[ForeRunner]

Dear Friends,

I am planning to visit my home for this Diwali and want to gift my parents a good 40" LED TV. I plan to buy this TV from US and bring it to India. I hope some of our friends have already done this. Following are my concerns.
1. How much I need to pay as customs duty. My TV may cost between $700- $1000 USD.
2. Will the Tuning System (ATSC / QAM / NTSC) be compatible in India? If not what equipment(s) I need to procure additionally.
3. For warranty and support should I have to specifically ask the manufacturer?

Apart from the above I am still undecided on which brand I shuld go with.
Presently I have Sharp, Samsung and Sony in my mind with sharp leading the race. A lot of user reviews give inclination towards Sharp. Please advice me to decide on this.

Models considered:
Sharp -LC40LE830U -$700
Samsung- UN40D6000 -$800
Sony- KDL-40EX523 -$800

I haven't considered 3D since my parents won't watch any 3D programs. If putting $250 more to get an equivalent 3D is worth I will consider too.

Help me to decide friends.

Thanks in advance.

[Sankar]

I honestly don't think you would get any warranty in India for a TV bought in America. Non warranty support might be a bit of a hassle too if the respective model is not available locallly. Also you may need a voltage converter.

Why buy from there? Is the price difference too huge?

[mayankjha1806]

The price difference between US and Indian in television is of significant value but the amount of time and pain, and not to forget customs hassle etc you will go through will make it not such a nice experience. Apart from price there are problems and risks in televisions getting damaged in transit or planes cargo area as between US and India there is atleast one hop.

There have been friends of mine who have got their televisions successfully from US and Singapore and some had broken sets or something or the other got damaged. So take a call carefully

[Maverick1977]

I bought my 40" Samsung LED from Bangkok exactly 5 days back. The answer as to buying from there was simple - the price difference was close to 15K and that to me was quite a significant difference.
Total duty paid was Rs. 1700, of course after driving a hard bargain with the customs officer. I still feel I paid more since my colleague paid just Rs. 715 for his 32" LED TV. The key here is to be patient with the customs officer and persuade him as much as possible.
Installed it yesterday & my viewing experience has never been like before. I am now planning to subscribe to HD channels for an even better viewing experience.
I will suggest you consider buying a Samsung or Sony since both have a good foothold here & minor spares & service might not be an issue. Sharp might be an issue in this department.
My take is you see the equivalent model on ecommerce sites like letsbuy & then compare them with the prices you are getting for. Price difference should be the key I say.

[athanedar]

Samsung LED 40inch in India cost around 58K. I believe there will be lot of diwali offers and you might get a further good deal by neogitating.
I would recommend not be buy it from US. Buy it in India to avoid following hassles :
1. Warranty support issues
2. What if airline goofs up and your TV gets damaged in transit ?
3. Voltage compatibility issues
4. Avoid custom duty. You will have to pay 37.5% custom duty above Rs. 26K. So if your TV costs around 40K then 37.5% on the difference which is 14K. It comes to around
5.5 K. I am sure you will bring some other stuff as well along with TV. So custom duty would be more

[mxx]

1. Few years back while shopping for LCD/Plasma here and in middle-east, the difference in price(after regular discounts from MRP) was less than 10k. Add to this duty and stuff. Add to this, diwali discounts and the difference will be even less.
2. Warranty: No warranty will be applicable. Some products do have international warranty if bought from duty free hubs like dubai,singapore etc. Else, no warranty. If unfortunately anything goes wrong, LED repair out of warranty are very expensive. If you buy from India, you can go for extended warranty of upto 3 years(4 in some stores).
3. Compatibility issues: I am not sure about this. But unit sold in asian region are same so do not have compatibility issues. However since you are buying from US, you need to check this.

Please note: when comparing prices by checking online, dont look at mrp, the actual price at which it is sold at stores are much lower. Also check for seasonal discounts.

[patil]

I will definetely give you a one line answer dont ever think of it its not worth the trouble and pain.

[BaCkSeAtDrIVeR]

We got a 32In Haier LED TV from UAE. Haier has no presence in TV segment in India. (The relative in UAE got it as a gift / prize).

We did not pay any duties, since the cost was within duty free allowance of the person carrying it. (couriered through a person who was on an emergency return - to attend a critically ill relative - hence he had no other baggage).

No problems with voltage or other issues. There may issues with power socket - sometimes you get different sized / shaped power socket in other countries. Most items nowadays come with self selecting voltages. (NOT the high end AV receivers / amplifiers used in home theatre systems).

Warranty may be an issue my phone will not be covered by warranty - again purchased in UAE.

[mayankjha1806]

Originally Posted by Maverick1977

I bought my 40" Samsung LED from Bangkok exactly 5 days back. The answer as to buying from there was simple - the price difference was close to 15K and that to me was quite a significant difference.

Originally Posted by athanedar

2. What if airline goofs up and your TV gets damaged in transit ?
3. Voltage compatibility issues
4. Avoid custom duty. You will have to pay 37.5% custom duty above Rs. 26K. So if your TV costs around 40K then 37.5% on the difference which is 14K. It comes to around
5.5 K. I am sure you will bring some other stuff as well along with TV. So custom duty would be more

I guess that is one reason folks bring it from Singapore and other Asian countries where the voltage and probably models retailed are similar. Getting one from US is quiet low in number as there are other operational hassles as well.

