Anyone have info on Superscan televisions? [Archive] - Audio & Video Forums

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ironbird01
08-16-2004, 05:34 PM
Just wondering if any eagle eyed HT fans noticed SEARS carries a 35" tv for $499! The Superscan name sounds kinda hokey but I'm wondering if the picture would be eons better than my 1997 27" Proscan that I also happen to buy there. Any info would be appreciated Thanks =D

woodman
08-19-2004, 10:38 AM
... but I'm wondering if the picture would be eons better than my 1997 27" Proscan that I also happen to buy there. Any info would be appreciated Thanks =D

You want any info? I'll give you some ... are you ready?

Hear me now and believe me later - avoid any product that carries a name that no one has ever heard of. In most cases it will be a "private label" product - in other words, a product made specially for a large retailer (like Sears) to give that retailer a product to sell that no one else has. The absolute "worst case" scenario would be a product from a recently started company with no track record and an uncertain future in a highly competitive industry. Either way, it's most definitely not in YOUR best interests to take a chance when there are so many really viable alternatives to be had.

And no ... the picture would not be "eons better" than your present TV set. It would be bigger, and if that's all it takes to be better, then of course it would be "better". But "eons"? Hell no!

topspeed
08-19-2004, 02:12 PM
Hey Woodman,

Any chance the Superscan could be a re-labeled RCA, Panny, or something else. After all, Kenmore's are simply rebadged Whirlpools.

woodman
08-19-2004, 03:26 PM
Hey Woodman,

Any chance the Superscan could be a re-labeled RCA, Panny, or something else. After all, Kenmore's are simply rebadged Whirlpools.

Yeah ... it's very likely to be a Thomson built product. Which is just one more reason to avoid it like the plague!

It should also be noted that the 35" size of CRT is obsolete - having been phased out of production some years back. As far as I know, none of them have been manufactured since around 1997. What this means to a potential puchaser of one, is that the tube is already probably 7 to 8 years old even though the rest of the set may have been built recently. Although the CRT may not have been in use during those 7-8 years and therefore can be technically called "new", the simple fact of the matter is that CRTs take in minuscule amounts of air over time - rendering them "gassy" and not able to operate at maximum efficiency. This leakage of air into what is supposed to be a vacuum occurs along the seam that joins the faceplate (the screen) with the funnel-shaped "bell" of the tube. The larger the tube, the more "seam" there is for minute amounts of air to seep into. All in all, the reason why large CRTs were judged by the industry to be a dead-end - it caused Mitsubishi to completely abandon the production of large screen direct-view CRT sets altogether. It was their 40" tube that drove the final nail in the coffin.

Then, along comes Sony with a 40" tube set ... what were they thinking? Evidently they didn't ask anyone at Mitsubishi about it - or else they thought that they had figured out a way around the problem of "gassy tubes". I dunno.

Smokey
08-19-2004, 07:58 PM
Any chance the Superscan could be a re-labeled RCA, Panny, or something else.

Superscan is probably made by Daewoo or Samsung (same as LG). I know for sure that Sear's Sylvania brand TV is made by Daewoo.

If you really want quality cheap TVs, Sharp TV might be the way to go. I saw their 32 inch TV for $299 at BestBuy, and their 36 inch TV is probably around $400-500. And Sharp TV carry one year warranty :)