Buying a TV from Costco vs. Sam's Club (1 Viewer)

[Jim517]

Costco gives a second year of warranty service, plus 2 more years if you pay with a Costco credit card(4 years of coverage). I don't see anything like that on the Sam's Club website. I don't even see anything about an extended warranty being offered. Am I missing it?

Thanks.

 

[Ronald Epstein]

I would buy it from Costco. I know their return policy is pretty spectacular.

The only thing about televisions from Costco...

Be aware that in many cases, manufacturers make differently tiered versions of a particular model.

I always had the sense that Costco and clubs alike carried the lower-tiered version.

I suppose what I am saying is to know what you are going for before you purchase. Research the model. If Amazon carries it, read their reviews first. If Amazon doesn't carry it, it could be a specific model made just for Costco and I just don't know how good of a display it is.

 

[Jim517]

Thanks. Costco doesn't even sell the sets I'm considering at this point. The TCL 75R617 and Vizio P series Quantum.

Sam's also has a 90 day return policy, but I see nothing about an extended warranty.

 

[Ronald Epstein]

It used to be that you could buy anything from Costco and return it years later.

They have tightened up their return policy since then, but it's still better than most stores.

 

[TonyD]

I wonder what you did.

we bought a tv from Costco a bit over 7 years ago.
80” Vizio 3D tv.

They included a 5 year warranty that we never usued.

We still have the tv and it works very well.

I am itching to get a new tv so sometime within 12 months or so I’ll be buying a new 4K 80ish inch tv.

Saving my pennies.

 

[Jim517]

I haven't bought a TV yet. I'm probably going to wait for the new models coming out in the spring.

 

[Johnny Angell]

I would buy it from Costco. I know their return policy is pretty spectacular.

The only thing about televisions from Costco...

Be aware that in many cases, manufacturers make differently tiered versions of a particular model.

I always had the sense that Costco and clubs alike carried the lower-tiered version.

I suppose what I am saying is to know what you are going for before you purchase. Research the model. If Amazon carries it, read their reviews first. If Amazon doesn't carry it, it could be a specific model made just for Costco and I just don't know how good of a display it is.

Seems like I read someplace that manufacturers take the same TV and give it different model numbers. One for B&M and one for online companies. Their trying to make price comparisons difficult.

 

[Ronald Epstein]

Seems like I read someplace that manufacturers take the same TV and give it different model numbers. One for B&M and one for online companies. Their trying to make price comparisons difficult.

Well, why not. That is what mattress manufacturers do. Every try to compare store mattresses?

That could very well be the case, Johnny. I really don't know the inside secrets of the television manufacturing industry.

However, I am more of a believer that the high-end stuff ends up in stores like Best Buy and the lower end stuff ends up in the club warehouses. I mean, I walk into those stores and the first thing I pass are the televisions. I look at the prices on them and think, "Wow, I can get THAT for THAT?"

I have always lived with the mantra, "you get what you pay for."

 

[Johnny Angell]

Well, why not. That is what mattress manufacturers do. Every try to compare store mattresses?

That could very well be the case, Johnny. I really don't know the inside secrets of the television manufacturing industry.

However, I am more of a believer that the high-end stuff ends up in stores like Best Buy and the lower end stuff ends up in the club warehouses. I mean, I walk into those stores and the first thing I pass are the televisions. I look at the prices on them and think, "Wow, I can get THAT for THAT?"

I have always lived with the mantra, "you get what you pay for."

Come the day we’re shopping for a new TV, I’ll go to Sams (don’t have a Costco) and I’ll take pics of the model numbers, specs, and prices. I’ll go to Amazon and BB to try to find the equivalent TVs. Chances are I’ll find what I want for a good deal at Amazon. I don’t think of BB as a place to go for a good value.

 

[Ronald Epstein]

Well, I like to know what I am buying.

Like you mentioned, a lot of the model numbers from the clubs don't match up to anything selling anywhere else.

So, I rely on retailers like Best Buy and B&H Photo for several reasons. First, there are real-world user reviews posted on their sites. Next, if something goes wrong with the display, I have a retailer to return it to. I am not keen on buying televisions from Amazon. If something goes wrong with it I am not sure how reliable they are with a return. Anyhow, Amazon and Best Buy always match prices.

If you are looking to get a nice TV on the cheap, the clubs are the way to go.

Me, I only buy a new TV every few years and I usually buy the top-of-the-line model. So the clubs are out of the question for me.

 

[TonyD]

I wouldn’t sell the clubs short especially Costco.

7 years ago when I bought that tv I did a ton of research.
Here and AVS and anywhere else I could.

Every store that had TVs sold the same tv and the only diffeeence was the last 1 or 2 digits in the end of the model number.

The other difference was I trusted Costco back then much more then any other place I could go.

They included a 5 year warranty.
The price was the lowest.

I found the tv I wanted, found the place with the lowest price and best warranty and bought it.

It sounds a little snooty to disregard a place like Costco.
Don’t you buy the tv you want? What if you find what you want and Costco has it for the best offer.

