Korean Job Discussion Forums

[KoreanAmbition]

Hello all,

I'm curious if any of you would like to comment on what you think the best strategy is for buying a used TV in Seoul.

I will be looking for a 42-inch Plasma or comparable-sized LCD tv.

In Canada, the LCD tv's are more expensive so I'm assuming my best bet will be to get a plasma.

Any idea of what channels to use for finding that?
Any idea of what the cost would be for a resale 42-inch Plasma?
Any idea of what the cost would be for a resale 40-inch LCD?

Thanks for your suggestions.

[JustJohn]

Don't know the specifics offhand. You can use www.danawa.com for pricing.

[KoreanAmbition]

[bassexpander]

I don't think I'd want to buy a used plasma from a Korean. Nothing against Koreans in general, but what I'm saying is that they're probably not going to dump it off unless there is a major problem (and plasmas have some pretty common problems):

1. Excessive buzzing/noise while operating which sometimes takes several minutes to appear.
2. Dead/stuck pixels (make sure you view a screen entirely white and entirely black to see them).
3. HDMI handshake issues on some models

By personal experience, LCD's have their own issues as well, including:

1. Bad pixels
2. Excessive white clouding in the blacks
3. areas of the screen which are blacker than others
4. Image motion problems which are evident when watching fast-moving action footage (and not evident on slow pans and zooms of artsy images).

I'd feel much better purchasing a used one from someone like a teacher who is selling it because they are leaving the country, and not because it has a problem.

LCD and Plasma TVs instantly lose a huge amount in value once the box is opened, and in my opinion, nobody is going to sell one in under 2 years unless they are very disatisfied with the performance for some reason, or there is a major problem.

[KoreanAmbition]

Bassexpander,

So you're saying the resale market doesn't exist in Korea?

I'm surprised. It would seem that in a country that manufactures some of the leading brands of LCD/Plasmas, that people aren't upgrading every year or 2 as the new ones come out.

Interesting, seems the Asian countries are lagging behind in these areas.

Thanks for the opinion though, I was considering looking for teachers that were leaving, so now I'll focus on that.

[bassexpander]

I don't think there is enough interest in upgrading and not keeping what you've got. I'll give you an example...

My wife purchased a 29" Samsung HDTV 8 months before we married. The same model can be had new for 800,000 now. She paid 1.1 for it when it came out. If she tried to sell it, she'd be looking at a loss of probably half what she paid for it -- or more.

Given that, we decided it was better to just hold on to it, and stick it in another room. We kept my 50" in the main room.

I think a lot of Koreans think the same way, and if their TV is already 37" or larger, they're probably not going to bother upgrading to something larger for at least 4 years anyway.

[Gamecock]

I don't have a clue how to go about buying used plasma here in Korea...but you might keep your eyes open when you visit big retailers like E-mart. I know E-mart often sells display models at a discounted rate when that model is being discontinued. I bought a sweet 42" plasma display model 2 years ago for 700,000. They even threw in surround sound speakers and provided free delivery and set up.