Question

Totally bummed- the brand new "smart" TV I bought on Black Friday at Target literally less than 3 months ago stopped working yesterday- I've tried every fix I could find online (minus the ones where you open the back and start replacing mother boards and soldering capacitors and whatnot). I'm outside the return window for Target and I was dumb and got rid of the box and receipt, and the cost of shipping it back to the manufacturer in the HOPES of getting a repair or replacement would just not be worth it. So little time has passed, in fact, that I haven't even gotten rid of the TV it was replacing yet- which is an old big screen plasma TV that still works OK, so I'm going to look into buying one of the Roku players to tide us over until I can afford a better replacement. It wasn't a high-end model and was pretty cheap, but any TV should last more than a couple months, right? Just a shame because I bought this TV to help us cut cable and save money, and now I have a really nice paperweight :(

Answer 1

Have you called a tv repair person out?  

Comments

@homeopathist45 it looks like the cost of tv repair would not be much less than what I paid for it, but I will ask around.  

Answer 2

Does it have manufacturers warranty?  

Answer 3

Word of caution with electronics on black friday. many can be refurbished or mass produced for black Friday so they are not the quality you would anticipate.  

Comments

@pacian yeah, I thought I did my research but I'm guessing I got a dud.  

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@coat7 I've been burned before too :(

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O man! We got a returned black Friday tv at walmart about 3 years ago, and it's still going strong!  

Answer 4

Call local tv repair person.  

Answer 5

Same with one i got from costco. mind you i only saved $20. what black friday sale is $20?  

Comments

@gearard3 Costco will probably take it back

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They did i kept the box and had it on my cc acct but i had to pay the extra $20

Answer 6

Call target or do the online chat! They have pretty good customer service and will probably do something to help you out

Comments

@jovitajovitah543 I'm outside their 30 day return policy without the original packaging and receipt, unfortunately.  

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@coat7 You called them and they said that? Call again or do the online chat

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I've had this happen and they were able to print me a new receipt and was able to submit to manufacturer

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I was just going by their online return policy info. If there's a chance they'll be flexible, I will definitely try.  

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@coat7 Definitely call or use the online chat! I know this isn’t really the same but I bought a $30 train set for Christmas decor and it didn’t work after 5 minutes and I used the online chat and they sent me a brand new one for free and told me to do whatever I wanted with the old one. Still didn’t work, but after reading the reviews I gave up  no ones worked ‍♀️

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Unfortunately Target just totally blew me off since it was outside the return window (by two whole weeks). They told me to contact the manufacturer, so now I'm waiting to hear back from Westinghouse. It was worth a shot.  

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@coat7 I work for Target. You should attempt a "No receipt return". You just tell them that you recently purchased it and do not have a receipt or that it was a gift. They should be able to give you at least a merchandise credit on a store gift card.  

Answer 7

This happened to me a few years ago with a tv I had bought from sears. I emailed the manufacturer and they sent someone to my house to repair it.  

Comments

@purpure I bought a Westinghouse- their warranty only talks about shipping it back to them for replace or repair- but I will drop them an email.  

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@coat7 I would. my tv was a few years old and I just wrote an email saying how I normally liked their products but was disappointed that the tv I bought didnt last longer considering what I paid for it. They sent someone from Sears to fix it for me.  

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@purpure thanks for that info- I will try that approach!  

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@coat7 We bought a Westinghouse to try and save some money. same thing happened to us. Luckily Best Buy took it back and we decided that an LG was worth the extra money for quality and warranty.  

Answer 8

And if you used a credit card or debit card to buy it some actually extend the manufacturer's warranty.  

Answer 9

Our TV that was only like 5-6 years old when out a while back. We couldnt immediately find a TV repair (probably not many around anymore). So my hubby googled, watched You Tube videos, and ordered a motherboard to fix it (I think it cost like $60? ). Anyway he was able to then fix it himself on our dining room table. Works great now!  

Answer 10

My smart TV had an issue a while back and I thought it was done. But the problem was that it needed updated and it doesn’t do that through wifi, only hard wire. I won’t buy another smart tv only because I love my firestick and Apple TV more. So it’s still waiting to be updated but it doesn’t matter cuz I use a firestick anyway. Maybe yours needs to be updated.  

Answer 11

If you know the date, time and register #. They might be able to print you a receipt. If your screen has jagged lines of color? It means something hit the screen and broke it. Did you use a surge guard electrical extension with the TV?  

Comments

Yeah, I was able to bring up the purchase on my Target account luckily- I didn't even have a card saved but I added the one I used to buy the TV and it brought it up retroactively, which was cool. The TV won't turn on at all- it has a solid red standby light but will not turn on. It was plugged into a surge protected power strip.  

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@coat7 most christmas purchases from blk friday to christmas eve start the return policy from christmas. Tv s are usually a 90 day return policy. So you should be covered. At least thats how walmart does it. Call the manufacturer or email. If you end up shipping it to them Id go to a packing place and pay for boxing but you could cut and paste boxes together to ship Tv. With Amazon if your under warranty, theyll ship you a new one, and you use that box to ship the old one. Good luck.  

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@willem Nope, unfortunately Target was 30 days after the holidays, so it expired on 1/26/2020- and they just blew me off and told me to contact the manufacturer, so I'm waiting to hear what they say.  

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@coat7 Id write a very calm and pleasant letter to their regional supervisor, explain what happened, how you were treated. Explain that you thought they could treat you better, you were willing to do an upgrade exchange and pay the difference between the deal tv, which being a special purchase is unavailable, and whats available. Ask the regional or 1 800 customer service to make this right for you.  

Answer 12

While we haven’t had an issue with Target before, we have had other places tell us that defective electronics or things like vacuums, appliances need to be dealt with through the manufacturer. It is super frustrating. I hope you can get it resolved  

Answer 13

Your tv has a serial number and the manufacturer will usually honor that with a warrantee because they know when it was made and sold, even if you didn’t send in the paperwork.  

Answer 14

Did you use a credit or debit card for the purchase? Target can pull the records if you did. I use cash for my day to day spending on groceries, eating out and entertainment. However, for big purchases I use my credit cards. Then I have records, sometimes extended warranties and the ability to dispute a charge when the product or service is unsatisfactory.  

Answer 15

I had a TV just stop working like this a few years ago. My husband took the back off of the TV (because he said he couldn’t break it any worse lol) and there was a tiny fuse just past where the power cable goes into the back of the tv. I called a local tv repair place and they gave me a new fuse (for free). Popped the fuse in and the TV started working again. We still have that TV today. Hope this helps.  

Answer 16

Doesn’t Target have a 90 day return?  

Comments

@stefan72632 30 days for Electronics  

Answer 17

What brand?