B&O is in a lot of cases, not a lot more expensive than other brands once you get higher up in the price range. The BeoVision 4-65" and BeoSystem 3 is around the same price as Sony's equivalent, and although the smaller things in the B&O product range are more expensive than other brands in general, it's not 6 to 10 times more expensive. If you think durability is a serious issue, you should try using a 30 year old Sony set! My BeoVision 600 still works perfectly, although it is an exception, and in general even B&O TVs don't last quite that long. And when you say similar functions, they don't necessarily perform them to the same level as the B&O.

haha, thanks for your reply. Please don't take it serious. It was just something I only said in the days without my BS3, maybe i am too boring. haha.

Beo, was your problem resolved? I have the same issue but more severe - my unit turns on the radio at random and changes channels and volume all by itself! Is this thing alive?

It's a well-known problem.   Replacing the top panel fixes it.

Thanks mediabobny - any idea how much it would cost in the USA?

Afraid not; certainly nothing if it's still under warrantee.  And since they know of the problem, you might get lucky.

After the Beosound 3 was introduced, I debated on buying one or not.

I happened to be in a B&O store later, talking to a Danish employee about the Beosound 4 I had just purchased. The Beosound 3 came up, and the employee mentioned the top plate having problems, which I had not been aware of. No attempt to concel that fact at all. He demonstrated a unit that had gone out for a top plate replacement. The owner had changed her mind about accepting it back. 

I liked the sound. He assured me that the replacement solved the problem, and after trying a few SD cards of music on it, I bought it.

I would have been as disappointed as you were to find there were design flaws with the original top plate, had I purchased it new. But knowing the problem could be fixed, and in my case was, our BS 3 has been a good companion in the house, garden, boat, and on picnics.

The new Bose radio I tried out recently does not come close to the sound of the BS 3: If one reads the Bose reviews, there are more serious problems and complaints with that model.