Supermarkets are growing their market share of television sales as more of us buy cheap tellies. But even though you might be bagging a bargain, your TV’s poor energy efficiency could burn money in the long run.
According to the latest Mintel research, around one in ten people bought their most recent TV from a supermarket. And, perhaps even more interesting than that, one in five people who cite bargain prices as the most important factor when they’re out shopping bought their telly from a supermarket.
Supermarkets are clearly doing a good job with their TV price promotions.
However, cut-price TVs don’t always add up. Not only do they often fail to offer the best picture quality, they also hold a hidden cost. Their poor energy efficiency could leave you paying hundreds of pounds extra over the years.
Bargain supermarket TVs leak money
In the latest Which? TV lab tests, we pitted two 40 inch TVs against one another – the Technika 40-270 from Tesco (£299) versus the more expensive Sony Bravia KDL-40CX523 (£459).
When it comes to running the Technika, our tests found that you’d spend £42 a year on energy (based on an electricity price of 14.5p per kilowatt, five hours viewing and 19 hours standby per day). Over five years, your cheap £299 TV would turn into £508 right before your eyes.
This compares to yearly running costs of £25 for the Sony TV, bringing the total price over five years to £559. Yes, it’s still a little more than the Tesco-bought telly, but you’re getting a much better TV that had originally cost £460! Click to enlarge the following infographic:
Keep an eye on energy efficiency
We also looked at a pricier 3D TV from Argos and compared it to a more energy efficient 3D model from Samsung. Argos’ Bush BPDP423DHD will cost £650 new, but after five years you’ll have spent £214 running it.
In contrast the £639 Samsung UE40D6100 will cost just £88 to run over the same period. That makes for some dramatic price differences, as you can see from the following infographic (click the image to enlarge):
So, as you can see, you might be grabbing a bargain TV now, but those energy costs will add up. In the end, it might be better to dig deep in the short term and watch the savings roll in over the years. This is what our TV expert Rich Parris, who headed the research, had to say about the findings:
‘It’s no surprise that for most of us, the prime consideration when buying a TV is the price tag. But our tests have found some surprising hidden costs on seemingly cheap TVs – in the long run, that bargain brand TV could end up costing you dearly.’
Are you surprised by our research? And do you take energy efficiency into consideration when you’re buying a new TV?
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