I’m 76 years old so have seen TVs evolve from the old valve days when TV enclosures were about 10 times larger than the actual screen to today’s electronic marvels – I love the modern big flat-screen TVs. I had always been a Panasonic man and the first of the more modern TVs I purchased was a 50″ Panasonic Plasma. That TV developed a fault after 54 weeks, just 2 weeks out of warranty. I contacted Panasonic hoping they might still honor the warranty but they refused to budge. That was the last Panasonic device I ever bought.
That incident led me to start thinking about just how measly TV warranties are. Most all of the big-name brand TVs – LG, Samsung, Sony, Panasonic, etc. – come with a lousy 12 months warranty. I think it’s incredulous that a TV potentially costing thousands of dollars, certainly hundreds of dollars come with the same 12 months warranty as a $20.00 toaster. That thinking eventually led me to the Hisense range of TVs which all come with a 3-year warranty as standard.
I’ve since owned three Hisense TVs, starting with a 50″ ULED, then upgrading to a 55″, and finally on to a 65″, which is my current TV. When buying my first Hisense TV, I was fortunate enough to come across a store that had three 50″ TVs, one of which was a Hisense, displayed side-by-side and all tuned into the exact same free-to-air channel. A perfect side-by-side comparison. I don’t recall the exact brands of the other two TVs now but they were big brand TVs costing between $400 to $600 more than the Hisense and with only a 12-month warranty. The picture quality on the Hisense was at least on par with the two big brand TVs, if not superior. I was sold.
What follows then is not so much a professional review of Hisense TVs but simply a summary of my experiences with Hisense TVs over the past decade.
Hisense Picture And Audio Quality
I’m certainly no expert in this field but, being part of a very large extended family, I have seen plenty of modern TVs in action and can attest that the picture quality on my Hisense TVs has always compared very well. In fact, plenty of visitors, family and friends, to my home have commented on my Hisense TV’s great picture quality.
The audio systems built into TVs are rarely up to scratch, especially in the cheaper brands, but the audio quality emanating from the Hisense TV’s native system is actually very good. I have my TV hooked up to a Yamaha 5.1 surround sound system but, if I had to, I could easily live with the TV’s native audio system.
How Smart Is A Hisense Smart TV?
This is the one very minor negative. NOTE: I can only attest to Hisense models up to and including 2021.
The smart component in the Hisense TVs is not as comprehensive as in the more expensive big brand models. There aren’t as many streaming services and apps natively supported and no feature to add more. However, this minor limitation can easily be overcome with the use of a streaming device. I have an Apple TV device connected to my TV but there are less expensive options available, such as the Google Chromecast, and the overall cost still represents excellent value.
Hisense Customer/Warranty Service
Now, this is where the Hisense brand really shines. Apart from the obvious advantage of the standard 3-year warranty, Hisense’s customer and warranty support are absolutely superb, second to none. There is no haggling, no mucking about, you report a fault to Hisense and they’ll organize a TV technician to come to your home to either repair or replace the faulty TV.
I’ve had to make two warranty claims over the years and both ended up with a brand new replacement TV delivered to my door, and in super quick time too. On the second occasion, the fault occurred three months after the warranty period had expired. Remembering the incident with Panasonic, I thought there would be no chance of a favorable outcome. I couldn’t have been more wrong. There was no haggling from Hisense and it didn’t even seem to matter that the TV was three months out of warranty. A brand new equivalent model was delivered to my door within a week of reporting the fault.
I cannot speak highly enough of the Hisense customer/warranty support. In this day and age, it is something one has to experience firsthand to actually believe.
BOTTOM LINE:
Everyone’s experience with TV brands is different. Some will say… I’ve owned an xxxxx brand TV for many years with never an issue. That’s fair enough but it doesn’t mean that everyone has shared a similar favorable experience. I can only relate my own experiences with Hisense TVs spanning a decade and they have been nothing but extremely favorable. Yes, I am a fan of Hisense.
Okay, your turn. What brand of modern smart TV do you favor and why? Let us know in the comments.
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Hi Jim,
Hisense warranty is only 1 year in USA https://www.hisense-usa.com/television-1-year-warranty
Hey John,
Goodness me, how things change from country to country. Hisense and TCL are the only two TV brands here that provide a 3-year warranty. I am very surprised to hear that Hisense only provides a one-year warranty in the U.S. I thought the 3-year warranty would have been worldwide.
Thanks for putting me and any readers straight John, appreciated.
I wonder if they sell a lower-quality TV to the US to make up for the lower-length warranty?
Maybe John. I did some research and the warranty on Hisense TVs changes from region to region. In the UK it’s 2 years, and in Europe it’s 2 years except for Spain and Portugal where it’s 3 years.
Maybe it’s based on population/numbers of units sold, it is rather strange.
Jim,
Also, I usually buy Samsung TVs at Costco (in USA). Costco gives a 2-year warranty on TVs. Also, if you use the Costco Visa credit card, they extend the warranty to 4 years. However, I read that starting in Jan (2023) the 2 years extension for CC purchases is going away.
Hi Jim
Totally agree with your quick review about the Hisense. Great TVs.
