# POLL: How old is your main flat panel TV? **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [May 8, 2021, 3:52am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/poll-how-old-is-your-main-flat-panel-tv/941630 "2021-05-08T03:52:44Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 3
**Author:** ![kenobi\_65](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kenobi_65/32/13178_2.png) [@kenobi\_65](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kenobi_65)\ **Post date:** [May 8, 2021, 8:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/poll-how-old-is-your-main-flat-panel-tv/941630/41 "2021-05-08T20:37:52Z")
I put in “8 or 9,” but it might well be 10. We’re still on the first flat-screen TV that we ever bought; we had bought a big CRT TV in '96 or '97, when the old one had died, and that just as flat screens were starting to hit the market. The tube TV served us well, but one afternoon, in 2012 (give or take a year or so), the raster gun died, and while the TV would turn on, only one row of pixels lit up. I went out that evening, and bought a Samsung flat screen, which we’ve had since. ---
**Author:** ![Broomstick](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/broomstick/32/246_2.png) [@Broomstick](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Broomstick)\ **Post date:** [May 8, 2021, 10:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/poll-how-old-is-your-main-flat-panel-tv/941630/42 "2021-05-08T22:29:46Z")
Got my current flatscreen in 2012. Gave away my old TV to a person moving from homeless to an apartment of his own - we were put into contact by a social worker we both knew. Also gave him a kitchen table, toaster oven, most of what you’d need to set up a kitchen, a bed, linens and blankets for the bed, and probably some other stuff I’ve forgotten about - I’ve really been downsizing this last decade. My computer screen counts as a flat screen, but I prefer the big TV for, well, TV and movies. ---
**Author:** ![WildaBeast](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/wildabeast/32/6_2.png) [@WildaBeast](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/WildaBeast)\ **Post date:** [May 8, 2021, 10:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/poll-how-old-is-your-main-flat-panel-tv/941630/43 "2021-05-08T22:43:31Z")
> [@Broomstick](#): > > My computer screen counts as a flat screen, but I prefer the big TV for, well, TV and movies. Before I got my current 40" flat screen, I watched TV on a late 1980s 13" CRT television, a hand-me-down from my parents I’d had since college. Ironically, my current computer screen is larger than my old TV. I had the old TV in the dining room as a secondary television until it died. Then I realized my laptop screen is about the same size as that TV, and I can stream TV to it, so now I just take my laptop into the kitchen if I want to watch TV while washing dishes or whatever. ---
**Author:** ![Enjoy\_Slurm](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/enjoy_slurm/32/3937_2.png) [@Enjoy\_Slurm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Enjoy_Slurm)\ **Post date:** [May 8, 2021, 10:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/poll-how-old-is-your-main-flat-panel-tv/941630/44 "2021-05-08T22:47:06Z")
Why not? It’s actually laptops that the government uses to watch you. ---
**Author:** ![BippityBoppityBoo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bippityboppityboo/32/5745_2.png) [@BippityBoppityBoo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BippityBoppityBoo)\ **Post date:** [May 8, 2021, 10:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/poll-how-old-is-your-main-flat-panel-tv/941630/45 "2021-05-08T22:49:25Z")
> [@Enjoy\_Slurm](#): > > Why not? It’s actually laptops that the government uses to watch you Don’t own one of those either. ---
**Author:** ![Chefguy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chefguy/32/138_2.png) [@Chefguy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chefguy)\ **Post date:** [May 8, 2021, 10:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/poll-how-old-is-your-main-flat-panel-tv/941630/46 "2021-05-08T22:59:20Z")
> [@squeegee](#): > > I have a Sharp 52" LC-52d64u panel I bought 12 or 13 years ago according to [Best Buy reviews I’ve uncovered](https://www.bestbuy.com/site/reviews/sharp-aquos-52-1080p-flat-panel-lcd-hdtv/8511318). Works great, no issues. It’s not 4k but whatever. I do drool over HDR, but there’s little content in that format so HD is fine. Pretty much what I have; Sharp Aquos 37" and a few years older (it cost me $1100, if that tells you anything). It replaced a 40" Panasonic CRT. It’s got some shadows developing on one side, but for a TV this old it works just fine and is an appropriate size for our very small living room. I too lust after the ones at Costco with the gorgeous resolution, but not enough to throw this one in the landfill. ---
