Someone contacted our business today asking about Television Repair and I immediately thought of Darryl. We're a Tech Support company and do not repair televisions but we try to steer people in the right direction. I'm not always great at leaving Yelp reviews but after reading the ones left for Darryl I couldn't help but think these inaccurately represent him and his business and he deserves a fair shake. In June of 2015 one of my TVs (LG 60PK750) started flickering. Initially, I thought this was a great reason to buy a brand new fancy curved Samsung but after a few months I regretted the decision. The whole curved thing wasn't working for me and our fancy Savant Home Automation system integrated better with the LG. We tracked down Darryl in hopes of just repairing the LG. He immediately suspected the problem and quoted a specific cost of labor and ball parked the cost of the parts. The parts were within his estimate and the TV has functioned flawlessly ever since. The repair wasn't cheap - but there aren't many options in the area. You may be able to find cheaper if you're willing to drive to LA. We weren't. You may be able to find faster service if you're willing to drive to LA. We weren't. It's a bit like shopping at Nordstrom to avoid driving to LA and being upset that it's more expensive than Macy's. In full transparency, Darryl was unique and quirky. He had a really interesting history and a really interesting story. Don't be surprised if he talks your ear off each time you see him. He'll probably even grumble about how TVs are made now days versus 20 years ago. :) If you're looking to have your only TV repaired then Darryl may not even be your guy. He's a one half-retired-man shop that gets busy. He doesn't have someone who handles his calls or customer service. If it takes you a few attempts to get a hold of him the first time that should be a hint that you probably won't have your TV back the next morning. Give the guy a break. read more

God only knows!! Why this person is running a business, or for that matter, how he is even operating. I called him after viewing his website complete with radiant accolades and 5-star reviews. I called and explained the problem with my TV and he assured me that it would be a lot cheaper for him to fix it then for me to buy a new one. I took this as a sincere and professional response. He said I would have to pay $125 if repaired or not, but that this would be deducted from the total cost. I took the TV to his home on a Friday and asked when it would be ready. He said he'd look at it the following week. When the next Friday rolled around and I hadn't heard from him I called and asked what was happening. He started going on an evasive diatribe. I asked why he hadn't called me and he replied, "if I didn't call you then it's not ready." I told him this is bad business, that you have to keep your clients apprised and call them when you say you will. I asked what the problem was and he didn't seem to know and said it would take a month if he had to order a part from China. Again, I asked him what the problem was and he said he would call me back in two hours. Straight away I knew he hadn't even looked at the TV. He called me back and said he found a part locally, and lucky for me it was the last one. He then told me my TV would be ready Tuesday or Wednesday. Having not heard from him on Wednesday I called on Thursday and he said the part had not arrived but would that day or Friday. I called again on Monday and was told my TV was not repairable. What I think happened is that he couldn't get a part, and was stalling. I went to collect my TV and he said, "there's your baby" like it was repaired! I had to demand my TV back without paying $125. I should have read Yelp. It would have saved me much headache. read more

Darryl is amazing at fixing TV's, we first hired him at our place of work because one of the TV's went down and he was able to replace the screen and get it back to normal faster than we were able to get quotes from other people. I had him fix my TV at home as well and he worked just as well for that. read more

Really expensive tv repair I was quoted $400 dollars plus parts to fix my tv because the tv was a very expensive model if I had a less expensive model tv the repair would have been incredibly less to repair his price of repair depends on the price and value of your television set I would not recommend this guy to fix anything he's very expensive and very unprofessional ! Over priced read more

Darryl Widman's Television City - Got it fixed for less that half of this guys quote oh yeah - Electronics Repair Near Me - Santa Barbara, California

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I gave Darryl a call to discuss a potential LED backlight HDTV repair and ask some questions about his familiarity with these units. As an Engineer that works with electronic components, I was looking forward to learning a bit more in detail about these kinds of repairs since many times it is more economical to purchase a new TV. I called and instead of getting any of my questions truly answered, I received a bunch of rambling about leaded vs unleaded solder and how electronics used to be better built. Fine, some valid points there but getting off topic. When I pressed for details on any recent repairs performed on similar TV's, I got a half-hearted answer on power inverters and how hard troubleshooting is since if one thing fails, everything fails. He then was eager to know how much my current TV cost me instead of the type of technology it utilizes. Understanding the model and specs would be more important from a troubleshooting perspective and you can always look up the price from there. However if you're basing your repair price on how much the TV costs, well why waste time with getting the right details? Long story short, a phone call confirmed that his technical prowess is likely not nearly as up to par as his description or website may suggest. He was also unprofessional and unable to give concise answers to any of my questions. read more

