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Rant

50 " Samsung plasma TV blowing fuses

Dec 27, 2014 1:08AM PST

Totally disappointed with my Samsung 50"plasma TV, model FPT-5084X with manufacture date of 2007. We purchased it on 05/31/08, which it worked great for about 4 or 5 years. After which it began blowing the main power fuse. We had the local service tech come out and replace the fuse several times, but it continued to blow. On 12/14/12 the company picked up the TV, replaced the SMP Board (#BN44-00175A), and returned it 12/21/12. The TV continued blowing fuses. The fuses don't blow right away, they actually last about 2 weeks to a month, after which it blows again. I even purchased a small bag of fuses to keep replacing them as they blow. And to this day, the fuses continue to blow. This situation is totally frustrating and disappointing to the point of us not wanting to purchase another Samsung product. I am a 20 year active duty retired USAF veteran and currently working as an air conditioning service technician for the past 18 years. I say this because I have a lot of electrical, electronics, and customer service experiences, and it just doesn't seem appropriate for a company to ignore this on going problem. I have twice tried to contact Samsung about the problem, but to no avail. And as I check the Internet, I notice the same problem with the same TV, is with thousands of them throughout the world. Anyway, does anyone have any advice?

Discussion is locked

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Just one.
Dec 27, 2014 1:52AM PST

Today's electronics appear to be 2 to 5 year designs. Folk explode over that revelation. Look around and you see few 2 year old smart phones and flat screen TVs tend to fail in the 2 to 5 year range or others just keep on trucking.

Plasma models from all makes in those years were power hogs and the downside was they almost always fail in the usual time span.

It's not a Samsung exclusive and signs all around point to this reduced design life. Look at the paltry 1 year warranties for example.
Bob

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power meter
Dec 28, 2014 2:04AM PST

It looks like for some reason the watt usage of the plasma has gone up or something else in the house in addition.

I recommend hooking up a watt meter to the plasma to check how many watts it is using compared to what is normal. My 64" plasma uses 350 watts average, but can spike up to 600 on an all white screen. If you are using some space heaters on the same circuit it is possible for the breaker fuse to trip.

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16882715001