SAMSUNG TV switches itself off and then on again

johannab

Hello, I appreciate any help anyone has on this problem.

SAMSUNG LE40A436TLCD switchs itself on and off whilst we are watching it. The whole process takes about ten seconds.

Sometimes it can happen 3 or 4 times in one evening. This tv was about £500 and we bought it nearly two years ago.

Amazon say the warrranty is 1 year but I have read its actually 2 years these days due to ec law.

I don't want to have to go down that road though,I would rather find a solution...

Could it be our Sky hd box? or something connected wrongly? We have a dvd player with a usb port that we use frequently with a usb stick. I thought that could be the cause at first but it happens on sky channels too.

I have tried tv picture settings and changed it from 'dynamic' to 'standard' and that helepd for about a week. I change scarts around etc and things last for another week or so before it all starts again...
Any ideas?
Thanks,Jo

fwor

johannab wrote: »

Amazon say the warrranty is 1 year but I have read its actually 2 years these days due to ec law.

Please don't get confused by this urban myth - there is no such "EC law". You are covered by the UK Sale of Goods Act, which does not limit the period of coverage to 2 years.

There are several possible causes, but it sounds quite likely that the power supply in the TV is failing. If it still does it when using its internal tuner with everything else disconnected then it's pretty conclusively a fault inside the TV.

I'd get back to Amazon, explain that you know your rights under the SOGA and ask them to help. They may require that you provide evidence of a fault (and are entitled to do so) but you can reclaim the cost of an inspection from Amazon if the engineer concludes that it really is faulty.

brodev

If you go to BBC site http://www.bbc.co.uk/blogs/theoneshow/consumer/2009/07/03/sale_of_goods_act_letter_downl.html
and download the "if your goods are faulty after 6 months" letter and then send it you may get some action .

johannab

Hi , thanks to you both. I got the 2 year thing from somewhere and should have looked into it properly really,thanks for setting me straight.

The letter is great. I spoke to Amazon on the phone just once and they told me to contact Samsung directly. They said as its been more than a year it is nothing to do with them. I will send the letter to Amazon this week and see what happens.

Thanks again for this,I will post back with any progress/news.:)

johannab

Hi, I looked for an address but couldn't find one,so I emailed the 'one show' SOGA letter to Amazon.
I got a response from Amazon today saying that it was only a one year warranty and to contact Samsung,here is the main part of their response ;

****************************************************

"We're sorry to hear of the issues you have experienced with the "Samsung LE40A436T - 40'' Widescreen HD Ready LCD TV - With Freeview" you purchased from us.

All electronics item purchased from Amazon.co.uk come with a 1 year warranty from the manufacturer.

Unfortunately, as you purchased this product on September 09, 2008 and have used it without experiencing problems (to our knowledge), for a substantial period of time, we are unable to offer you a refund or replacement.

Please check whether your product still has a valid manufacturer’s warranty, either an original warranty or an extended warranty that you would have purchased at the time of purchase of your product.

If your product is still within its warranty period or you did purchase an extended warranty, please get in touch with the manufacturer immediately. The manufacturer may offer a repair or replacement service under its warranty terms"
****************************************

Well I already know its only a year with Samsung as I have looked into it. Also, its not the first they have heard of it.I rang Amazon a couple of months ago and informed them of the problem.

Any advice on where I go now?

Thanks,Jo

davfox

I've read that some low-energy bulbs can switch of TV's. They generate some infra-red light which the TV remote sensor responds to.

If you've any in the room near the TV, try not using them for an evening and see if the problem goes away. If so, change the brand of bulbs you are using.

Cheers,

David

davfox

Just tried to post a link to article in the Telegraph regards my previous post but as a new user i'm not allowed to.

If you google "low energy bulb switch off tv" you'll find various pages describing the phenomenon in more detail.

David

johannab

hi, I have looked at that article now,thanks.

We don't have any energy saving bulbs. It talks about flickering bulbs though,the only thing we have is a low voltage halogen bulb in our bi-orb fish tank. Could that be classed the same?

davfox

Probably not the fish tank but i'm no expert. Easiest thing to rule this out would be to stick a book in front of the remote sensor on the TV and make sure the real remote control no longer operates the TV. Then you can leave the set on a while and rule out any bulbs in the room misbehaving.

jimbms

Give Samsung a ring, their customer service is very good. We have 3 of their tv's and 2 have been repaired foc even out of warranty.

brodev

http://www.guardian.co.uk/money/2009/may/23/tesco-consumer-guarantee
The above article talks about the EU 2 years. With all of these matters perseverance prevails.