Buying a TV for Black Friday? Here's what you look out for
There are some big sales on big screen TVs leading up to the holidays and they continue to get larger and drop in price.
While low prices on bargain brand TVs may be tempting, the experts at Consumer Reports say you are better off paying more for a more reliable set.
“Beware of those bargain basement prices on TVs from lesser-known brands,” said Jim Wilcox, electronics expert with Consumer Reports.
Researchers looked at three years of ratings and found you're better off buying a set from the big three – Sony, Samsung and LG.
In reviews of larger and smaller sets, when it came to value and price, Sony, Samsung and LG earned top scores in almost every category.
Wilcox said if you find one of these brands on sale you may not pay that much more than a bargain brand and get a much better quality set.
Consumer Reports says that Black Friday is often when older models and TVs made specifically for Black Friday, have the biggest discounts, especially on larger sets.
“We expect to see the biggest price cuts on larger sets, say 65 inches and above,” said Wilcox.
The most popular sets used to be 55 inches, but it moved up to 65 inches and now even some 75 inch sets can be purchased for less than $1,500.
This year due to supply chain issues and micro-chip shortages, inventory may be limited on some makes and models.
“If you see an early deal you like, jump on it now,” said Wilcox.
Many people who buy flat screen TVs don't anchor them, but they can still be a hazard especially to small children.
“Even though today's TVs are thin, they can still pose a risk. A 75-inch TV can weigh about 75 pounds,” said Wilcox.
You can mount your TV to a wall or anchor it to a media console. Making sure it's secure can offer peace of mind and avoid an accident with small children.
Some of the early problems with flat screen TVs have been worked out and they're now considered very reliable.
Most TVs come with a one year warranty, so you may not want to pay extra if you're pitched an extended warranty plan.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
From essential goods to common stocking stuffers, Trudeau offering Canadians temporary tax relief
Canadians will soon receive a temporary tax break on several items, along with a one-time $250 rebate, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau announced Thursday.
She thought her children just had a cough or fever. A mother shares sons' experience with walking pneumonia
A mother shares with CTVNews.ca her family's health scare as medical experts say cases of the disease and other respiratory illnesses have surged, filling up emergency departments nationwide.
Trump chooses Pam Bondi for attorney general pick after Gaetz withdraws
U.S. president-elect Donald Trump on Thursday named Pam Bondi, the former attorney general of Florida, to be U.S. attorney general just hours after his other choice, Matt Gaetz, withdrew his name from consideration.
Putin says Russia attacked Ukraine with a new missile that he claims the West can't stop
Russian President Vladimir Putin announced Thursday that Moscow has tested a new intermediate-range missile in a strike on Ukraine, and he warned that it could use the weapon against countries that have allowed Kyiv to use their missiles to strike Russia.
Here's a list of items that will be GST/HST-free over the holidays
Canadians won’t have to pay GST on a selection of items this holiday season, the prime minister vowed on Thursday.
A one-of-a-kind Royal Canadian Mint coin sells for more than $1.5M
A rare one-of-a-kind pure gold coin from the Royal Canadian Mint has sold for more than $1.5 million. The 99.99 per cent pure gold coin, named 'The Dance Screen (The Scream Too),' weighs a whopping 10 kilograms and surpassed the previous record for a coin offered at an auction in Canada.
Video shows octopus 'hanging on for dear life' during bomb cyclone off B.C. coast
Humans weren’t the only ones who struggled through the bomb cyclone that formed off the B.C. coast this week, bringing intense winds and choppy seas.
Taylor Swift's motorcade spotted along Toronto's Gardiner Expressway
Taylor Swift is officially back in Toronto for round two. The popstar princess's motorcade was seen driving along the Gardiner Expressway on Thursday afternoon, making its way to the downtown core ahead of night four of ‘The Eras Tour’ at the Rogers Centre.
Service Canada holding back 85K passports amid Canada Post mail strike
Approximately 85,000 new passports are being held back by Service Canada, which stopped mailing them out a week before the nationwide Canada Post strike.