or BB.

Did anyone else get the Prima and have the same problem?????? Maybe a batch of defects or something. Couldn't believe it!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

25 replies

Dec 29th, 2004 2:21 pm

mlerner: Deal Addict; Sep 5, 2003; 2515 posts; 116 upvotes

Dec 29th, 2004 2:21 pm

You should've researched before going with a cheap brand. Prima is one of the worst TV brands ever, don't ever go just by the price of the item because chances are it's a bad product.

Dec 29th, 2004 2:28 pm

lip1978: Deal Addict; Dec 8, 2001; 4203 posts; 189 upvotes; Calgary

Dec 29th, 2004 2:28 pm

$189 + 27'' + 30 days return policy makes this cheap enough to gamble on the Prima.
I wouldn't invest real $ in one though...

Dec 29th, 2004 2:28 pm

sixer [OP]: Deal Addict; Sep 5, 2004; 4473 posts; 1043 upvotes; Guelph, ON

Dec 29th, 2004 2:28 pm

I did tons of research, and I take offense to that. Most people look for specific features etc on this, but these are my old parents, who don't know what 95% of the buttons on the remote do. It's a tv, they think their 15 yr old sears tv is sweet, lol. My point is I don't care if the Prima's picture is not that of a toshiba, sony or even jvc.

It should work, period, future shop shouldn't sell stuff that doesn't work. And for that fact, if you read the reviews on fs for this tv, 90% of the people were happy. Not everyone wants to spend all their money on electronics, they hardly watch tv.

Furthermore, if the tv crapped out in three years, we didn't care, could buy a new then, but for $189, you can't go wrong. Could buy a new one in three years again, and still not spend as much as what the 27 inch sony is going for.

It should work, and if they only last one minute, FS should't sell them. haha!!!

Dec 29th, 2004 5:45 pm

mbg: Deal Guru; Apr 4, 2001; 11645 posts; 506 upvotes

Dec 29th, 2004 5:45 pm

sixer wrote:It should work, period, future shop shouldn't sell stuff that doesn't work. And for that fact, if you read the reviews on fs for this tv, 90% of the people were happy. Not everyone wants to spend all their money on electronics, they hardly watch tv.

Although I'd never buy one, I would agree that the TV probably is OK for most people that buy it, at least to the extent of the warranty period. Nobody would keep a TV that didn't work when they got it home, and FS would not sell the TV if it had to deal with a massive number of returns on it...

Furthermore, if the tv crapped out in three years, we didn't care, could buy a new then, but for $189, you can't go wrong. Could buy a new one in three years again, and still not spend as much as what the 27 inch sony is going for.

The main problem I have with this approach is that you are subsidizing your TV purchase with landfill space. You don't have to pay much for landfill space, so you can throw your TV away and buy a new one every 3 years and feel like you got a good deal. I know you are not alone in your thinking, but I find it really hard to justify and live with.

You're also sending a message to these electronics that it's OK to behave in this way, and the more responsible companies will have to cut corners to compete.

Dec 29th, 2004 5:57 pm

mlerner: Deal Addict; Sep 5, 2003; 2515 posts; 116 upvotes

Dec 29th, 2004 5:57 pm

sixer wrote:It should work, period, future shop shouldn't sell stuff that doesn't work. And for that fact, if you read the reviews on fs for this tv, 90% of the people were happy. Not everyone wants to spend all their money on electronics, they hardly watch tv.

News flash, stores sell anything they know they will make a profit on despite a few returns. Look at all the reviews on Futureshop, I bet you that you'll always find positive reviews on bad products.

sixer wrote:Furthermore, if the tv crapped out in three years, we didn't care, could buy a new then, but for $189, you can't go wrong. Could buy a new one in three years again, and still not spend as much as what the 27 inch sony is going for.

You should care when the landfill space runs out and all because of the electronics we use.

Dec 29th, 2004 6:23 pm

sixer [OP]: Deal Addict; Sep 5, 2004; 4473 posts; 1043 upvotes; Guelph, ON

Dec 29th, 2004 6:23 pm

In my parents case, they're leaving the country in a couple years and will basically be giving the tv to charity at that point instead of taking it with them. Different electrical source there, therefore no need for an expensive tv not mention they don't care.

