Jeremy Anderson
Screenwriter
- Joined
- Nov 23, 1999
- Messages
- 1,049
Two and a half weeks ago, I got my first RPTV -- a Hitachi 43UWX10B widescreen. For the first two weeks, it was perfect. I'm talking... calibrated with Avia, checked the convergence grid, dead-on perfect with no geometry or convergence problems. So then, I notice that the corners are looking kinda' fuzzy. I check the convergence patterns on Avia, and notice that in two of the corners the grid lines are really fuzzy and starting to bend upwards (moreso on the right side, which makes the geometry look odd at the top edge). So after tinkering with it a bit myself, I call Circuit City and have them send a local tech out to fix it.
This morning, this guy from Universal Electronics here in Mobile, AL who must have been 70 shows up with nothing but a clipboard. He sits down, looks at the screen for 30 seconds and asks what's wrong. So I put on THE MAN WHO WASN'T THERE so he can see how a black and white movie looks with blue corners and a red stripe down the middle of the screen. This guy tells me:
1. The convergence is within tolerance levels for Hitachi, which is 85%.
2. When asked what 85% tolerance means, he said (not joking) that it means that 85% of people wouldn't notice the problem (to which I told him that I'm part of the 15% who expect a $2,000 TV to work as it's designed to).
3. He says that I'm expecting too much from a rear projection unit and that I should reconsider and get a tube.
4. When asked if the corner focus can be adjusted in any way, he said that there are no service menu adjustments.
5. When I asked him to show me the TV's built-in convergence grid, he didn't know how to access it (even though I do).
6. When I asked to see the service manual, he said "I glanced at it on the internet last night, and there isn't anything that you can adjust."
7. When I asked if he was ISF certified, he had no clue what the letter stood for.
8. He told me that I would just have to learn to live with it.
I finally told the guy to get the hell out of my house because he was wasting my time. It's obvious that this guy's a moron... but am I expecting too much from a RPTV? I mean, for two weeks this thing looked brilliant! White screens were completely white! Now white screens have blue corners and a sepia-toned stripe in the middle, and this guy says that's normal for a RPTV.
I'm gonna' call and get Circuit City to bring me a new TV. But it's disheartening to know that their contracted RPTV service tech is such a buffoon. Or am I wrong? Am I just being too hard on the guy? Is this really just what I should expect from this TV?
This morning, this guy from Universal Electronics here in Mobile, AL who must have been 70 shows up with nothing but a clipboard. He sits down, looks at the screen for 30 seconds and asks what's wrong. So I put on THE MAN WHO WASN'T THERE so he can see how a black and white movie looks with blue corners and a red stripe down the middle of the screen. This guy tells me:
1. The convergence is within tolerance levels for Hitachi, which is 85%.
2. When asked what 85% tolerance means, he said (not joking) that it means that 85% of people wouldn't notice the problem (to which I told him that I'm part of the 15% who expect a $2,000 TV to work as it's designed to).
3. He says that I'm expecting too much from a rear projection unit and that I should reconsider and get a tube.
4. When asked if the corner focus can be adjusted in any way, he said that there are no service menu adjustments.
5. When I asked him to show me the TV's built-in convergence grid, he didn't know how to access it (even though I do).
6. When I asked to see the service manual, he said "I glanced at it on the internet last night, and there isn't anything that you can adjust."
7. When I asked if he was ISF certified, he had no clue what the letter stood for.
8. He told me that I would just have to learn to live with it.
I finally told the guy to get the hell out of my house because he was wasting my time. It's obvious that this guy's a moron... but am I expecting too much from a RPTV? I mean, for two weeks this thing looked brilliant! White screens were completely white! Now white screens have blue corners and a sepia-toned stripe in the middle, and this guy says that's normal for a RPTV.
I'm gonna' call and get Circuit City to bring me a new TV. But it's disheartening to know that their contracted RPTV service tech is such a buffoon. Or am I wrong? Am I just being too hard on the guy? Is this really just what I should expect from this TV?