I have a TV that’s almost exactly the same as this one. The main problem with Vizio TVs is that, when you turn the screen on, it takes 10-15 seconds for an image to appear. Obviously this is nitpicky, but if you get a Vizio, that’s what you’ll notice right away.
Anyway, this TV comes with Yahoo! Apps, so there aren’t as many apps as on a Roku box or on another smart TV. But, it has the main ones, like Netflix, they work well, and you can pull them up at any time. My remote even has a Netflix button, to make it easier.
Overall, I am happy with the TV. I did not buy it from Woot, though, and I bought it new.
I bought a refurb Hisense TV a while back that arrived in good packaging, but the screen was damaged. Woot’s customer service was awesome about the return process and gave me a full refund. I’m not totally disillusioned on refurbished TVs, so I’m trying again, mostly because I know I’m covered if it’s broken.
Terrible experience buying a TV from woot - bought one last year and had nothing but trouble. First one took 3 weeks to arrive using a transport company I had never heard of, when it did, I had to wait at home during a 5 hour window for them to show up (and they were still late), and it turned out to be the wrong model… like TV in the box wasn’t even the same brand as the box carrying it. Woots response (swear to god, nothing more than this one line) “oops, sorry about that, we’ll send another one”. Quality control anyone?
Two weeks later and another stint waiting at home during the 5 hour window, the right TV showed up. I installed it only to find several dead pixels. Emailed woot again, they offered to pick it up and refund my money, but wouldn’t replace or fix it. No apologies, no credits for a future order, nothing. 5 weeks of wasted time and 4 stints waiting for a brand-less delivery company, and absolutely no concern or help from “customer service”… Strange, because both woot and Amazon have been known for their CS. Regardless, don’t ever buy a TV from this place.
I can’t be the first one to wonder, given Woot’s penchant for transparency and its stature, why they wouldn’t gladly try the following improvement idea…
It seems the most common refurb concern is ‘should I trust a refurb?’ - anything that can improve that trust would be good for Woot. And hopefully would encourage more comments regarding the actual product!
Develop a standardized “Refurb Category Rating” something like the following:
Manufacturer refurb: we got these directly from the manufacturer. If available, link to manufacturer policy included in product info.
Thrid Party Refurb: we go these from a trusted third party refurb company.
?: We do not know the extent of the refurbishment, but the price reflects that and this product is still covered by our wonderful return policy.
People have different tolerance levels for refurbs - some only trust the manufacturer and others are willing to take a bit more risk for the right deal.
I just purchased the 39" Vizio refurb’ed from woot, and the picture is great. Perhaps I’m lucky but there were absolutely zero scuffs on the unit, and so far it works perfectly. I don’t think I’d shell an extra $100 for 3 inches and some smart features, especially since I have an Apple TV and a bunch of game systems, but I have faith in woot’s refurbs.
I bought a 37" Vizio from Woot back in April of 2010 and it’s still running great, I personally wouldn’t hesitate to purchase another from them in the future. My experience…
I bought a 47" Vizio 3D back in January. Hooked components up through a receiver; but found that the RCA composite input on the TV did not work, so my WII and older VCR (don’t say it) couldn’t be used. I requested a RA, and checked on shipping it back… $100 for shipping! Unfortunately, I had disposed of the box and a major shipping company wanted over $50 to package and was very pessimistic about it reaching its destination without further damage. I decided against sending it back. I bought a HDMI adapter for the WII, so it works now; but just have reservations about buying refurbished again. I do recommend not disposing of the original packaging if you do purchase. I will say that mine came in original box and was packaged like new.
I’m sorry you had a proble with the delivery of your TV. We did have some issues with the LGs (actually a small percentage of those delivered) and we have worked with our vendors to improve packaging and delivery. Nothing is perfect but we will always work with you to make it right if the TV is damaged during delivery.
Yeah, I got a 42" Vizio a couple of months ago and it was shipped in the original box. Mine has a few dings in the back of the case, but luckily no screen damage and it still works. Woot REALLY needs to invest in some packages to ship these TV’s.
Interesting idea but probably not feasible. A few things to note:
We don’t refurbish any product ourselves.
The number of issues with damaged product is actually a very small percentage of any sale (low single digit percentage).
Customers with issues are more likely to post than those that are off enjoying their product.
We take every issue seriously and will work with you as best we can within our ability (e.g. availability of replacements, warranty, etc.).
Refurbs can take many forms:
Repaired & checked by third party company
Manufacturer refurbished (remember they can contract out to third party as well)
New but older model
Customer remorse return
Packaging change or correction
Overstock from other retailers
Again, we want your buying experience to be a good one and we will work with you to make that happen. Just bear with us when things don’t go as well as planned.
Does anyone know why this LED looks so thick?? Every LED I’ve seen looks very thin, while this TV looks more like an LCD or Plasma.
P.S. I have bought three refurb TV’s from woot in the past 5yrs and havent had single issue. In addition, I have over 90 purchases, most of which I would have to guess have been refurbs, and again, have had no issues…cosmetically or functionally
In regards to the 120 Hz, the reviewer in the CNET review made it sound as though it is actually 60 Hz. What does he mean by that? Also the lack of VGA input is a bit annoying, but I don’t know that it would stop me from buying as much as a 60Hz.
I have a 37" Vizio that I purchased from Woot 2 + years ago. refurb. I am pleased and it is working well. You might want to consider a square trade warranty. It is a bit scary after the first 90 day are finished.
you’re close. amazon has the best return policy ever. woot clings to their independent subsidiary title and makes their own rules. including being the only seller that subscribes to fulfillment by amazon yet doesn’t offer the speedy shipping.
But certainly your buyers know generally (or should know) what category of “non-new” they are buying. Otherwise why would Woot take a chance with its reputation - of an unknown product?
And you list some excellent additional rating categories that would be very helpful to potential Woot customers!
At a minimum, perhaps I don’t know where to look, but a link in each “non-new” product to a “what is a Woot refurb” page would be really nice. You’ve already written the first draft (above)!
Personally, I would never buy a refurb or used tv, nor would I buy even a new one online unless it was a truly awesome deal.
As for brands—I don’t think any of them would beat my Samsung. It has tons of features–some I don’t even know what they do—and a fantastic picture. Paid $1800 for it and have not regretted a single one of those dollars.
Added a Yamaha surround sound system and I am like a pig in mud : )