Setting up a flat screen TV.

March 30, 2017 2:24 AM

Hi everyone; So,I want to buy a flat screen TV(53"). I have never owned one before. Anyhow,my concern is that I have heard they are very difficult to set up. I was told I should pay $299 at Best Buy for them to set it up. Is setting up one of these that hard? I don't want to mount it on a wall,just buy it,take it home,watch DVD's,lol.
posted by LOOKING to Technology (22 answers total)

It's relatively easy to set up a modern TV, and they come with instructions that most people will find simple to follow. You likely won't need any help to do it yourself. Even if you do, $299 is a comically extortionate price for the service. I find it difficult to believe that's a genuine figure even. Whatever you do, please do not pay $299 to have some guy plug in your TV for you!
posted by cincinnatus c at 2:37 AM on March 30, 2017 [15 favorites]

I don't have cable (here in the UK it's not that common) but my TV has the following wires poking out the back:

* Power lead to wall outlet
* Aerial lead to wall outlet
* HDMI cable to DVD player
* HDMI cable to AppleTV

Aaaaaand that's it. Unless you have a far more complex setup, $299 to unbox and plug in a TV is a downright scam. The cables are completely user-intuitive and you won't break anything. You can easily do this yourself.
posted by A Robot Ninja at 3:39 AM on March 30, 2017

Let me see.... connect power to TV... connect power to DVD player... connect DVD player to HDMI1 on the TV... power everything on using the remotes... watch DVD! Assuming your cable box also has HDMI, connect that to HDMI2 and you should be (mostly) good to go.

If you're not connecting up external sound (sound bar or 5.1/7.1/whatever system) then there's generally not an awful lot to it. The only thing I can think of that I've had to do in the past is to go into the DVD box's menu (or the cable box's menu) and set the correct picture mode (usually 16:9).

'Smart' TVs often have all kinds of extra junk that you may or not want to use, and which may or may not require configuration (Netflix, Amazon Prime, things like that).
posted by pipeski at 3:41 AM on March 30, 2017 [2 favorites]

The $299 thing is a 'scam' (not technically a scam, just an upselling thing) designed to play on the uncertainties of mostly older people who find technology in general daunting.
posted by pipeski at 3:43 AM on March 30, 2017 [9 favorites]

To add to @pipeski's list, you'll also need to attach the stand to the set. That may require a screwdriver.
posted by askmehow at 4:13 AM on March 30, 2017 [1 favorite]

It can be helpful to have a second set of hands (to carry it or to attach it to its base, etc) but you definitely don't need to pay someone $299 to set it up.
posted by TwoStride at 4:53 AM on March 30, 2017 [1 favorite]

If you're new to HDTV, I'm going to take a guess and assume you don't have any HDMI cables to connect the TV to various things.

Best Buy is notorious for charging extravagant amounts of money for these cables. The boxes will rave about the signal quality that's necessary for your amazing new TV when, in reality, they all work exactly the same.

I would recommend getting your cables ahead of time from a site like Monoprice so you can skip the upsell when you finally make the purchase. Most TVs do not come with any extra cables, so it's good to have them on-hand so you can start watching your shows ASAP. Enjoy!
posted by JoeZydeco at 5:31 AM on March 30, 2017 [1 favorite]

The TV will be heavy, unwieldy, and may not easily fit in your car. Otherwise, no big deal.
posted by theora55 at 5:44 AM on March 30, 2017 [1 favorite]

Yeah, if you're not mounting it to a wall "setting it up" involves plugging in a few cables. It's basically impossible to get that wrong cause they're all differently shaped. Even if you were mounting it to a wall and wanted that professionally done, that wouldn't cost more than $100-$150.

The fact that they would charge $300 to 'set up' a new TV is... I can't decide if I'm pissed off or impressed about how brazenly awful that is.
posted by Itaxpica at 6:23 AM on March 30, 2017

Okay, so I work for the company mentioned. If you just want someone to deliver your TV, take it out of the box, put it on the stand, and take away the packaging and possibly your old TV, that isn't the same as "set-up". That's just delivery. It's not always free, but if you haven't bought the TV yet, you could wait until the one you want offers a deal where delivery is included or discounted. The main value here is the labor provided in transporting the new TV, and in taking your old TV to be recycled.

"Set-up" has tiered offerings that include doing things like hooking your TV to your audio components, configuring your TV's picture, adding it to your wifi network, running cables, etc. The price is dependent on what you want them to do and how complex your existing electronics are. If you don't need any of this, then you definitely don't need to buy a set-up package. Set-up is for people who buy, or have, an entire home theater system and want somebody else to put it together for them.

