Active discussions

Meet the Other Phone. Flexible and made to last.

Meet the Other Phone.
Flexible and made to last.

Buy now

Please or to access all these features

Talk
Chat

Join the discussion and chat with other Mumsnetters about everyday life, relationships and parenting.

Original poster

Do you just need to upgrade your telly every few years?

51 replies

Wigeon · 27/03/2021 20:47

Got first smart TV in 2014. Bloody thing just keeps freezing when we watch anything not live, ie on demand, or YouTube. Do older TVs just not have the software to cope with modern streaming? And you have to get a new one every few years? It’s a Samsung, so a proper brand, although it was probably one of the cheaper models when we got it.

AIBU to expect a TV to last more than 7 years?!

OP posts:
BeakyWinder · 27/03/2021 20:50

I think YAB a bit U. I have a similar age smart tv and you can tell it's old, it's been moved to a bedroom and we have a newer one as the main TV. But that said, it was a cheap one, if I'd paid £600+ then I'd except a longer life. I'd want to be able to leave a £1k+ TV to someone in my will Grin

Borris · 27/03/2021 20:51

Mines nor a smart one but had second hand when my grandma died. That was 10 years ago and not sure how long my grandma had it before she died.

TheChippendenSpook · 27/03/2021 20:52

I got a Hitachi one last August and it does the same. Drives me mad!

ekidmxcl · 27/03/2021 20:54

Like all tech, I believe it’s made to break after a relatively short number of years. I bought a posh TV in 2017 and was pretty cross to find that in 2020, it was outdated and couldn’t do certain stuff.

Aroundtheworldin80moves · 27/03/2021 20:54

Our TV was bought in 2010 and works fine. Just rather small by modern standards.... Seemed massive back then.

Mum2jenny · 27/03/2021 20:55

Not in my opinion but my dh loves to change because he can!!

Spanglebangle · 27/03/2021 20:58

Ours is a similar age. Was bought as a smart TV and was brilliant at the time. Now all the smart features are practically defunct but the TV itself works fine.

I have been thinking recently that one day it is just going to go pop and that'll be it.

reallyisthisallthereis · 27/03/2021 20:58

bought ours in about 2006 and still working. Picture quality could be better and probably does need replacing but no problems with streaming / technology.

It was quite pricey as I remember - around the £1000 price which I winced at at the time but looking back, its been a fairly good investment.

JellyBabiesFan · 27/03/2021 20:59

Are you sure the problem is with the television? There is not a great deal of software needed for streaming.

Sounds more like your internet connection has slowed. Or perhaps the device you are using to stream is faulty.

JayAlfredPrufrock · 27/03/2021 20:59

We don’t have a smart tv. Kept looking but not choosing. Just too big!

Got a new Sky box which apparently has turned out old tv into a smart one. Go us.

Original poster
Wigeon · 27/03/2021 21:00

Hm. Thanks for interesting replies. I expect we spent as little as we could get away with; not particularly into fancy tech. But definitely expected it to work for more than 7 years!

OP posts:
ByTheStarryNight · 27/03/2021 21:02

Our tv is not smart but we have a firestick attached which only costs about £40 if it breaks, and gives us al the streaming and catch up stuff. Is that an option? Or am I missing some other features about smart tvs?

RuggeryBuggery · 27/03/2021 21:02

Grr yes this annoys me too! I think ours is maybe from 2014? Also Samsung. But quite ££ at the time.
Now it takes ages to ‘load up’ the smart bit and says ‘smart hub is loading’ or something
It’s not possible to get Disney plus on it, and with bbc iPlayer you can’t watch something from the start, that is currently on tv - both the last two things you can do on the newer Samsung in the other room.
It also randomly switches itself off from time to time 🙄

ExponentiallyDepleted · 27/03/2021 21:04

We are still using a non-smart TV as our main one, it's probably 12 or so years old and we get round it by having Sky Q and the x-box to do all the smart stuff. We don't want to replace it because it's the perfect size for the room (37") and it seems hard to get them that size now, also picture quality etc is still good.