I angry with myself for not checking Yelp before using this guy, then I would know about this scammer before I had to experience it for myself. I received an outrageous bill that was not in line with what he told me over the phone. read more

I tried to call this guy to help me with an older model plasma from Panasonic. The guy was rude and offputting. I already purchased a replacement board, just needed help installing it. The guy talked to me like I was ruining his morning so I just said forget it and I figured I'll call someone else. Geesh. read more

Seemed very unprofessional and just detached like he couldn't care less what you were saying.

Was quoted a price before he even saw what was being repaired. His 'diagnosis' charge is more than what it costs for an auto repair shop to do a quick run down of what's wrong with a car. Admitted his prices are so high because he runs a monopoly. Cheaper to drive to ventura/oxnard area for repairs seeing as a gallon or two of gas is cheaper than $175 diagnosis. Will never reccomend anyone to Daryl. Geeksquad was able to sort me out and I'll keep buying from best buy because of that. read more

I called Mr. Widman to see about a repair for a discontinued CDR player. He is very unprofessional in just about every way. I was interrupted constantly as I was trying to tell him what the problem was. He acts like he knows everything but can't give concise answers. He said that he could fix the unit that I have. It would cost $225 plus parts. I already knew that parts were hard to get and that some were not available. (The unit has been discontinued by the manufacture.) So I knew it could be a difficult fix. I asked Mr. Widman how much it would cost me if he couldn't fix the machine. He told me $125. The other reviews in this section are right on, Using Mr Widman is a major risk. read more

First hey said that it would be $95 to find out what was wrong with the TV to come to the house and check it out then I said I could drop it off at his shop which is also his home after unloaded the TV he said it would be $285!!! JUST FOR THE problem, no hourly rate just $285. I reluctantly gave in and left the TV. He called a few days later and said that it was fixed..(A loose wire) and added an additional $324 for PARTS! I didn't know solder cost so much. This guy is a rip off I'm a senior citizen and I think he is taking advantage of me. Please do not use this guy I could of bought a Better Newer TV for the price he charge he gave me. Very Disappointing and hurt.Please Beware!!! read more

PLEASE NOTE----The 5-star Yelp review for Darryl Widman was written by the man himself and, now that I read it in retrospect, it is misleading to the point of being hilarious. In my experience, "Television City" is an unprofessional entity run out of an old guy's house. Do not fall for his delusional description of his abilities or services. When I first phoned, I found Widman to be brusque, hard-of-hearing, and patronizing, all of which should have been red flags. However, I try to support local, long-term businesses whenever I can and I definitely wanted to cut this man some slack for his age and/or hearing disability, as long as he could perform the necessary work. This was a poor choice on my part.... He has now had my TV in his possession for more than 2 weeks. When I called him about it after 10 days, he was downright rude and acted as though I was way out of line to ask what was happening with my set. Today--finally-- he told me that it "has problems." (No kidding --why else did I call for repair?) He blamed his inability to diagnose or repair said problems on the fact that my Sony TV was built in Korea and the instruction booklets he's working from only deal with those sets made in China and Japan. Apparently, it took 15 days to figure this out ---REALLY? The story sounded awfully fishy to me. When I pressed him for a better description of the issue, he said, "Oh, I don't want to go all technical on you." REALLY? Would he dare to say that to a man or does he save such condescension for the ladies? And just to cap off this whole exercise in futility, Old Man Widman expects me to pay him when I go and pick up my TV set from his house. When I asked him specifically what I would be paying him FOR, since I contracted with him for a repair he assured me he could perform, and that no such repair had taken place after more than 2 weeks, he proceeded to throw himself a pity party and then tried to guilt me into paying him "because it would be nice." Seriously. He said those words at least three times. The whole scene has been unbelievably frustrating, tiresome, and unprofessional. DO NOT WASTE YOUR TIME OR MONEY---life is too short to subject yourself to such miserable experiences. read more