By Phillip Swann
The TV Answer Man –@tvanswerman

TV Answer Man, I bought a 55-inch Toshiba TV on Amazon Prime Day for just $249. I saw your article about it. Do you have any tips on what to do when it arrives. Should I just plug it in and clear out the box? Is it that simple? It’s been a while since we bought a TV so pardon the questions. — Teresa, Greenbelt, Maryland.
Teresa, congratulations on your purchase and I’m glad we could help. There are a few things you should do when the TV arrives. One may seem 0bvious; one may not. The obvious one is to examine the picture when you first set up your TV. If you like it, you’re fine. But if the images seem off or simply not up to your standards, I recommend going online and looking for some pre-determined settings for that model TV. CNET.com is a good site for that and it’s where I would start. Rtings.com is also good. You can change your TV’s picture settings based on their recommendations. And don’t worry if you don’t like the picture after doing so; you can always change it back to the original settings by doing a Factory Reset.

The second thing you do is keep the box. When you buy a new TV — whether it’s online or from a retail store — it’s wise to keep the box around for a while. I know you might want to tear it down and get it out of the house because who needs more clutter, right? But trust me, keep the box. And here’s why. Your TV will come with a free warranty period, or you might buy an extended warranty. If something happens to the set during the warranty period, you will need the box to ship the set back to the manufacturer for repairs in case there isn’t an authorized dealer in your neighborhood.

In addition, if there is a problem with the set when you first get it, most e-commerce sites will allow you to return it for a refund within a certain time period, usually within 30 days. Again, you will need the box to ship the TV back to get your refund. I know keeping a big box around the house can be a pain in the butt. I used to work at a company where our office manager had a policy of keeping a computer or TV box around for 30 days. Her view was that if anything was to go wrong with a new product, it would likely happen in the first 30 days. So best to have the box around during that time just in case.

That’s probably a good rule of thumb. But keep in mind that your TV could have a problem later on and you’ll need some way to ship it back to the manufacturer. (Again, if there’s not an authorized dealer in your neighborhood where you could bring the set in.) If you don’t have the original box, you’ll have to get creative and buy a new box to ship it back. And if we’re talking about a 75-inch set, that could get complicated.

Teresa, hope that helps. Happy viewing and stay safe!

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— Phillip Swann
@tvanswerman