Regardless, cheaper electronics will always sell, and they'll fill landsites, etc. Not everyone has money for expensive stuff, therefore will buy what they can afford. And if that means needing a new one five yrs down road instead of ten with a sony, that's life and part of our economic society.

Our earth will be depleted of it's natural resources, oil, gas, etc, and global warming will destroy our earth before we run out of room to dump prima tv's into our landfills, lol.

Not to mention world war iii if people like George Bush keep getting re-elected

Dec 29th, 2004 6:51 pm

jesse14: Member; Jan 28, 2003; 341 posts; 11 upvotes; Kitchener-Waterloo

Dec 29th, 2004 6:51 pm

it might have been frozen from sitting in the truck and then powering it on might have shortcircuited something

Dec 29th, 2004 8:01 pm

sixer [OP]: Deal Addict; Sep 5, 2004; 4473 posts; 1043 upvotes; Guelph, ON

Dec 29th, 2004 8:01 pm

Unfortunately it was dropped off at 9am, I didn't get over to set it up and turn on until 11:30, so it had lots of time to warm up.

Dec 29th, 2004 8:16 pm

laptop-tech: Banned; Jul 16, 2003; 10398 posts; 1464 upvotes; Toronto

Dec 29th, 2004 8:16 pm

it was just bad luck.... I know lots of people who bought Prima, Apex, Sylvania and similar stuff...

2 years ago I got a Citizen 27" (by the way on a boxing day deal at FS) and price was very good... door crasher..

received it, tv had some weird colour, so I called Citizen and they sent a tech to my place to check it...guy told me tv was fine, just needed colour tunning, but suggested take it bak to FS to replace..

all in all, FS did nto have another one, so I returned for a refund....no harm, no loss..sure I missed a good chance to get a tv for cheap, but lost no money.

I agree with the poster....189.00 for a "no name" tv is NO risk at all...if you dont like it or it does not work properly, you can just return it...

Andre Oliveira - Mortgage Agent
Mortgage Intelligence - FSCO# 10428

Dec 29th, 2004 8:40 pm

bobaroo: Deal Addict; Dec 10, 2001; 1078 posts; 125 upvotes; Toronto

Dec 29th, 2004 8:40 pm

I've got the exact same Prima TV, and I've been more than happy with it... Got it for $240 1.5 years ago, and its still going strong with not a single problem. The first year I owned it, it was kept on for about 20 hours a day since it was shared by 5 university students.

Dec 29th, 2004 8:46 pm

Imiron: Newbie; Nov 23, 2004; 53 posts; 2 upvotes; In Saskatchewan

Dec 29th, 2004 8:46 pm

I'm still waiting for mine to arrive.

I based my puchase on mostly the price vs features, but a friend of mine got a 20" Prima, and had nothing but good things to say about it. And I've had pretty good luck with "none" brand name products. But hey, I'm happy with my $99 home theater!

Dec 29th, 2004 8:59 pm

mbg: Deal Guru; Apr 4, 2001; 11645 posts; 506 upvotes

Dec 29th, 2004 8:59 pm

laptop-tech wrote:all in all, FS did nto have another one, so I returned for a refund....no harm, no loss..sure I missed a good chance to get a tv for cheap, but lost no money.

Sounds to me like you lost a few hours of your life and at least 35 cents per kilometre in your car going back and forth to Future Shop (or bus fare

)

And, in the case of these boxing day deals, whatever time you spent hyperventilating waiting for them to restock or for your order to go through without it being sold out before you can finalize your order.

Dec 29th, 2004 9:08 pm

mbg: Deal Guru; Apr 4, 2001; 11645 posts; 506 upvotes

Dec 29th, 2004 9:08 pm

sixer wrote:Our earth will be depleted of it's natural resources, oil, gas, etc, and global warming will destroy our earth before we run out of room to dump prima tv's into our landfills, lol.

I was hoping this attitude was an artifact of the baby boomer generation. I suppose such hope just makes me look stupid.

The production (and repeated production) of these Prima TVs contributes to global warming, and depletion of resources. And, it sends a message that producing this crap is acceptable. I expect you're kinda glad that we're no longer destroying our own natural environment with the production of this garbage. It's China that is taking it up the ass now. They're the ones who can't go near many of their rivers because they're too toxic.

Not to mention world war iii if people like George Bush keep getting re-elected

Trendy. Sounds to me like you're in agreement with the spirit of his environmental policies.