Our bedroom TV, which is smart and about 8 years old started failing all it's smart functions in the first 4 years or so (Iplayer was the first thing to go), we use it with a SkyQ mini now. Not very impressed.

Quornflakegirl · 27/03/2021 21:10

We have a 12 year old Samsung that is still going strong.

Original poster
Wigeon · 27/03/2021 21:11

@JellyBabiesFan

Are you sure the problem is with the television? There is not a great deal of software needed for streaming.

Sounds more like your internet connection has slowed. Or perhaps the device you are using to stream is faulty.

Yes, the internet sometimes feels quite slow, even though we upgraded a while ago to Virgin Media’s next package as the slow speed was driving us round the bend (especially with 4 ppl in the house during the lockdowns).

Already paying £57 a month for that, which feels extortionate! Maybe I need a different thread on whether you can expect decent internet for £57!

OP posts:
BeingATwatItsABingThing · 27/03/2021 21:13

We got ours second hand in 2016. No idea how long she had it but about a couple of years I would guess. Brilliant tv! Still works perfectly now and we watch barely any live TV.

Roominmyhouse · 27/03/2021 21:17

You haven't got a JVC by any chance have you op? Ours shuts down randomly but not often enough for us to replace it! 🤣

BestOption · 27/03/2021 21:23

🤣🤣I have a Philips - I was given it in 2009 when I moved in here & it wasn't new then

It's very heavy and very 'deep' - a proper old tele, not modern tech. I've even knocked it off the tv table it's on (it has wheels, I was pushing it and the wheel hit something and the tv fell off face first! It was fine). It may outlive me!

However, I think a modern/tech tv won't last anything like that long. Stuff just isn't built to last anymore, but generally the price reflects that. My friend has just had to replace hers, it still had a lovely picture, but it was taking anywhere up to 45 minutes to come on. (She tried the online suggestions, but nothing worked).

Costco have some good deals at the moment '& a 5yr guarantee

RedcurrantPuff · 27/03/2021 21:29

I spent £1000 on a then top of the range but non smart Panasonic Viera in 2008. We put it in another room and bought a bigger smart Phillips in 2019 for about £400 which is crap in comparison, it keeps freezing. I’ll be surprised if it lasts 13 years.

wingsnthat · 27/03/2021 21:31

I mean, I was 16/17 in 2014 - it was a very long time ago! Tech has evolved rapidly since then and at the time, you bought a budget model, so I’m not surprised it that feels outdated now. Mid-high end devices are likely to be supported for longer and therefore have the longevity you’re after. Cheap and long term effectiveness don’t necessarily go hand in hand.

Are you able to update the firmware?

If not, definitely troubleshoot your internet. As someone else said, it isn’t difficult for a TV to stream on demand content so it’s likely to just be poor bandwidth

wingsnthat · 27/03/2021 21:35

the slow speed was driving us round the bend (especially with 4 ppl in the house during the lockdowns).

Yes, there was an increased amount of people using home broadband everywhere, slowing speeds for every household as significantly more people were accessing it at the same time.

RB68 · 27/03/2021 21:38

We just inherited a 49 inch screen - its like being at the cinema lol. Not sure what to do with the other one DD has Granny's old one and we don't have bedroom TVs...May have to be ferreted away till home office build

321zyx · 27/03/2021 21:39

Our 2010 Samsung smart tv is still going strong, as is our 2008 Sony freeview (to which I should be able to add a 'smart' dongle thing to but it seems our wifi can only cope with one smart tv at a time!).

BJHair · 27/03/2021 21:51

I have a Samsung 50inch but it’s not smart tv am we have the fire stick for that so it’s definitely old about 10 years it’s fine
But we are going to get a new one later this year

Swipe left for the next trending thread