British Columbia’s Burnaby NewsLeader spoke to TV repair technicians who say the advent of cheaper flat-panel TVs is reducing the demand for their skills.

Raymond Manoukian, the general manager of Spectrum Electronics in Burnaby, remembers when there were three or four similar shops in his KIngsway-Imperial neighbourhood alone. Now the owners have moved on to retirement, or just work from the basement of their homes because they can’t afford to maintain a store front.

They’re not alone.

In the U.S., there are about 15,000 fewer TV repair technicians currently registered with the National Electronics Service Dealers Association than in the 1980s.

They’re the collateral damage of an industry that is changing at an ever-quickening pace. TVs are getting bigger, flatter and more sophisticated. They’re also getting cheaper. So much so, today’s flat screen has become an almost disposable commodity, says Manoukian.

The advent of newer technology is also making it harder for TV repair technicians to keep their skills sharp. Cathode-ray tube TVs didn’t change much over the years and TV repair skills stayed pretty constant. Even as CRT TVs began using more sophisticated circuitry the basic repair skills remained pretty much the same. That’s not the case with modern LCD and Plasma TVs that are constantly changing in form and technology. And the next generation of LED and OLED screens will continue to challenge local repair shops. And it’s not like the TV manufacturers even have TV repair shops in mind when producing their products.

“As manufacturers look to cut costs and increase efficiency, they’re making electronics more difficult to service, says Manoukian.”

Read the full story here.

A news report out of Pittsburgh offers anecdotal evidence that people are doing more TV repairs than usual because of the economy. The Pittsburgh Tribune-Review interviews local TV repair shop owners who say their business is steady and even increasing. The director of a national, TV repair industry association concurs:

“People are repairing, in some cases, instead of buying new, because they want to save all they can,” said Mack Blakely, executive director of the National Electronics Service Dealers Association based in Fort Worth.

The number of electronic service shops nationwide dropped during the past 20 years, from about 20,000 in 1990 to about 6,000 today, but there has been an uptick during the past five years as new service centers open to specialize in flat-panel technology, Blakely said.

Of course, we always think TV repair is the best alternative if it’s doable and cost effective. It’s always important to consider the investment you’re putting into repairing an old TV, but it’s almost always worth it to pursue a repair and determine if the price meets your budget.

A Best Buy customer has posted details on Best Buy’s own customer forums of his frustrating 6-week journey to unsuccessfully get his TV repaired. He details a lot of technician visits and a lot of unnecessary parts ordered, only to be left with the same broken TV.

Another week later…..again……arrives and opens the boxes.  Surprise….wrong parts…..again.  Tech tries to solder part onto old board to get tv working.  After about 2 hours says he can’t fix the tv, will have to order parts.  Writes down the serial number and model number….again.  Say he will call me to confirm he ordered parts.  Never received phone call.

I call the following week to check up on parts order only to find out no parts have been ordered.  No reason why or when they will order parts.  Geeks says they are having problem ordering parts.  I ask how long they have had the problem.  Two days he tells me.  I tell him that parts were suppose to be ordered before then.  He then tells me it has been longer than two days.  I’m starting to get the feeling I’m running in circles.

Tech says he will order 6 parts and install them all in a effort to keep from coming back out again if there are still problems.

They tell me they will contact and the tech and make sure someone calls me when the parts are ordered.  No phone call…again.

(Via Consumerist)