What to do with a TV with a broken screen

Television is a very intimate object in our daily lives. It not just entertains and informs us about the happenings around us, but it also helps unite families at several houses as we binge on our favourite movies and TV shows together. And despite it being the age of hand-held gadgets, there are still enough people around who prefer television to mobile. No doubt, it feels terrifying when your beloved TV gets a cracked screen. 

Though a cracked TV screen is not something that happens so often. But when it happens, not any random mechanic should be assigned the task of repairing it. Instead, only the experts who know the job in and out should be called upon. 

Besides, here’re some important things and suggestions, directly from our experts, you must go through before moving ahead on cracked tv screen repair

What to do with a TV with a broken screen

Common Causes of a Cracked TV Screen 

Firstly, the question is how TV screens can get cracked. Well, there are umpteen reasons to cause this. In most cases, it is accidentally damaged. Your child kicking or hitting at a ball that, unfortunately, lands up at the heart of the TV! Or, the television, placed precariously at the edge of a table, tips over and develops a crack! And at times, you may drop it while either moving or installing it. So it’s advisable to place your TV out of kids’ reach, and you had better not allow kids to play balls in that room. Also, its installation and movement (from one place to another) should be immaculately done, preferably with the help of trained professionals. 

What to Do if Damage is Done?

Now, the next question is what if your TV screen does get cracked?  Is it the end of the story (as some internet articles seem to claim) or you can still get it repaired successfully? 

Access the Damage: When a TV screen cracks, there could be several levels of severity and you could be dealing with anything from a completely dead screen to small lines in the picture, and no-picture, no-sound to poor picture quality.

Before you lose hopes, you firstly need to take a calm breath and access the damage and think about the options before you. 

Unless you’re skilled at electronics, you should not try to fix the problem at home, especially if it’s a flat-screen CRT. Most often than not, you end up touching it wrong and are likely to get a serious jolt. 

Check Your TV Warranty: A feasible thing to do here is, bring out the papers and check if the TV is still within the warranty period. If yes, then all you need to do is to take the TV to the authorized service centre (Please, make sure to contact the guys only at an authorised service centre to get genuine services). Most probably, you will earn a free repair or a paid repair or a replacement (depends on the reason behind the damage and the sub-clauses in the warranty contract from your TV manufacturer/supplier).  

Get A Professional, Authorized Repair: Taking your TV to a professional, authorized service center is your best choice to get your TV screen back to life. If you spot any such issue in your Synix TV screen, walk down to your nearest Carlcare service center immediately. Our trained TV technicians will check it thoroughly and  give proper detail of the damage, as well as providing a cost-effective repairing. We are skilled in fixing  cracked TV screen of various brands. In case your TV is not a recent purchase and the warranty period has lapsed, we ensure you the best repair at the best prices, combined with authentic and professional advice from our experts.

What to do with a TV with a broken screen

Here're a few of the perks that you can have with us.

  • Pocket-friendly Repair Service
  • Reliable Warranty
  • Professional Advice Before Repair
  • Assured solutions
  • Genuine Parts Replacement 
  • On-time delivery 

TV experts at Carlcare can determine the extent of the damage to give it a fix that’s needed. A minor crack may not be difficult to repair and may not be all that expensive. A slightly deeper crack or multiple cracks may be irreparable or may require replacement. In either case, you can rest assured that we will never misguide you but assist you with the best of our intentions. 

One of the worst, if not the THE worst, things that can happen to your TV is a cracked screen.

If you were moving your TV and dropped it, or one of the kids threw a toy at it, you’re probably wondering how to fix a broken TV screen.

Unfortunately, in most cases, you cannot fix a broken TV screen. TV manufacturers do not sell screen replacements, and there is no secondary market for used screens. That’s because the screen is the most expensive part of the TV, by far. Replacing it would cost more than buying a new TV!

In many cases, your local electronics or TV repair shop won’t even consider working on your broken TV screen. They know that it’s just not worth their time.

So take a hint from the pros, and don’t even bother trying to fix it yourself.

Why TV screens cost so much

To better understand why your TV screen costs so much, let’s take a brief look at the manufacturing process and what’s involved.

If you bought your TV recently, chances are incredibly high that it came from China. Specifically, the BOE Technology factory in Hefei, the capital of China’s Anhui Province.

The BOE factory, where most US TV screens are made today, is almost a mile long and cost about 7 BILLION dollars to build! Sony, Samsung, LG, Vizio, etc. all buy their TV screens from BOE.

The process to build a TV screen is incredibly complex. Take an LCD screen for example:

“Liquid Crystal display screens are made by putting two thin sheets of glass together. On one of the sheets transistor “cells” formed by first depositing a layer of indium tin oxide (ITO), an unusual metal alloy that you can actually see through. That’s how you can get electrical signals to the middle of a screen.

Then you deposit a layer of silicon, followed by a process that builds millions of precisely shaped transistor parts. This patterning step is repeated to build up tiny little cells, one for each dot (known as a pixel) on the screen.  Each step has to be precisely aligned to the previous one within a few microns. Remember, the average human hair is 40 microns in diameter.”

It literally takes thousands of engineers to keep the place running. 

