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	TV Buying Guide
	Introduction
	1. The HDTV revolution
	2. Which TV technology is right for me
	3. Choosing the right screen size
	4. What features should I consider
	5. TV selection tools
	6. Putting it all together
	7. Your consumer rights

 

The nature of TVs in the home has changed

With the arrival of flat panel technology, the TV suddenly became a fashion accessory. Ultra slim screens have also served a practical purpose in that even a modest room area can accommodate a much larger screen.

Because of its sheer bulk, your old CRT TV became pretty much unmanageable at anything above 32in in size. Your average living room can now comfortably accommodate a 50in plus screen, especially if you decide to hang it on a wall.

There is one thing that we ask you to bear in mind when considering what screen size to go for. Having installed a new flat panel TV in their living room, many consumers regret not having gone for something a little larger.

Selecting the right screen size

Modern flat panel TV's are composed of lots of tiny squares (pixels) which are tightly packed together in a grid, emitting various levels of light and different colours to produce a picture. Get too close to a large screen and you will be able to distinguish individual pixels, get too far away and you will experience a loss of detail. Somewhere in between is a happy medium in the form of a smooth picture.

So there are two problems we could encounter. We might buy a TV that is too small for a room (yes, we can always bring the settee nearer, but we might be wasting space). More seriously, we buy a TV which is too big for the room, we can't get far enough away to perceive a smooth picture.

Does the quality of your TV picture matter?

You might get your pictures from an aerial (Freeview etc) or Satellite (Sky, Freesat) or Cable (Virgin etc). These different sources offers different levels of picture quality.

The 576 or so lines of a Freeview source offers less detail than the 1080 lines offered by some channels on Sky. Does this matter? Well, in our opinion, the difference is negligible and factors such as personal preference become more important.

However, if you are watching High Definition pictures rather than Standard Definition, detail will be greater and viewing distances can be reduced.

Where does this leave us?

While there are numerous tables giving minimum and maximum viewing distances for various screen sizes we believe that you should take a slightly simplified approach.

The 2-5 principle (described below) will give you an idea of where to start. You can then look at different size TVs just get a feel for what you would be comfortable with and how far away from the screen you feel is a natural viewing distance. Remember to look at screens with High Definition as well as Standard Definition content.

You might even like to consider cutting out TV screen sizes from cardboard and positioning them at various points in your living room.

The 2-5 principle

For an optimum viewing distance with Standard Definition material, the nearest seating position should be limited to around twice the screen width while the furthest seating position should be no more than around five times the width of your screen.

For an optimum viewing distance with High Definition material, the nearest seating position should be adjusted to around 1.5 times the screen width while the furthest seating position should be no more than around four times the width of your screen.