Bringing SAMSUNG 40" LED TV from US to India
I have returned from US last Dec and bought Samsung LED TV(Samsung 40EH5300) with me. so, wanted to share my experience and information as I did a lot of google to get the TV back to India . Thought it would be very useful stuff to people who want to bring the TV.
There are multiple things which you need to consider before buying the TV.
1) Voltage Issue : US uses 110 volts where as in India we uses 220 volts. Try to get a TV which supports both voltages.You can get the local made voltage converter from Gujarati Galli(a place in Hyd) for 1200, which comes with 6 months warranty.
2) PAL to NTSC : US uses NTSC video steaming and in India it is PAL. Its better to search for a TV which uses both standards.I heard Vizio will work in this way.If you dont find one, there is no problem. In India, we can connect to the digital set top box of any company(Airtel,Videocon,Hathway ...)
I am using Hathway set top box but the problem with this settop box is, tv will not show any colors exept black and white , when I connected to set top box. I hope it is not the problem with other set top boxes.
I bought a PAL to NTSC converter from US : OREI PAL to NTSC to get the color in TV and I read the reviews were very good for this . Unlucky, the color is still not coming as the box has some problem.
Again a I bought a new PAL to NTSC in HYD CTC building for 3500 Rupees.
3) Baggage Issue : You can check in your TV under 42" as a normal baggage only in Ethihad and British Airways without any fees.But other Airlines such as Air India and others will charge 200$. Its better to call the specific airlines to check their restrictions.
4) Customs : You know how our customs works in India. When I arrived in Hyderabad International Airport with big TV box, all customs persons were behind me to get some money. Bargain started with 40$ and settled for 20$.
At last bought the TV to home and set it up with some difficulty ...As of now no problem with TV.
This comment has been removed by the author.
ReplyDeleteGood to know that your TV is working.
ReplyDeleteI had brought a 42" LED TV from Dallas to Bangalore.
ReplyDeleteTV - LG LM6200 - 42" LED 3D SMART TV.
Flight - British Airways.
The voltage conversion was not an issue because the TV supported 100-240V, 50/60Hz. - Make sure you check this in the specs before buying this. Many models are offering thus.
The transmission is India is PAL while Most US TVs support NTSC. Make sure you buy a TV with HDMI port (Most TVs have now) - and get a DTH HD box (I took videcon). It has an HDMI outlet and works perfect on the TV. You need to get only normal HD set top box and not a HD - DVR as mentioned in many posts. Both have HDMI ports and the frequency can be adjusted in settings.
Make sure you pack the TV well - I got this packed by UPS (65$) - as they will just toss it during flight changes and there was sharp piercing @ the center when I got it in Bangalore - thanks to the good packing - TV was intact.
The check in baggage limitation in BA was 81" overall. My TV was 82" overall (packing dimension - W+H+L) - LG mentions this in their specs sheet - so you will know how big it is in advance. The airport staff will not physically measure it - He 'll just place it on the reception and see if it crosses the length of the belt- if it is within that, you are in - the choice largely depends on the staff. Also, B.A allows upto 109 inches by paying an extra (roughly 60$, same as overweight baggage).
The biggest problem is in bangalore customs. You are entitled to carry upto Rs.35000/- worth goods without paying duty. So they will charge you (Price of TV in India - 35000) *duty %.
For my TV, the price in India was 86000/- (Yes, they have sheet of Model - Price for most popular TVs; you can get the price in India by searching in some online sites like flipkart). I was asked to pay (86000 - 35000) * 15% (approx, not sure about actual %) = 7500/- as duty. Considering that I got the TV for ~38K + 3K (packing), it was still worth it. When I said it was a used TV, they asked me the bill (if you have one, carry it), but I said I forgot and negotiated for sometime, for which they applied some 6% depreciation (< 1 Yr use). Again they amount was reduced to 6K.
I said I had only 40$ in hand and tried negotiating. They gave out options like "you can keep it here, and collect within 2 months when you have the money" etc.I was not ready to pay, neither leave it, so again negotiated. After sometime, the officer threatened of noting "duty not paid" on the passport (he even took my passport, opened the page, and dotted with pen). I kept on negotiating and had a feeling he will not note in passport. All my co-passengers left by then it was almost an hour. Finally, I got the lucky question - "How much can you pay?". I said I can 20$ more from my friend and pay 60$ total. he agreed to it, I remitted the money, and got clearance - Happy :-)
And one most important thing - If you have a TV, they will be only looking at it. They will never check your luggage for laptop, Mobiles etc. Carry as much as you want.
you can connect ur dth to your new led in this way here , just helping!!
ReplyDeleteAll STB should work with HDMI connected to TV, goto user settings, change the video resolution to 1080p/i @ 60HZ.
ReplyDeleteThis web journal is truly awesome. The data here will definitely be of some help to me. Much appreciated!. LG 43UH610A
ReplyDeleteNice article!
ReplyDeleteIt is really informative keep sharing.
hd tv india
Thank you Sudeepa
Deletewhere can we find the review of vu 32 inch led tv ? i want to buy it for my new home.
ReplyDeleteafter surfing the net i got some information that samsung internally has 110-240v SMPS though samsung is hesitant to put that in label of US selling products. as far i know all LG tvs are 110-240v. i suppose Sony too. not sure about other brands. PAL is not a concern as now most of tvs work in HDMI cable input.
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