**Author:** ![Tamerlane](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tamerlane/32/7602_2.png) [@Tamerlane](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tamerlane)\ **Post date:** [May 8, 2021, 11:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/poll-how-old-is-your-main-flat-panel-tv/941630/47 "2021-05-08T23:22:20Z")
Panasonic 2008 plasma model purchased in 2009. I really do want to replace it as it flat-out sucks in bright light, but I haven’t been able to bring myself to pull the trigger because it still looks very good at night. I’m really hoping it fails catastrophically soon 😉. > [@What\_Exit](#): > > Plasma was a crappy tech, LCD & LED are a very good tech. Man, if you had bandied about that opinion on AV boards back in the mid-2000’s you would have been chased off with pitchforks and torches 😆. They worshipped at the altar of Pioneer plasmas in particular. Honestly there were pros and cons but IMHO plasma pros easily outweighed the cons back in the day. I couldn’t stand contemporary model LCDs. Crap off-angle viewing, weak blacks and choice between crap lag rates or ugly smoothed interpolation. Meanwhile the only plasma con worth a damn to me (lousy full light viewing) wasn’t an issue where I used to live and supposed failings like increased burn-in, more heat and power consumption and greater weight were mostly negligible problems. But technology has marched on and I do mildly lust after the latest fancy OLED screens. ---
**Author:** ![Hari\_Seldon](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/hari_seldon/32/5173_2.png) [@Hari\_Seldon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hari_Seldon)\ **Post date:** [May 8, 2021, 11:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/poll-how-old-is-your-main-flat-panel-tv/941630/48 "2021-05-08T23:57:33Z")
My 26" LED TV is about 10 years old. I hope they still make that size because my apartment is just too small to have a larger one. Actually even that one overlaps a bookshelf. ---
**Author:** ![dalej42](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/67e7ee/32.png) [@dalej42](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dalej42)\ **Post date:** [May 9, 2021, 12:07am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/poll-how-old-is-your-main-flat-panel-tv/941630/49 "2021-05-09T00:07:31Z")
I love my plasma and it will hurt when it finally has to go. Yes, it sucks during the day. But, at night, with a good blu ray film, it’s amazing. ---
**Author:** ![JackieLikesVariety](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jackielikesvariety/32/296_2.png) [@JackieLikesVariety](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JackieLikesVariety)\ **Post date:** [May 9, 2021, 12:54am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/poll-how-old-is-your-main-flat-panel-tv/941630/50 "2021-05-09T00:54:11Z")
> [@BippityBoppityBoo](#): > > > [@JackieLikesVariety](#): > > > > but I really try not to brag about not owning a TV > > But clearly you are willing to brag about not bragging about not owning a TV. truth is I would love to have a TV but I am cheap and it would be hard to figure out what kind to get. while I already have a laptop and that works. > Even then it was a struggle to find a non-smart tv so now it’s worse? ---
**Author:** ![BigT](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bigt/32/12044_2.png) [@BigT](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BigT)\ **Post date:** [May 9, 2021, 12:59am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/poll-how-old-is-your-main-flat-panel-tv/941630/51 "2021-05-09T00:59:18Z")
The reason I never got a flat screen TV is that, by the time those were affordable, I had already effectively cut the cord, so I was watching stuff online. I also find it can make me motion sick if the screen takes up too much of my field of vision. On a computer screen, I can make the video smaller. On my phone, I sometimes do that, but more often just hold it further from my face. It’s not a huge deal with things that don’t have a lot of camera movement, but a lot of newer TV does. ---
**Author:** ![Folly](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/folly/32/3219_2.png) [@Folly](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Folly)\ **Post date:** [May 9, 2021, 1:43am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/poll-how-old-is-your-main-flat-panel-tv/941630/52 "2021-05-09T01:43:38Z")
> [@BippityBoppityBoo](#): > > Don’t own one of those either. Any computer is a laptop if you try hard enough. ---
**Author:** ![Ike\_Witt](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ike_witt/32/283_2.png) [@Ike\_Witt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ike_Witt)\ **Post date:** [May 9, 2021, 1:44am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/poll-how-old-is-your-main-flat-panel-tv/941630/53 "2021-05-09T01:44:05Z")
I have a Samsung that is about 7 years old. It is 3D compatible. Unfortunately there are fewer movies being released in 3D but I do have a decent collection… ---
