How Big A TV Should You Buy?

Undecided on TV size? What questions should you ask yourself before buying one?

How big of a TV should I buy? Unsure of what factors you should consider whilst browsing through your local electronic shop? These questions might sound familiar to most of you.

You might be spoiled with choices your local store has to offer and tempted to buy the biggest you can afford. While nothing’s wrong with that, getting the suitable sized TV for your seating distance will greatly enhanced your viewing experience.

Let’s gather for a moment and look through the deciding factors:

Source

Standard definition (SD) – source of material with resolution of 576, low resolution and shows pixelation (available in online content, dvd disc, digital television signal)

High definition (HD) – source of material with resolution of 1080p and high resolution (mostly available in bluray disc, online content)

Decide on which material you most likely will spend time with as it will affect the viewing distance.

Viewing distance

The further away the viewing distance, the smaller TV screen appears and vice versa. The common recommendation is to have a viewing angle of 30 degrees, to create an immersive cinematic experience. To match the recommendation, multiply the seating distance by 0.625.

Given example: Say viewing distance is 10 feet, that means a TV around 75” or 70” would work perfectly.

Included below is the table relating viewing distance in both standard and high resolution:

Budget & Audition

Of all things, your budget is most important. If budget is limited, choose the one that is closest to the recommendation.

One final thing to consider before buying is to simulate the viewing experience at the local store with the recommended distance. You may or may not like it!