I rant about stuff from time to time; often politics. But as a public service, I must warn you about Samsung. They do make wonderful products and seem to have a significant market share in televisions today. But woe unto you if something goes wrong with one of their TVs. In 40+ years of adult life, their customer service is the worst I have ever experienced with ANY product from ANY company.  I bought a 64-inch plasma 3D that was delivered on January 8 of this year. It was a great TV while it lasted–about 6 months. Then it abruptly failed, on July 6.  It took two weeks of calls (5 of them) to have my request for help  forwarded to the national service contractor that assigns technicians. They called me in a few days, said they would get back to me with a service date. They didn’t call. I called Samsung back and learned the request had been cancelled by the contractor. That is when I learned of the invisible asterisk in Samsung’s warranty. You will get in-home service for their wide-screen TVs ONLY if there is an authorized service center within a 25-mile radius of your home. So if you live outside a major metropolitan area–you are out of luck and out of service. Any guess how much geography this includes west of the Mississippi and east of California?

In lieu of honoring the plain language of their warranty, Samsung instead will provide an exchange/replacement or a refund of your purchase price. Expect that to take six to eight weeks from the time you first call for help. My first call to Samsung was on July 7. The TV was picked up on August 12. The direct deposit of my refund was on September 2. It took a few more calls (I was bumped up to what Samsung laughably calls “Executive Customer Service”–which means they annoy you more knowledgeably and emphatically in their non-helpful corporate way, not more courteously) to get to the refund/exchange department.  There I finally got to talk to the only live person, out of 8-10 I had dealt with up until then, who actually was courteous, helpful and even friendly–an Angie R (I hope mentioning her name and that she was helpful doesn’t get her in trouble for not following protocol or corporate policy to be dismissive or officious). A couple calls with her, then a couple more with the trucking company dispatch and the guys picked up the TV. Then a few automated emails from the refund/exchange people and the refund was eventually deposited–three weeks later. Perhaps you will not be surprised to learn that I will NEVER buy a Samsung TV again!