**Author:** ![bibliophage](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bibliophage/32/7615_2.png) [@bibliophage](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bibliophage)\ **Post date:** [May 9, 2021, 2:05am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/poll-how-old-is-your-main-flat-panel-tv/941630/54 "2021-05-09T02:05:30Z")
I’m not sure which TV to count as the “main” one, so I didn’t vote. The biggest and best one, in the living room, is 46" and maybe 8 or 9 years old. I hardly ever watch it except when we have company. The one I watch most often, in the bedroom, is 40" and is maybe 4 or 5 years old. They both still work as well as they did when new, so I have no plans to upgrade or replace either. ---
**Author:** ![Siam\_Sam](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/d78d45/32.png) [@Siam\_Sam](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Siam_Sam)\ **Post date:** [May 9, 2021, 2:21am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/poll-how-old-is-your-main-flat-panel-tv/941630/55 "2021-05-09T02:21:34Z")
I have no idea. The condo we rent in Waikiki comes furnished including two flat-screen TVs – the main one in the living room and one in the bedroom. We’ve lived here almost five years now, so at least that old. ---
**Author:** ![BippityBoppityBoo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bippityboppityboo/32/5745_2.png) [@BippityBoppityBoo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BippityBoppityBoo)\ **Post date:** [May 9, 2021, 2:25am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/poll-how-old-is-your-main-flat-panel-tv/941630/56 "2021-05-09T02:25:19Z")
> [@Folly](#): > > > [@BippityBoppityBoo](#): > > > > Don’t own one of those either. > > Any computer is a laptop if you try hard enough. True that. Actually, I have **3** laptops. It’s just that they are all cats. ---
**Author:** ![BippityBoppityBoo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bippityboppityboo/32/5745_2.png) [@BippityBoppityBoo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BippityBoppityBoo)\ **Post date:** [May 9, 2021, 2:34am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/poll-how-old-is-your-main-flat-panel-tv/941630/57 "2021-05-09T02:34:41Z")
> [@JackieLikesVariety](#): > > truth is I would love to have a TV but I am cheap and it would be hard to figure out what kind to get. Me too. Plus I absolutely refuse the highway robbery prices of cable. There’s no way my Social Security budget has $120 a month in it for what I would get. I’ve been without a TV or cable for so long I would no longer know what to watch. We family share Netflix and a Hulu subscriptions 5 ways which costs about $5 a month. That I will do and even then a month often goes by without me streaming even once. I almost did a 6 month trial of Starz to get the 3 seasons of Outlander that I haven’t watched yet but they dropped the offer so now I’ll wait til it’s offered again cheaply enough. I’ve read all the books, so it’s not like I’m dying of suspense and we all know how the Scotland king thing turned out. ---
**Author:** ![Broomstick](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/broomstick/32/246_2.png) [@Broomstick](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Broomstick)\ **Post date:** [May 9, 2021, 11:58am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/poll-how-old-is-your-main-flat-panel-tv/941630/58 "2021-05-09T11:58:07Z")
> [@BigT](#): > > I had already effectively cut the cord, so I was watching stuff online. I probably watch more on-line stuff on my TV than I do broadcast stuff. Also, I can connect my TV to my computer for a 70" monitor, which is kind of fun. I have never in my adult life subscribed to cable. (We had it in 1969 in West Virginia because broadcast couldn’t make it over the mountains, but other than that, no). ---
**Author:** ![Broomstick](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/broomstick/32/246_2.png) [@Broomstick](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Broomstick)\ **Post date:** [May 9, 2021, 11:58am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/poll-how-old-is-your-main-flat-panel-tv/941630/59 "2021-05-09T11:58:52Z")
> [@Ike\_Witt](#): > > I have a Samsung that is about 7 years old. It is 3D compatible. Unfortunately there are fewer movies being released in 3D but I do have a decent collection… Same. My late spouse loved, loved, loved 3D stuff. Alas, I don’t think the majority felt the same. Still have a nice collection, though. ---
**Author:** ![HeyHomie](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/heyhomie/32/207_2.png) [@HeyHomie](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/HeyHomie)\ **Post date:** [May 9, 2021, 2:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/poll-how-old-is-your-main-flat-panel-tv/941630/60 "2021-05-09T14:10:51Z")
About five years, give or take. Bought it when a lightning storm fried our old one. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/poll-how-old-is-your-main-flat-panel-tv/941630.md?page=2) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/poll-how-old-is-your-main-flat-panel-tv/941630.md?page=4)