Have you had experience with those product assurance plans? I bought a Samsung 191T monitor at Best Buy about 30 months ago. It came with a 3 year warranty but the sales guy convinced me their assurance plan was worth the extra $120. He said "If anything goes wrong, even a stuck pixel, bring the monitor in and we will exchange it for a new one, on the spot." The monitor has developed what looks like a dark smudge down the right side, then over the bottom, and less so through the middle. The defect really stands out after about a half days work. If the monitor sits overnight and then is turned on in the morning, things will look fine until a few hours later.
So two weeks ago, I took the monitor into Best Buy. Their geek squad guy hooked it up to one of their computers and saw the problem. I asked about the monitor replacement and he said, "Nope, we cannot do that until it has been sent in to repair four times." They sent it in and it came back with no trouble and advised to check the video card. Funny how the old monitor I am using now on the same video card does not have the problem. I refused to accept the monitor and just then the original guy came in and I told him what happened. He remembered and said we will send it back with more notes to leave the monitor on and what to look for. Today I get a call that it came back with no trouble found and I can pick up the monitor at my convenience.
Now I have been told three different things by three different people:
1. There is nothing wrong with the monitor.
2. If we replace the monitor, it will be one of our choosing that has the same specs.
3. If it comes back with no trouble found, the manager has agreed to replace the monitor with one of my choice up to the original price I paid.
It seems to me those plans are a scam. They are supposed to prevent this kind of hassle. Now I have to do battle with these guys and it all depends on who you get and what they know. One thing for sure, the monitor is not good for my photo work. Oh, the guy I originally worked with. He is on vacation and they were not sure when he would be back.