How long should a television last?

According to the guarantee, the fact that my television which was purchased on 6 June 2010 and is now not working means that I must buy a new television.

After just over two years? It is a Toshiba which I always thought was a good make, but to have to buy a new one already?

Is this normal for television sets these days?

It's the luck of the draw I'm afraid.

I've got an old portable that is still going strong at 11 years old and have had sets which have given up the ghost at 18 months.

I had a modern LCD TV fail at 3 years old, the backlight went. I think its quite common and wasn't worth repairing.

I go by the John Lewis warranty of 5 years ...if it last longer than that i am happy ...whats the sales of good act like over there?

seems things don't last long anymore. i remember us having old black & white tvs that would probably still work now! i have a samsung tv which has lasted a few years, i lose track of time can't remember just how long i've had it but probably 4 or 5 years

Once in a past life I was involved in electronics and in those days two years would NOT be acceptable, further more if something did go wrong the chances were that it could be repaired easily and cheaply.

Now however things are different. Everything is on microchips, when they fail there's nothing can be done.

Only the other day I chucked a CD / Cassette /radio in the bin because the CD part was intermittant, I opened it up to see if there was anything 'fixable' but even if I had the chips you would need highly specialised equipment to remove the faulty one and replace it, the wiring harness was so small you couldn't even see the wires with the naked eye.

Sometimes there's a fuse in the power supply which might have blown and that can be changed but frankly modern day electronics really is a case of 'hope it lasts a long time' but if it's over the warranty that's tough luck.

After a number of telephone calls [and screaming by me] I have now been told that yes the full guarantee was only for one year but I also have another five years guarantee after that first year, with just a nominal charge for a technician to come and sort it out.

I am just waiting for a phone call to tell me when the technician will come, but at least I know that it will be sorted.

It is not that the set it not working as such, it is just that it cannot keep the menu so skips from blue screen "no video signal" to a channel which I had not chosen, then bang back to various menus. Even when a channel has appeared it vanishes and and then I have to unplug the set because the remote control cannot switch the set off.

[If none of this makes sense, believe me, it does not make sense to me either]

So. Something is wrong with the set, and a techie will come and fix it and I just have to pay a nominal charge for the techie.

Question.

What happens if he cannot fix it?

Answer.

I scream my head off until they get it sorted or give me a new set!

Lol Malka it certainly seems the old saying 'they don't make em like they used to' rings true with tv's they just last out there guarantee in my house too

And if the techi can't fix it....Lock him in until he can

In the UK, goods have to last what would reasonably be expected of them - if not you can take the matter to court, and from what I know, they are usually in favour of the consumer.

I would expect a TV to last 5 years. Otherwise I would argue I might as well rent for a year or two!

Maybe look in to your laws there Malka...

It was only the changeover to Digital that made me move over from my Sony tv bought in 1989! Plus the fact that digital tvs had got so cheap, I bought it literally the day before the signal in my area gave up!