My Horrible experience with Nokia TV

[shreyaskini]

Why i chose Nokia?

So, a few months ago i had created a thread on this forum for tv suggestions as my Toshiba TV had to be replaced after 7 years of use. At the time, my budget wasn't very high and i needed something in the 25k range and was atleast 40-43 inches. Most suggestions were as expected Chinese TVs and i knew they would be my only option in this price range. So, I ended up buying Nokia FHD TV in February, as many popular Youtubers promoted the TV and it fit my requirements as well. Onkyo 39W Sound bar was like icing on the cake.

BTW, Flipkart imports these TVs from China and licensed the name for better sales figures, as the name "Nokia" has that kind of trust even after years of not being relevant. The tv was delivered within a week and installation was done the next day. I was fully satisfied with the PQ and AQ of the tv and apart from a few issues like TV rebooting every now and then for no reason and poor wifi reception everything else was working fine.

Horror show begins

Things were smooth until the start of this month when my parents were watching some show and suddenly there was no picture on tv. Then a few seconds later there were a few vertical lines on screen. These vertical lines kept multiplying the next few seconds. I wasn't too worried at the time and thought it might be Android behaving in a weird way. So i decided to turn the tv off and unplug it and restart.... Nothing but blank screen and then vertical lines just like before.

It looked like this

Horror show continues with Jeeves

The same day i lodged a complaint by calling Nokia customer care and they registered it without any inconvenience. Jeeves guy calls a while later and requests me to wait for 2-3 days for the technician to arrive. They kept their promise and arrive after 3 days. He takes a lot of pics and videos and then assured me of a solution within 2 weeks.

Few days later the technician's manager called me and asked me to send a short video of the tv to check the problem and claimed that the technician's phone was faulty so all the pics and videos he captured were blurry. I immediately sent the video yet the technician arrived again at my place after 4-5 days and doesn't even apologize for a fault of his and proceeds to take more pics and leaves after shamelessly asking for another 2 weeks for a solution.

Some good news after weeks of misery

After almost 3 weeks since the registration of the complaint i finally get a call from Flipkart last Saturday where they confirm that replacement/repair wasn't possible and my only option was a refund. I happily accepted it as i had read many reviews on Flipkart where many people had reported panel damage after 4-6 months and even the replacement unit becomes faulty after few months of usage. So a replacement would be the worst option for me.

Final thoughts + suggestions needed for my next tv

On one hand I'm glad that i got a refund but its sad that prominent youtubers continue to keep promoting these brands without testing it long term. I need to buy a tv again and now I'm in a dilemma whether to buy another Chinese brand or get a smaller size TV from LG/Samsung as my budget is still very restricted. I had ordered the latest Redmi 43 inch tv but cancelled it after i read some complaints on OS hanging/restarting just like my old tv.

Now, I am thinking of placing an order for Toshiba 50 inch TV since it's non Android which means faster boot times and offers very good PQ. I don't have time for OTT viewing either so Android isn't essential for me. Also haven't seen any major panel issues on this tv and HiSense, who also happens to manufacture VU and Toshiba TVs, seems to have improved it's service network so it might be somewhat of a better option/gamble than other Chinese brands. Any suggestions on this?

 

[marvel44]

Now, I am thinking of placing an order for Toshiba 50 inch TV since it's non Android which means faster boot times and offers very good PQ. I don't have time for OTT viewing either so Android isn't essential for me. Also haven't seen any major panel issues on this tv and HiSense, who also happens to manufacture VU and Toshiba TVs, seems to have improved it's service network so it might be somewhat of a better option/gamble than other Chinese brands. Any suggestions on this?

Samsung and LG also have TV sets available in similar ranges buddy.. May be a couple of thousand bucks more than the Chinese ones. You can explore them on Amazon or Flipkart or an offline store. Hisense seems to have a good panel and they gave many warranties on those panels at the start of their market exploration in India.. TCL televisions on the other hand seems to be good as well.. Some of my relatives have been using tcl for a while now and they are pretty happy with them.

However, each model of any company varies and you have to take a punt with your choice based on specs they list and the long term record of the company.. It would make sense for you to explore your local LG and Samsung Stores before making a hasty decision regarding any model.

 

[Optimus_Prime]

@shreyaskini bro,
Did u got full refund ??