Dec 30th, 2004 1:23 am

Kurtz7834: Deal Guru; Oct 27, 2003; 14143 posts; 4628 upvotes; Toronto

Dec 30th, 2004 1:23 am

I ordered this but have not yet tried it. A 20" Prima I have been using has been decent and I have no complaints yet. At $190 for a 27" TV I'll take a gamble.

In my opinion the quality has slipped even on the major brands so I'd rather just buy the cheapest thing possible. The days where these things are built to last are long gone.

The real problem is if manufacturers create better built brands, they'd still be undercut price wise by other el cheapo brands. And people always want to save money. Although it may be nicer I'm not convinced the name brands (Panasonic, Toshiba, Sony) are worth double the price.

Are they really twice as good? Will they last twice as long? Panasonic used to be great but they have succumbed to the trends I think.

Dec 30th, 2004 8:24 am

mbg: Deal Guru; Apr 4, 2001; 11645 posts; 506 upvotes

Dec 30th, 2004 8:24 am

Kurtz7834 wrote:I ordered this but have not yet tried it. A 20" Prima I have been using has been decent and I have no complaints yet. At $190 for a 27" TV I'll take a gamble.

Yeah, we haven't even got into the discussion of whether the people who buy these Prima TVs are just buying them because they're cheap and otherwise wouldn't buy another TV at all because they don't need one.

And I don't think it's too far fetched to think that this actually happens.

Dec 30th, 2004 11:06 am

wedgin: Member; Oct 31, 2004; 360 posts; Cambridge, Ontario

Dec 30th, 2004 11:06 am

I just bought one and it's decent. I needed a TV a little bigger then my 19" for when I move out, so price is a consideration, as I can't afford the type of TV I would really like to get. This TV will work as a stop gap until I can afford the plasma or HDTV that I really want in a couple of years. The picture isn't the greatest up close, but stand 5 feet away and it will look fine, which is pretty much normal. I've always been used to practically sitting on top of my TV when playing Xbox, so now I have to sit back a bit given the size of the TV.

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Dec 30th, 2004 11:27 am

drunken master: Newbie; Jun 26, 2003; 57 posts

Dec 30th, 2004 11:27 am

sixer wrote:I have the worst luck and I couldn't believe it.

I ordered this for my parents as needed a cheap tv in their sitting room upstairs and how could you go wrong for $189. Got it no problem this morning from purolater, plugged in, for the first minute, very nice picture and quality,

then....two minutes later the lines are starting all over it!!!! No jokes, I'm like WTF? Like 10 black lines in the middle, and about 50 near the top, all messed up!!!
Unglugged, disconnected Rogers, etc. Still, same thing. Changed rooms and plugged in new socket, same thing. Called Prima, good customer service, said would send someone out to fix or could return to FS for refund.

I think Future Shop should not sell garbage like this, I couldn't believe it, 2005 and they can't make a tv, lol.
Well, my parents are staying with their 15 year old sears tv, haha. It still works fine, lol!!!!! Not much else on sale at FS or BB.

Did anyone else get the Prima and have the same problem?????? Maybe a batch of defects or something. Couldn't believe it!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

The price was just right, and FS was selling it cheaper which if I was in your case I would've made the purchase. My Prima nearly flat 27" has been working fine for about half a year? I based the purchase on my friend's Prima which has been working well over a year (2 years possibly). I've never had any problems with mine, I thought it was a great value.

You can pay x2+ the amount for a name brand but why bother for such a 'small' tv. Just save for a home entertainment system.

Dec 30th, 2004 1:16 pm

[H]ackerK: Deal Addict; Aug 26, 2003; 4062 posts; 27 upvotes

Dec 30th, 2004 1:16 pm

Just for the record, my folk's Prima 27" TV from FS few yrs back on boxing day (I think that was like atleast 4 yrs ago) still working fine today.. (touch wood)

Dec 30th, 2004 6:00 pm

Absolute: Deal Guru; Dec 20, 2003; 11243 posts; 560 upvotes; Ottawa

Dec 30th, 2004 6:00 pm

I bought the 27" Virtually Flat Prima last November for $320...bah! I've never had problems with it though, in fact it's taken a few beatings from four moves, and never had any affects. The lack of remote codes for it sucks, but I'll just buy a JP1 for it.

- Absolute

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