I got my first Hisense, a 32" LCD set, four years ago. At the time I looked them up and found out they were a Chinese company that started making televisions in 1971, but were primarily sold in the far east and Austrailia until they came to the US around 2010.
For an off-brand, they at least have a better rep than 'Coby', which had a bunch of TVs actually catch fire, then folded, leaving their retailers to compensate the unhappy buyers. At least for me, Hisense has stood by their warranty. We'll see how well this new one holds up.
As for their ties to Sharp, Hisense purchased Sharp's Mexican plant in July 2015, for $23.7 million. This also included the rights to use the Sharp name in North and South America, except Brazil.

Happy Motoring, Mark

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DrDKW