[NetfreakBombay]

In LCD / LED TVs, Voltage is of no consequence. TV would work in any country.

This is because of SMPS. TV suns internally on DC and SMPS converts voltage from 110V to 240V to internal DC voltage.

[C300]

+1 to most of the views here. IMO its not worth it to buy overseas. In recent years, the prices of electronic equipment have significantly reduced in India and most of the international brands are present with their latest offerings. A good package can be negotiated with the dealer during festive season.

[serious_maniac]

Originally Posted by ForeRunner

Dear Friends,

I am planning to visit my home for this Diwali and want to gift my parents a good 40" LED TV. I plan to buy this TV from US and bring it to India. I hope some of our friends have already done this. Following are my concerns.
1. How much I need to pay as customs duty. My TV may cost between $700- $1000 USD.
2. Will the Tuning System (ATSC / QAM / NTSC) be compatible in India? If not what equipment(s) I need to procure additionally.
3. For warranty and support should I have to specifically ask the manufacturer?

Apart from the above I am still undecided on which brand I shuld go with.
Presently I have Sharp, Samsung and Sony in my mind with sharp leading the race. A lot of user reviews give inclination towards Sharp. Please advice me to decide on this.

Models considered:
Sharp -LC40LE830U -$700
Samsung- UN40D6000 -$800
Sony- KDL-40EX523 -$800

I haven't considered 3D since my parents won't watch any 3D programs. If putting $250 more to get an equivalent 3D is worth I will consider too.

Help me to decide friends.

Thanks in advance.

I was planning but did not go for it and the main reason was NTSC / PAL issue. However HD set top boxes like Videocon HD have setting for both NTSC and PAL output.

So if you want to bring the TV:

- Bring good model (to take advantage of the difference) and as closer to Rs.25K as possible to avoid duty. Also remember now the Rupee is losing value (5% in last few months) making import expensive.

- Try to get a direct flight to India. Generally airlines will handle it well - of course there are cases of broken screens etc. but am sure the rate is pretty low.

- Be aware of NTSC issue - i am not sure if you will have an issue with DVD players etc. For set top box, I have told Videocon HD will work well. NTSC to PAL converters arent good and are expensive.

- Warranty is a non-issue as TVs do not go bust in the usual 1 yr warranty period. Of course remember it is just those fraction of cases where it goes bust and that is where you require warranty.

- Voltage : you will need step-down as I do not think the TVs in US are compatible to 220 V 50 Hz. Buy a transformer - I saw one in Walmart at $20.


- Safe, middle of the road option (that I excercised) buy from duty free shop after landing in India. 32" TVs come within 25k so no issues. 40" TVs would go to 40K (including duty). The savings arent very high, choice is limited (Sony) and falling rupee is not helping.


Balance out your savings vs. hassle you can take.

Hope the above helps.

~maniac

[rajanprash]

Originally Posted by C300

+1 to most of the views here. IMO its not worth it to buy overseas. In recent years, the prices of electronic equipment have significantly reduced in India and most of the international brands are present with their latest offerings. A good package can be negotiated with the dealer during festive season.

I do agree with most of the views here, would beg to differ. I got a LED 3D TV from Dubai through one of my friends who had gone there on a official visit.
The TV was a Sony KDL32EX720 3D LED. Cost of the TV was AED 2499. As my friend had payed using his credit card, the cost of the TV+Credit Card charges+Taxes+packing charges came to INR 31700. My friend payed INR 1800 for the customs clearance process. The total damage to me was INR 33500.
The TV has international warranty which clearly states that the warranty is valid in Dubai, India, Pakistan (and 2 other countries).
Here is the link :- Sharaf DG - Yes, Your Electronics Destination! - Sony KDL32EX720 3D LED Television 32inch
Once i got the TV, I enquired here in Chennai and the best deal i could get was for INR 55000 with some discounts as MRP of the TV was 57500.
The best deal I could get was on EBay for INR 47999 + 1299 shipping:-
Sony Bravia EX Series KDL-32EX720 32" LCD LED WIFI FULL HD 3D TV+3D Glass Pair | eBay
I personally felt i saved near to 20k by getting it from Dubai (exclusive of the 300 bucks of fuel i spent to get the TV from the airport where my friend told me to pick him up). Also i got 3 BluRay 3D movies free from SharafDG. I guess there are still benefits of getting electronics from Dubai and Singapore.

[car_crazy1400]

Well, i never have bought any thing of value from abroad trips, till last week. I went to Bangkok & bought a Samsung 40" LED tv (UA40D5500). Bought it, Claimed VAT at Bangkok Airport & paid Rs.3506 as customs duty at IGI Delhi airport.

Net cost to me: 40,300 approx.

Its a great tv with a glass look acrylic tv stand & pictures are amazingly clear . I can even hook up my 500 gb portable HDD directly to it to play HD rips.

I even registered the tv on Samsung india's website as was told to me by the sales guy in Bangkok for warranty & it got registered, Though I still have to confirm if they will give a warranty on a thai product.

[PatienceWins]

I bought LG LED tv for a bedroom from hypercity for Rs.15000 today. It is yet to be delivered. The clarity is good.

LG 22LV2130 LED LCD TV - Enjoy Your Favourite Sporting Action in FULL HD 1080p - LG Electronics IN