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General discussion

Should I buy online from the US?

Oct 8, 2005 10:29AM PDT

I'm looking to buy a plasma TV, but it costs so much more to buy from the local vendors where I'm from. One of the Panasonic plasmas I'm looking at sells locally at $3000 USD (converted from my currency), and most only sell at <$2000 USD from online vendors in America that ship internationally. I just want to know what the risks involved are for buying overseas (eg. warranties, return policies), especially with a costly purchase. Do some of the plugs, cables change? Has anyone brought something internationally, was it a good or bad experience? Thanks.

Discussion is locked

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I'll write no.
Oct 8, 2005 10:50AM PDT

The warranty is turning out to be void except in the country of purchase and only from a "authorized" dealer.

Bob

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What country?
Oct 8, 2005 3:23PM PDT

what country are you from? things like different systems (ntsc/pal), power(120v/240v), and warrenties would change. some companies offer extended international warrenty. the way it works is that you find a local repair guy to fix the tv..once its fixed, you send the bill to the US vendor and they'll reimburse you for it.

also see how much the shipping would be to your country and how much does it cost to put it through customs especially when the tv so expensive.

there was a customer today who returned a bose 321 system (no flaming please ;p )...because it would cost them $300 extra dollars to put it through customs cause they wanted to bring it to india cause the limit for that is $500USD when the system cost $1000. find out all the "hidden fees" first...cause i'm willing to bet at the end, it might actually be a little cheaper to get it from your local vender.

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That's true.
Oct 9, 2005 1:53PM PDT

I'm from NZ. The sales tax here is 12.5%, it's about as far away from the US as you can get, and I've read that customs is really stingy. Still, TVs cost 30-60% more here than in the states-- I'm willing to put a few more bucks in for customs, shipping, etc., but maybe it's not worth the risk.
I'll look at the vendors from Australia, although I'm not sure how much of a price difference there is between here and there.
Thanks.