Costco TV – Should You Buy your LCD Television at Costco?

Costco Members probably already know the value of buying an LCD TV from Costco, but if you are not a member and are looking to purchase a large LCD Television then you should probably spend 2 or 3 minutes reading this article and learning why Costco is a great place to buy and LCD TV.

Walk into any Costco and the first thing you see are dozens of LCD TV’s… and it doesn’t matter if it’s Christmas, Easter, or the middle of the Summer – Costco is invested heavily in consumer Televisions. And while Visio is Costco’s clear price leader if you are not a member you may be surprised to note that Sony and Samsung are major players for shelf space as well. The scope of this brief article is not to delve into technical issues (Sony and Samsung share many manufacturing facilities for LCD Panels) but rather to discuss the merits of purchasing at Costco vs other retailers.

LCD TV has replaced the big screen Plasmas from a few years back. Again not to discuss the technical merits (Plasmas are all but gone for practical purposes) LCD is here to stay for the immediate future. So the real question isn’t should you buy an LCD screen or a Plasma Screen it’s whether you should buy from Costco or another retailer.

Is there a downside to buying an LCD TV at Costco?

Actually there is a downside. The displays are often inconveniently high for smaller people to view straight on. Displays can also be tilted to the side in smaller stores without sufficient shelf space. Another downside is the help isn’t always available or that great. If you don’t know much about HDMI or LED or Satellite Connections or how your TIVO will hook up you may not always find the answers you need readily available. In my own experience (Being an Electronics “Nerd” of sorts – I write down the model numbers and research online before I buy) it hasn’t mattered. But for you it may be important. Some Costco Electronics team members are very knowledgeable and some are not. But I’ve found this to be true in Best Buy and Fry’s as well. If you want to find out simply ask a question to the “associate” you already know the answer to and listen to their response. Best buy sales people are not on commission. I do not believe that Fry’s are either (After writing this I visited Fry's and found out they are paid commissions).

TV Prices and Features

Costco is traditionally very good at securing good prices on the products their buyers select. And while not always the latest model or the very top of the line, you can be assured that on average the product offering is “above grade” in comparison to other retailers. For example: You can shop for TV’s at Walmart and find good prices, but you should really dig deep into model numbers if you do and make sure the TV you select has the feature set you need. A lot of low end retailers (And yes I consider Walmart a “low end” retailer will buy the big brands, but offer models that really skimp on features in order to meet a price point. If you need to hook up a Play Station, Xbox, Satellite TV, Blue Ray player, etc… make sure the model you select has the connections you need to make it all happen.

Costco vs. the Other Guys

Let’s get back to the Costco vs. other retailer’s decision. Recently I had the opportunity to visit Fry’s electronics Las Vegas store, multiple Costco locations, and Best Buy. While I didn’t do extensive research I did try to compare some similar models of Samsung and Sony TV’s (I’m not a big Visio Fan). Fry’s had the very top of the line models on display and the ability to view such a variety was a real bonus. Best buy had a limited selection of the models I was interested in and did a pretty poor job of displaying them in my opinion (At least at the store I visited). Costco was hit or miss in terms of display for some of the mid range models (Some were turned sideways so you could see the full screen). Bottom line is all 3 retailers had models that would meet my specifications.

Now I really want to get the very best top of the line model all of the time, but it seldom makes sense. To purchase the top of the line Samsung in the size I am looking to purchase is a full $1,500 more than the 2^nd in the line! And the top of the line doesn’t have any more connections that what I need. The top of the line was not available at Costco or Best Buy – but Fry’s had it. I really like their selection, and do buy products there from time to time (Many things that Costco doesn’t carry).

I completely ruled out Best Buy as an option due to their restrictive return policy. And Fry’s as well. Here is a blurb about TV’s at Fry’s

Refunds cannot be given on televisions 24" and larger. In-home service is offered by the manufacturer on large TV's and may be your most convenient option. Defective items may be returned within 30 days of the purchase date for replacement or upgrade. Please insure sufficient packaging is used to protect any return shipments. Customer is responsible for any damage caused due to insufficient packaging.

Watch out for Restock Fees, Return Refusals, etc. Bottom line is unless you know for sure what you want Costco is your very best option in terms of returns.

Instead of digging so deep into all of them here I’m going to just include the links so you can read about LCD TV return policy at their respective sites:

• Fry’s Return Policy
• Best Buy Return Policy
• Costco Return Policy

Costco is in business to make their members happy. Costco offers members 90 days to return TV’s while the competitors offer only 30 days. You can increase your selection by ordering at Costco.com then in the event you do need to make a return you can return to the local Costco.

Big Bonus if You Buy Your LCD TV at Costco

• For COMPUTERS, TELEVISIONS and PROJECTORS, Costco extends the MANUFACTURER'S WARRANTY to two years from date of purchase. Please call Costco Concierge™ Technical Support @ 1-866-861-0450 for warranty assistance.

• For FREE technical support, set-up help, or warranty assistance for televisions, computers, cameras, camcorders, and iPods / MP3s, call Costco Concierge™ Services @ 1-866-861-0450.

When it comes to Big LCD TV’s in excess of $1,000 Costco is really tough to beat! A very solid product line, very good prices, and service and return options second to none! So if you have to have the very latest top of the line model that just came out and are not willing to wait then perhaps Costco is not the place to buy your LCD Screen, but if you are like most people who just want a really good LCD TV and not have to worry about making a mistake in choosing the wrong model then Costco is definitely the place to buy your LCD TV.

I’d love to hear comments on your experience with Costco LCD TV – both good and bad.