Samsung TV with blown LEDs: repair it or bin it?
A 5-year-old Samsung 4K with a darkened screen. A repair costs €150 but LED strips are €40 on eBay. Is the DIY route worth it?
English · Original discussion in Spanish · Published
Samsung TV with blown LEDs: repairing it at home or not worth the hassle
Repairing a five-year-old Samsung TV with blown LEDs doesn't add up: the prices of new televisions have left it in no-man's-land. But it's not a straightforward conclusion; between DIY repair and an independent workshop there are nuances that decide whether it's worth opening the casing.
How much does the DIY repair cost?
According to collected experiences, complete LED strips for a 40" Samsung model can be found on eBay for less than 40 euros. The process, although it takes time to disassemble the TV, doesn't require advanced knowledge: there are YouTube tutorials that guide you step by step. One user managed to replace the strips successfully and was satisfied.
The repair service odyssey
The other route is going to an independent repair service. The bill comes to around 150 euros. The problem: in one documented case, the repair lasted barely a year, probably because they fitted second-hand or low-quality Chinese strips. Samsung's official service, which is more expensive, doesn't always deliver better results, since out of warranty the cost skyrockets.
The alternative: a new TV
With a cost of 400 to 500 euros for a current 4K TV, the amortisation works out at around 100 euros a year if the set lasts five years. Beyond that point, any repair costing more than a third of the value of the device becomes unviable.
So unless you're handy and have a couple of hours to spare, the most sensible thing is to start looking at deals. But beware: next time it may not last you more than half a decade either.
Repairing a five-year-old Samsung TV with blown LEDs doesn't add up: the prices of new televisions have left it in no-man's-land. But it's not a straightforward conclusion; between DIY repair and an independent workshop there are nuances that decide whether it's worth opening the casing.
How much does the DIY repair cost?
According to collected experiences, complete LED strips for a 40" Samsung model can be found on eBay for less than 40 euros. The process, although it takes time to disassemble the TV, doesn't require advanced knowledge: there are YouTube tutorials that guide you step by step. One user managed to replace the strips successfully and was satisfied.
The repair service odyssey
The other route is going to an independent repair service. The bill comes to around 150 euros. The problem: in one documented case, the repair lasted barely a year, probably because they fitted second-hand or low-quality Chinese strips. Samsung's official service, which is more expensive, doesn't always deliver better results, since out of warranty the cost skyrockets.
The alternative: a new TV
With a cost of 400 to 500 euros for a current 4K TV, the amortisation works out at around 100 euros a year if the set lasts five years. Beyond that point, any repair costing more than a third of the value of the device becomes unviable.
So unless you're handy and have a couple of hours to spare, the most sensible thing is to start looking at deals. But beware: next time it may not last you more than half a decade either.
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Summary of a discussion on Burbuja.info - Foro de economía, actualidad y política., translated from Spanish and reviewed before publication. Read the full discussion (24 replies).
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