I never purchase extended warranties, but I have been carrying a regret of not purchasing one when I bought my Hitachi 43" Widescreen HDTV. I registered with Hitachi for warranty coverage, and I must say I have had zero problems so far. But for my inventment, I feel this is one unit that is not a throwaway TV like the standard ones. It is 16x9, Digital ready (box needed) so I felt that I was buying the best I could afford that would not be obsolete when digital cable comes rolling around. It is outstanding quality and color, I use component video connections for DVD and XBOX, regular RCA for VCR/Cable TV. Externally I use Digital Audio with a Sony Dolby 5.1 and DTS surround sound, I love the setup. I mention this because I have no need/intentions upgrading or replacing for a long time. Now I just got an offer from Satisfusion
[url]www.satisfusion.com[/url] which is the service provider for Hitachi. It lists the serial number etc from the Hitachi warranty card I filled out, so it seems somewhat legit. I am going to request a full write up on policy, but from the limited info I have seen they cover in home service, damage from surges, product replacement for:

$359.99 1 yr
$399.99 2 yr
$499.99 3 yr

My Hitachi coverage is good until Nov 2002 so according to this letter, this is not a one time offer you must sign up right now (like Circuit City was selling). My only thing is come Nov I probably will not have the money for this. I would like some opinions on this, especially any of you that have HDTV's if you have encountered repairs on these. This is an expensive gamble and just want some opinions.

Seems Kinda high.  I just spent $350 on a five year extended warranty for a pioneer 53" I just got yesterday from Tweeter.  This includes yearly cleanings of the mirrors (Which is supposed to be a smart thing to do) and other internals...  I would be skeptical if I were you.  

BTW, I do agree with extended warrantees on such big ticket items and anything else with a lot that can go wrong with it.  Digital cameras being the other item I have bought the extended warranty for.....

HIGH - stunningly high.

When did you buy it? If it was within the last month or so I would go back to the store and purchase the warranty. They shouldn't have a problem with that. Also make sure the warranty is underwritten by a seperate insurance company. That way, if the company goes out of business, you still have a warranty. And be sure to use the yearly cleanings and adjustments.

I sold those things for years but I only really believed in them for high use items or hi-tech/hi-cost electronics.

My .02 cents.  If it makes you sleep better buy it.  But reality is that if you have a bad electronic item it will apear withing the first 30 days.  Warrenties are a great way for companies to make easy money since 95% of them or never used.


Needless to say I never buy them on electronics, tires however I do....since I tend to run over a lot of things.

Sgtar15

I get extended warrantees on big ticket items, but only factory extended warrantees. Most of the time unless a factory approved service center works on a item the factory warrantee is cancelled.

I also believe that as improvements and updates become available to fix recurring design flaws, factory service centers have that info where the others have no idea or even accesses to the new factory designed components that might be needed to fix a set the right way.

I purchased one for my HDTV, though I rarely buy them, I guess reading the AV boards got me paranoid.

My only piece of advice is to haggle.  Have them cut the price or add years.  I basically asked them to add two years to the three year warranty, saving a couple hundred bucks.  These are big moneymakers for them so they are usually willing to work with you.

BTW, isn't HDTV just awesome.  I actually watch a lot of CBS shows now just cause they are the only network with regular prime time HDTV.  JAG and CSI in HDTV are awesome.

My experience has been they are a waste of money in most cases, unless the item you purchased requires yearly maintenance, and that maintenance is included in the warranty at a cost that is cheaper or at least equal to what it would cost to have the work done yourself.

For instance, when I bought a new washer and dryer at Sears last year, they tried to sell me a 3 year warranty that paid to have a guy come out to the house once a year and clean the insides of the dryer. After a little research, I discovered I could call the guy myself and he would charge less than what the warranty was costing me.

Anyway, in some cases it may be worth it. But like was mentioned earlier, electronics tend to fail in the first 30 days and then last 20 years. The tube in a different story. If the thing needs yearly adjustments, find out what it costs to call the guy yourself to see if it's cost effective.

Anyway, most of the warranties are BS because most things don't usually fail in 3 years. If they had a 10 year extended warranty, that's a different story.

JAG in HD? you punk! id love to see those flight shots in HD, but i got HBO East and Showtime East in HD.

Thanks for the input guys. I have plenty of time on factory warranty still. I am going to look into it with ciruit city (where I bought it) and call Hitachi directly to see if there are any discounts offered. I also felt it was expensive. Since I have not met anyone that told me yes get it the HDTV's break all the time I am in no rush to sign up, just get some research going. I do have money now though so I wanted to additional input to make sure putting it off was not a crazy thing to do. Thanks!