So what you want is delivery, not set-up.

I feel sort of ironic that I'm answering this question because I'm procrastinating instead of getting ready for work.
posted by Autumnheart at 6:29 AM on March 30, 2017 [3 favorites]

Best answer: Let's talk about what you'll need in your specific instance. If getting it home by yourself would be an issue, Best Buy claims to currently offer free standard delivery for TVs larger than 51".

Look at your current devices and see what connectors you'll need. Does your cable box offer HDMI, or just component video? How about your DVD player? Try to arrange it so you don't need any adapters to connect to your new TV. If your new TV player has lots of HDMI inputs, but only one component video input, and your DVD player doesn't have HDMI out, think about getting yourself a new Blu-ray/DVD player.
Once you've looked at outputs and inputs, and you know which cables you need, take JoeZydeco's advice and buy them somewhere like Monoprice.
posted by zamboni at 6:34 AM on March 30, 2017 [3 favorites]

The main value here is the labor provided in transporting the new TV, and in taking your old TV to be recycled.

Recycling the old set is apparently an extra $15. Might be worthwhile, depending on your local waste disposal policies.

Good luck at work today, autumnheart!
posted by zamboni at 6:38 AM on March 30, 2017

Shows how much I listen when they change our delivery conditions. It used to be "pay for delivery, recycle old TV included" and now delivery is sometimes free but recycling is a little extra. For me personally, $15 is still a pretty good deal for someone else to deal with the old set, especially if it's a CRT. They'll take it back to the store and then we do whatever we do with it. (Part items out, refurbish some if they're newer, sort out items that need heavy metals disposing, etc.)
posted by Autumnheart at 6:47 AM on March 30, 2017

The only wrinkle I'd add is that a 50" TV will likely need 2 people to comfortably unbox and setup. But otherwise, the process is straightforward once you have the right cables as mentioned above.
posted by craven_morhead at 7:37 AM on March 30, 2017 [1 favorite]

Response by poster: WOW-Thanks everyone for all the help & tips!
I don't feel so nervous now about hooking up the TV.

Thanks again :-)
posted by LOOKING at 8:15 AM on March 30, 2017

Another benefit of having the TV delivered is the replacement in case of accident while you're getting it home and unboxed. If they drop it, you get another one. If you drop it, you're SOL unless you bought the replacement plan.
posted by Autumnheart at 8:26 AM on March 30, 2017

Best answer: I always buy cables at dollar stores. So far every one I bought has worked fine. And even if they didn't I'm only out a buck or two.
posted by fimbulvetr at 10:06 AM on March 30, 2017

I always buy cables at dollar stores. So far every one I bought has worked fine. And even if they didn't I'm only out a buck or two.

Getting off thread here, but be cautious following this advice for any charging cable, particularly USB-C.
posted by zamboni at 10:22 AM on March 30, 2017 [2 favorites]

Yeah, good point. I stick to buying audio, video, and telephone cables at he dollar store - HDMI, RCA, coax, that sort of thing.
posted by fimbulvetr at 10:29 AM on March 30, 2017

I installed by 32" TV a few years a go. It's worrisome because of the danger of dropping it or having it tip. Getting it into the stand was an issue. It would be more involved to install a wall mount. I wanted to use an HDMI cable, but our cable box only had the RCA-type jacks, so I had to use that. I did have an issue that I don't actually remember, but I called the Vizio service line, and they were very helpful. I later added a CD recorder/player, and it was tricky to figure out how to do that.

I would go it alone if 1) you have a second set of hands for moving the actual unit, and 2) you have the TV/computer savvy to understand the manuals, figure out the cables, and work with the built-in menus via the remote.
posted by SemiSalt at 10:37 AM on March 30, 2017

When you know what model TV you want, check out YouTube for unboxing and setup videos. Seeing it opened and setup on video can be very helpful with understanding how to do it yourself, especially if you think you might be confused by the TV's inputs or software (channel setup, etc.). The manufacturer may even have created their own videos showing how to set up the TV, either on YouTube or their site, so look for those as well.
posted by i feel possessed at 5:26 AM on March 31, 2017

The TV will be heavy, unwieldy, and may not easily fit in your car. Otherwise, no big deal.

Modern 53 inch TVs are not heavy, but otherwise you are correct. The transitions from Plasma to LCD to LED backlit LCD have reduced the weight a lot.
posted by w0mbat at 1:28 PM on March 31, 2017