This is the number one reason your TV screen is so costly – they are incredibly challenging to build, and as a result there are only a few companies in the world that make them.

I’ve also heard that only 1 out of every 3 TV screens pass testing at the END of the manufacturing process. That means 2 out of every 3 screens made are worthless!

Another contributor to tv screen cost is shipping.

The screens are made in China and then have to be shipped across the world to be sold in the US. The cost to ship them is high, and a lot of damage can happen during the journey.

So the complexity, and shipping both contribute to the high cost of TV screens. It’s why no one sells the screen separately, it just doesn’t make financial sense.

The rest of your TV is made of inexpensive plastic and circuit boards.

If a new TV costs 1000 dollars, 800 dollars is what the screen costs, and maybe 200 dollars for the plastic and circuit boards.

Does my warranty cover a broken TV screen

If your TV screen has an imperfection, discoloration, lines, streaks, spots, etc., then there is a good chance that your warranty will cover it (if it’s within the allotted time period). Most TV warranties are in place for the first year, and they cover these types of manufacturer defects.

What to do with a TV with a broken screen

And the even better news here is that the majority of issues you’re likely to encounter with your TV will happen within the first year (when you’re covered by the manufacturer).

However, if your screen has an actual break or crack, you’re most likely out of luck. Even if it happens within the first year of ownership.

That’s because TV warranties have a section that identifies what manufacturers will NOT cover, which more likely than not includes the following:

  • (a) cosmetic damage;
  • (b) normal wear and tear;
  • (c) improper operation;
  • (d) improper voltage supply or power surges;
  • (e) signal issues;
  • (f) damage from shipping;
  • (g) acts of God;
  • (h) customer misuse, modifications or adjustments;
  • (i) installation, set-up, or repairs attempted by anyone other than by a VIZIO authorized service center

I know this isn’t what you wanted to hear, but if your TV is broken or cracked, you’re probably stuck buying a new TV.

Don’t even bother calling up a TV repair person. 99% of them won’t even look at your TV if it’s broken because they know it’s not worth their time.

How to get rid of a broken TV

So now you’re stuck with a broken TV. What’s the best way to get rid of it?

Sell it

You can always try selling it. Your broken TV isn’t worth much, but to the right person, it’s worth something. Someone who knows what they are doing will take your TV apart, and sell off each individual piece.

The speakers, circuit boards, LED strips, etc. Anything that is working can be sold off eventually.

Technically, you could do this yourself, but it’s time consuming and you risk damaging the parts. I wouldn’t bother. Instead, try listing the whole TV for sale. Getting something for a broken TV it is better than nothing.

Here are some great places to try sellng your broken TV:

  • Facebook Marketplace
  • Ebay
  • Craigslist

If it turns out no one is willing to buy it, you can try listing it on those same marketplaces for free! Tons of people usually respond when they can get something for no cost, even if it’s broken.

Throw it out

If that doesn’t work either, just go ahead and dispose of your broken TV. But do it properly!

What to do with a TV with a broken screen

Here are several easy ways to dispose of a broken TV:

  • Find a local electronics recycler. There are a lot of these out there. You can look up the closest one to you using Earth911’s website. Type in “TV” and then your Zip Code to find the nearest option to you. Once you find the closest location, you just have to drop off your TV.
  • Local electronics stores typically recycle products that they sell. A great example of this is Best Buy. They have a nationwide recycling program. But keep in mind, they will charge you a small fee!
  • Your town likely collects e-waste. Check out your town/cities trash website and see what their policies are for electronic waste. Some towns have special pick up days, others have drop off locations. I would just call your city’s public works department and ask for a place to recycle or dispose of old electronics.

Whatever you do, don’t be that guy that drops his broken TV off at a donation center or clothing donation box on the side of the road.

Spend a bit of time disposing of your broken TV the right way!

How to prevent a broken TV screen

Even better than trying to fix a broken TV screen, is preventing it from breaking in the first place!

There are a number of different ways you can limit the risk of your TV screen breaking. You can:

  • Buy a TV screen protector. You can buy a screen that covers your TV and protects it against damage, and many are waterproof! These provide great added protection from possible bumps and contact with liquids from pets and children.
  • Mount your TV on the wall. This way your television is up off the ground, and out of reach. It won’t stop your kids from throwing a toy at it, but at least they can’t bump into it, or accidentally knock something, or someone into it.
  • Don’t allow video games. This might sound harsh (especially for the kids), but I’ve heard too many stories of Nintendo Wii controllers being accidentally thrown at the TV. If you don’t hook up a video game console to your TV, this can’t happen.

None of these preventative steps are perfect, but if you do all three, the risk of your TV breaking in the future will be greatly reduced.

Conclusion

Unfortunately, in most cases, you can’t fix a broken TV screen. That’s because the screen is the most expensive part of a TV.

Screens cost so much because they are incredibly complex to manufacture, and they are shipped to the US all the way from China.

Most TV repair shops won’t even bother trying to fix a broken screen. In the end, between a screen replacement and the repair costs, you’d spend the same amount for a brand new TV!

If your TV is cracked or damage because of something you did, your warranty is unlikely to cover it. In that case, consider selling your broken TV or disposing of it.

I know this probably wasn’t the news you wanted to hear, but it’s time to buy a new television!