I recently bought a 43 inch 4K Hisense at JB HiFi to replace an ageing plasma in the bedroom that has served me faultlessly for many years. A little guilty, as I had no real excuse to replace it other than I felt like spending a bit of recent overtime on myself and tried to justify it with “Save the Planet – the old one must use a lot more power than the new ones”. I can easily turn a darker shade of “Green” when it suits !
When I got it home I unpacked it on the couch in the loungeroom where there was more room there, got the stands on and then the thought suddenly popped into my mind – “I wonder what it would look like attached to the PC ?”. So before I attempted to remove and install it in the bedroom I managed to squeeze it up onto the PC desk and hook it up. Was absolutely blown away with the quality of the 4K UHD display when using it as a giant monitor. I like flight sims so the large long and skinny monitors today condense the cockpit vertical view into a smaller viewing area whereas the TV screen dimensions really opens it up. I think that the 43 inch screen is probably about the largest size you could go as the 50 inch model would have probably been a bridge too far between me and the TV in the space I have in the PC area.
Now as I’m sure you have probably guessed the damn thing is still sitting there attached to the computer and I am probably going to have to buy another Hisense for the bedroom !!
Cheers
Reg
And a very Merry Xmas to you and all the Family
LOL. What a great story. Just tell yourself the second TV is from Santa. 🙂
Cheers Reg, and a safe and Merry Christmas to you and yours.
Some interesting parallels, Jim, as I’m also 76, and my first HDTV was also a Panasonic, bought in 2006, the one that was rated #1 by Consumer Reports. Funny story, but too long for a comment here. Suffice to say, I was still using the 42″ set in 2022.
Four months ago I bought an LG TV through Amazon. It had a blemish on the screen that matched a gouge on the box. Sent it back, and bought a 55U6H HiSense on sale at the local PX. Great TV, just as the reviews (and now you) said.
My audio comes via a set of Sennheiser cordless headphones, mostly to watch sports or DVDs, so the set’s built-in audio quality doesn’t matter to me.
I’d had this impression of HiSense as cheap Chinese junk, but can’t deny how wrong I was. I hope this set lasts as long as I do.
Hey Steve,
About 2 years ago I bought an expensive LG smart TV for the bedroom. Plugged it in and was about 10 seconds into the setup when it suddenly died. The retailer offered to replace it but I requested a refund. I wasn’t at all confident about replacing a brand new TV that lasted barely 20 seconds with the same brand and model.
Pleased to hear that you are happy with the Hisense.
Mine is 3 yrs old; Cost below $500. Zero problems.
It makes more sense to me to buy a good cheap TV, then replace it when it conks out. New technology and you have still paid less than one of the big brands over a long period.
“…makes more sense to me to buy a good cheap TV, then replace it when it conks out.”
My thinking, too.
I would offer you one caution on that idea of comparing two boxes playing side by side. You are likely not going to see two ‘top of the line’ Televisions of even the same model no. looking the same. The staff that set these displays up seldom do anything to actually SET THEM up for viewing other than connecting a power cable and source cable. I constantly complain to stores about this practice, and they just laugh at me. One guy actually asked me what I expected from them. They couldn’t do a better job of running customs to the Internet for their purchases if they had planned it that way. AND then they whine about customers running to the internet to buy their merchandise.
Jim, I am currently extremely pleased with the 55″ Samsung TV we are using as our monitor. It must be around 20 years old, maybe more and still working, though the tuner cannot recognize all the current over the air stations. That is where the Hauppauge tuner works for us. Allows for recording with ability to skip commercials connected to computer.
Had 2 previous tv’s, a 50 and 40, both no name brands, and they lasted from just over one year to just over two years. I am kind of taken back with the warranty issue, as computer monitors last many years and are in constant use and still come with a one year plan. Purchasing additional protection is IMHO a waste of money.
Watching the FIFA games, I do notice the ads for the Hisense brand. Might look into it at a future time, Mindblower!
Okay, you may all think I am wacko but I still use our 1993 model Mitsubishi picture tube TV in our bedroom and it can still hold its own against our Samsung big screen TV’s elsewhere in the house. Still running with great picture quality.That’s saying something!
Wow, an almost 30 year old cathode ray tube TV and still going. That’s amazing Harry.
It ain’t gonna find room in the landfill unless I have no other recourse, Jim.
I should hope not Harry. Those vintage CRT TVs are in demand from collectors and selling for good money.
Thanks for the tip, Jim. That is good news. Much like videotapes, open reels, LPs and cassettes, all of which I have plenty of.
But Harry, isn’t the resolution of the Mitsubishi only 480p?
Isn’t the screen ratio (probably) only 4:3?
I do applaud its longevity, though.
— Steve, who has a 20-year-old washer and 40-year-old dryer so understands where you’re coming from 🙂
Yes, it is a 4×3 aspect ratio, but it still fills most of the screen enough for me to follow what’s happening. I know some may be not settle for less than 4K but I am not that picky.
Three years into ownership, I had an issue with my Samsung 75″ and they sent a technician to replace all of its guts essentially after Samsung tried to diagnose it remotely. I had a 5-year
warranty (from Costco).