 

[Digital Mastermind]

Go for VU TVS i am using 2 TVS as u are aware

u will get a good product but software wise I haven’t seen them pushing any OS updates in last 2 years

 

[Dr Saurabh]

If possible, increase your budget a little, close your eyes and choose TV from Sony's 2021 series TV according to your budget.
Earlier I have used Vu, Mi and LG TVs, but most of them also have this picture quality problem.
Along with the rest of the company TVs, I am also using Sony TV's since last 2013, but there is no problem in those TV's. Just recently I have purchased my fourth 75 inch TV from Sony. (will post review soon) Earlier I have used Sony 40, 43 inch TV.

 

[shreyaskini]

@shreyaskini bro,
Did u got full refund ??

Yeah no issues there. I paid 22999 and got the entire amount as refund.

 

[alamodein]

I would also suggest, you caN go ahead with Vu, specially the TVs that come with 3 year warranty. Quality wise I found very good. Only issue very rare software updates

 

[Msingh]

I would also suggest, you caN go ahead with Vu, specially the TVs that come with 3 year warranty. Quality wise I found very good. Only issue very rare software updates

VU's 3 year warranty is served by Jeeves only. I have VU TV and have not faced any issues in last 3 years. But agree that VU's picture quality is way better than other Chinese brands.

Samsung and lg also have good economic range which offers good quality.

 

[shreyaskini]

Samsung and LG also have TV sets available in similar ranges buddy.. May be a couple of thousand bucks more than the Chinese ones. You can explore them on Amazon or Flipkart or an offline store. Hisense seems to have a good panel and they gave many warranties on those panels at the start of their market exploration in India.. TCL televisions on the other hand seems to be good as well.. Some of my relatives have been using tcl for a while now and they are pretty happy with them.

However, each model of any company varies and you have to take a punt with your choice based on specs they list and the long term record of the company.. It would make sense for you to explore your local LG and Samsung Stores before making a hasty decision regarding any model.

It seems like the TVs launched during the pandemic are of sub standard quality due to lockdowns/India-China standoff etc. and that is why many have faced similar issues in the past couple of years. We haven't seen any latest models worth considering and brands like Realme, Xiaomi are just using the same panels with weaker CPUs but upgrade the OS just to market it as a newer, better variant when the fact is these are worse than models launched pre pandemic. LG is currently offering 3 year comprehensive warranty on some of the sizes which includes 43 inch FHD models for a limited time which are within my budget but Toshiba seems more enticing as they offer a larger TV for around the same price for a 4k tv. Hisense/Toshiba was considered the last time too but at the last moment i decided to be stingy and went for the cheaper option!

Go for VU TVS i am using 2 TVS as u are aware

u will get a good product but software wise I haven’t seen them pushing any OS updates in last 2 years

Yeah bro i did look at VU but it costs 31k for 43 inch 4k and Toshiba is 32k for 50 inches 4k. Both made by the same manufacturer. Hisense/Toshiba have a service center here and that's the only reason I'm even considering them. Not sure if VU provides good service? You were lucky you got the tv at a better price and have a service center there which makes it a good choice.

If possible, increase your budget a little, close your eyes and choose TV from Sony's 2021 series TV according to your budget.
Earlier I have used Vu, Mi and LG TVs, but most of them also have this picture quality problem.
Along with the rest of the company TVs, I am also using Sony TV's since last 2013, but there is no problem in those TV's. Just recently I have purchased my fourth 75 inch TV from Sony. (will post review soon) Earlier I have used Sony 40, 43 inch TV.

Thanks for the suggestion but i dont think Sony is an option with a budget of 35k. Even LG is only offering a FHD model in this range. Saw your review of the Sony 43 inch and that TV is spectacular. Would love to see that 75 inch tv review too

 

[Stm44]

I did go through this mess in January 2021with Motorola TV from Flipkart which is just like any other Chinese TV that is manufactured by Flipkart itself with local makers and get a lease of brand name and in turn damaging brand names like Nokia/Motorola just making customers fools. I’m sure 70% of the ones who bought them dont even know they are infact manufactured by local makers but not those big brands Nokia/Motorola etc !!

After all the replacements and refund finally I purchased LG NanoCell and super satisfied with its performance and particularly the IPS display and OS (This is a bit slow but then I’ve Fire Stick 4K).

My personal suggestion is rather than directly purchasing it online, check around in offline stores and decide what to buy, but do not go for chinese brands, they may look/work good at the beginning but eventually most of them fail soon if you are really unlucky.