VIVO TVs from DickSmith

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jamesrt

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#111486 5-Nov-2012 13:36

Hi,

Does anyone have any experience using and/or horror stories about the VIVO TVs which DickSmith are currently selling?

http://www.dicksmith.co.nz/product/GE6808/vivo-23-6-quot-60cm-full-hd-led-lcd-tv and http://www.dicksmith.co.nz/product/GE6825/vivo-31-5-quot-80cm-full-hd-led-lcd-tv

The guy I spoke to in the store today said they are a new brand on the market, they've been selling for 6 months, and haven't had any returned for any issues yet.

A little bit of internet research suggests they may have LG panels in them. Don't really know if that's good or bad!

At the end of the day, I want a cheap FullHD screen for the kids XBox360; the current 12 year old CRT TV isn't cutting the mustard any more...

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#712231 5-Nov-2012 13:42

Are they their house brand? I thought they sold konkas, but I now see retailers like farmers and harvey normans now sell konkas.

I had heard that often lower quality LCD panels with some small defects, are put into the cheaper on no name brands. Personally I only buy premium name brands, because there isn't much difference in price in the sales.

jamesrt

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#712245 5-Nov-2012 13:52

mattwnz: because there isn't much difference in price in the sales.

DSE Vivo 32" (well, 31.5") = $400; best price I can find on an alternative FullHD 32" screen is around the $600 mark. I'd call that a fairly significant difference...

Yes, I can get cheaper "HD ready" panels; but I'm specifically looking for FullHD.

mattwnz

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#712292 5-Nov-2012 14:28

jamesrt:
mattwnz: because there isn't much difference in price in the sales.

DSE Vivo 32" (well, 31.5") = $400; best price I can find on an alternative FullHD 32" screen is around the $600 mark. I'd call that a fairly significant difference...

Yes, I can get cheaper "HD ready" panels; but I'm specifically looking for FullHD.

You can often get 20% off the list price of brand name TVs by shopping around, or when they have a sale on. Noel Leemings often have 20% of sales of sony/samsung etc. You are also comparing like for like, when there are often techncial differences why the no name brands can be cheaper. Such as them using cheaper panels with poor viewing angles, or they could have higher power use, or less reliable. So what may initially look cheaper, over time may work out as more expensive.

jamesrt

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#712301 5-Nov-2012 14:32

mattwnz: there are often techncial differences why the no name brands can be cheaper. Such as them using cheaper panels with poor viewing angles, or they could have higher power use, or less reliable. So what may initially look cheaper, over time may work out as more expensive.

Yup, absolutely; hence wondering if anyone has any personal experience on these units that they care to relate.

Thanks for the comments.

mattwnz

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#712307 5-Nov-2012 14:44

jamesrt:
mattwnz: there are often techncial differences why the no name brands can be cheaper. Such as them using cheaper panels with poor viewing angles, or they could have higher power use, or less reliable. So what may initially look cheaper, over time may work out as more expensive.

Yup, absolutely; hence wondering if anyone has any personal experience on these units that they care to relate.

Thanks for the comments.

Not too sure if you will find too many people who would have purchased one. I think the best thing to do is compare the specs from the user manuals, and possibly online reviews. House brands tend to be rebadged, so if you can find the name that other retailers may call it, then you should find some online reviews of it.

jamesrt

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#712316 5-Nov-2012 14:49

mattwnz: House brands tend to be rebadged

Not sure they are a house-brand:

http://www.vivotvs.com/

Looks like a China-based manufacturer, with a fairly new to the market english-language brand and website. I'll keep poking around the interweb to see what I can find....

old3eyes

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#712512 5-Nov-2012 19:14

jamesrt:
mattwnz: because there isn't much difference in price in the sales.

DSE Vivo 32" (well, 31.5") = $400; best price I can find on an alternative FullHD 32" screen is around the $600 mark. I'd call that a fairly significant difference...

Yes, I can get cheaper "HD ready" panels; but I'm specifically looking for FullHD.

I think you would hardly notice the difference on a 26 ~ 32" TV..

Regards,

Old3eyes

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Trade NZ and US shares and funds with Sharesies (affiliate link).

mattwnz

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#712516 5-Nov-2012 19:23

old3eyes:
jamesrt:
mattwnz: because there isn't much difference in price in the sales.

DSE Vivo 32" (well, 31.5") = $400; best price I can find on an alternative FullHD 32" screen is around the $600 mark. I'd call that a fairly significant difference...

Yes, I can get cheaper "HD ready" panels; but I'm specifically looking for FullHD.

I think you would hardly notice the difference on a 26 ~ 32" TV..

You do when you watch it close up, but you would probably want a 40 inch for it to be really noticeable.

mattwnz

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#712520 5-Nov-2012 19:26

jamesrt:
mattwnz: House brands tend to be rebadged

Not sure they are a house-brand:

http://www.vivotvs.com/

Looks like a China-based manufacturer, with a fairly new to the market english-language brand and website. I'll keep poking around the interweb to see what I can find....

See what you mean, although that is an ozzie website, so maybe there will be some ozzie reviews for it. The website looks a bit amateurish looking I think.

UrbanMyth

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#712624 5-Nov-2012 22:44

Why not wait till the "after Boxing Day/New Years" sales at HN etc

I picked up my $1800 Pana 42" for 1K almost 2 years ago - non display model

You could get a name brand 32" for $300 - 400 .. or less

mattwnz

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#712635 5-Nov-2012 23:35

UrbanMyth: Why not wait till the "after Boxing Day/New Years" sales at HN etc

I picked up my $1800 Pana 42" for 1K almost 2 years ago - non display model

You could get a name brand 32" for $300 - 400 .. or less

+1. I got a sony LCD 32 inch for about $700 about 3 years ago, when they were retailing for double that. So I wouldn't be surprised to see a good brand full HD 32 inch in a boxing day special closer to that 300-400 figure

illicit

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#712668 6-Nov-2012 08:32

I highly recommend you go and use it in store.

Go through everything with the remote (check remote response from a distance too)

- Tuning
- Pic & Sound adjustments
- Changing inputs
- etc

Most (not all) of these cheap TVs are HORRIBLE to use - many customers have commented "I wish I'd got a better one"

gehenna

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#712671 6-Nov-2012 08:38

I had a 32" Vivo LCD when I lived in Oz. Worked fine, looked fine. Never had any problems.

mattwnz

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#712945 6-Nov-2012 14:51

illicit: I highly recommend you go and use it in store.

Go through everything with the remote (check remote response from a distance too)

- Tuning
- Pic & Sound adjustments
- Changing inputs
- etc

Most (not all) of these cheap TVs are HORRIBLE to use - many customers have commented "I wish I'd got a better one"

Also see how many HDMI inputs it has got. Many of the cheaper ones save money by reducing the inputs.

JimmyH

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#713092 6-Nov-2012 19:09

mattwnz:

Also see how many HDMI inputs it has got. Many of the cheaper ones save money by reducing the inputs.

+1. A TV with only one HDMI output will quickly become very aggravating for most people.

And don't just check HDMI inputs. If you have any any legacy analog kit (VCR, STB, XBOX, PS2 or Wii games console, camcorder etc) that you might want to connect you need to check analog inputs as well. Some of the cheapo models only have one combined composite/component AV input and that's all.

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