My thought is that Costco can offer a relatively low price is that they are so big and can get deals from manufacturers passed on to the buyer.

Anyone can go on Costco .com and look at what they sell you do have to have a membership to see most prices but it’s easy enough to get that info from someone.

I guess if “you got a guy” that might be the best way to go.

 

[TonyD]

One additional thing I wanted to add is that it’s been 7+ years since I’ve shopped for a tv so I don’t know if clubs still do this with the model numbers.

I just did a quick look and I see they Coscto offers 6 OLED TVs, two most expensive will cost you $5500 (OLED77C9AUB) and $4300 ( OLED77B9PUA)77” each, plus extra for longer warranty.

So going by this and because I will look at TVs 77” and up I likely won’t be able to afford an OLED.

 

[Johnny Angell]

Well, I like to know what I am buying.

Like you mentioned, a lot of the model numbers from the clubs don't match up to anything selling anywhere else.

So, I rely on retailers like Best Buy and B&H Photo for several reasons. First, there are real-world user reviews posted on their sites. Next, if something goes wrong with the display, I have a retailer to return it to. I am not keen on buying televisions from Amazon. If something goes wrong with it I am not sure how reliable they are with a return. Anyhow, Amazon and Best Buy always match prices.

If you are looking to get a nice TV on the cheap, the clubs are the way to go.

Me, I only buy a new TV every few years and I usually buy the top-of-the-line model. So the clubs are out of the question for me.

I also like to know what I’m buying. It’s been several years, but I have returned a TV to Amazon and it was hassle free. I don’t remember if it was picked up or if I had to take it somewhere, but that would have been the extent of the hassle.

If it’s true that the clubs get lesser quality TVs, what makes them lesser quality? Cheaper build? Lower specs? If only the latter that should come out in comparison shopping.

 

[Josh Steinberg]

What I noticed when I was buying my TCL Series 6 (55” model) at the end of 2018 was that different stores had slightly different configurations and model numbers. As best I could tell, the panels themselves were exactly the same. The differences were all in what remote was being packed with the set. Some had fancier remotes that accepted voice commands, while others were just regular push-the-button types. That didn’t matter at all to me (“2001” is my favorite movie; I’m wary of talking to my electronics), but if it did matter to you, buying at one store over another might make a small difference.

 

[TonyD]

That’s a good point. From what I remember with my tv it came with 4 3D glasses instead of 2 from other places.

 

[sidburyjr]

What I heard a dozen years ago or so was that each retailer might have their own model numbers for the same set. This allowed the retailer to promise to not be undersold. So If you went to Best Buy and said that Sams was selling their TV for $100 less they could say "Ours in the model xyz321 and Sam's is selling the XYZ 322 so they are different models so we can't price match"

 

[Ronald Epstein]

If you want higher-end, you are not going to get them at the clubs.

I really think Amazon, Best Buy and B&H (who all have models at the same price) is a good starting point to find exactly what you are looking for and a reputable baseline of what the display should cost. The model numbers you get there can easily be compared across multiple retailers. Also, because they are reputable models, you can read professional reviews from the home theater review sites.

The club offerings, with their different model numbers, present a challenge. However, once you know what you want from above, you can go there, find the manufacturer, and start comparing the specs. It is true that club buyers are enticed by a few extra offerings not available with similar displays at regular stores. An example Tony gave might be, for instance, 3D glasses.

However, again, the clubs are fine for buying a television. They just aren't for TV snobs who want the best. They are perfect for the average joe who wants a new television at a bargain price. And I do have to say, I walk into Costco at least once a month and I am very impressed with the picture quality I see on those displays as I pass them. I just don't know how reliable they are in the end.

 

[TonyD]

. I just don't know how reliable they are in the end.

For how many years do you need a tv to last?

 

[DaveF]

I just don't know how reliable they are in the end.

Checking Costco: they're selling the major brands: Sony, LG, Samsung, Vizio, TCL, etc. Would they be any less reliable than buying these same major brands from Amazon or BestBuy or BH Photo.


They don't necessarily sell the top-tier TVs. Checking CostCo: They sell the Vizio's top-tier PX P-Series Quantum X. But they max out with Sony's 850 series, and don't have the 900 or 950 models or their OLED models. And these aren't

And they're the same model numbers. (Well, maybe the Sony is normally XBR65X850G and Costco is XBR65X850G/C, so maybe you can't price match? But...same model #.)

(Me: no warehouse / costco membership, don't shop there, don't care if anyone shops there )

 

[Ronald Epstein]

Checking Costco: they're selling the major brands: Sony, LG, Samsung, Vizio, TCL, etc. Would they be any less reliable than buying these same major brands from Amazon or BestBuy or BH Photo.

That's a grey area in my opinion.

Are they putting lesser quality parts in those televisions in order to drive the cost down?

For me, I would rather buy a television I could go online and read professional reviews on by matching the model numbers.

However, if the numbers are different, then the question is why. Are they lower-tiered models or are they being rebranded for club sales to avoid price comparison?