The boards in these sets are fairly expensive. They are serviced mainly
at the board level only. After replacing any boards the performance of
the set must be checked, and any necessary calibrations performed.

When considering the time and labour, most of the time these TV sets may
not be cost effective to service. I have done estimates on TV sets and
found that the parts alone come to more than the value of the set. The
manufactures charge a lot for the boards and parts, and the transport.
Then there is the labour.

The prices of the newer TV sets are dropping, and at the same time they
are giving more options and better performance at the lower price. I
would not have any idea of how far down the prices can go.

One suggestion that I always follow is to stay with name brand TV sets
only. This way there is authorized support. This way, during the
warranty period it is easy to have service.


--

JANA
_____


"jg2005" wrote in message
...
Hello

First time post to this group. I'm trying to help my Daughter. She has
a Panasonic HD Plasma TV
( 50" purchased in 2005) that has stopped working. It was on,
operating normally and there was a brief noise and the screen went off
& didn't come back on.

Called an authorised Panasonic repairer (we are in Melbourne,
Australia) who is giving a quote. He first said a "board" had blown &
quoted A$650.00 for the repair. Now he has called back & said
replacing that didn't fix it, that another board had also gone & is
now quoting a total of A$1380.00 to fix it & said there still could be
more.

Wondering if anyone would know how many boards these things have and
whether this sounds like a rip-off. A new full HD 50" Panasonic is
around A$2200.00 on special. I'm told the earlier models such as my
Daughter's were built to a higher standard - I know it cost around
$4,500.00 - where they much better?

I know this is a vague question but would appreciate any comments.
Thanks.