What size TV to get

[jts402]

Hi all,

We recently moved int our house and the previous owner left their 65" mounted Plasma TV (link below) on the wall. We want to replace the TV but are unsure as to what size to get. Our viewing distance from the couch to the wall is about 13 feet and we're debating between an 83-85" or 97-98" TV.

If we go with the 83-85" i think we would spring for an OLED (LG or Samsung). For the 97", we're looking at a microLED TV such as TCL QM8 or Hisense U8. Would love to hear your opinions.

Thanks in advance!

https://imgur.com/a/uczhzPq

[rob]

There is a general rec you can lookup based on viewing distance... but in a room like that, I would just go as big as you want to pay.

Edit: Here is a link to one of them. Looked reasonable.

[jeff1949]

Interestingly enough our distance is about 13 feet also. To the backrest of our recliners is closer to 14 feet. We currently have a 70 inch TV and were thinking we did not need one that big and a 65 inch seemed just about right. To each his own I guess!

[Nicolas]

Hi all,

We recently moved int our house and the previous owner left their 65" mounted Plasma TV (link below) on the wall. We want to replace the TV but are unsure as to what size to get. Our viewing distance from the couch to the wall is about 13 feet and we're debating between an 83-85" or 97-98" TV.

If we go with the 83-85" i think we would spring for an OLED (LG or Samsung). For the 97", we're looking at a microLED TV such as TCL QM8 or Hisense U8. Would love to hear your opinions.

Thanks in advance!

https://imgur.com/a/uczhzPq

The TCL QM8 is a Mini LED TV not a microLED TV. Mini LED technology uses an LCD screen that is backlit by thousands of small LEDs instead of just a few hundred bigger ones. The technology is LCD with a different backlight.

Micro LED on the other hand does not use LCD technology at all but the pixels themselves are tiny LEDs, millions of them. The latter is the superior technology but there are no microLED TVs on the market yet of that size, or perhaps of any size. There were some demo models and I think some were sold but they were prohibitively expensive. No consumer market yet.

Mini LED: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/LED-backlit_LCD#Mini_LED

Micro LED: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/MicroLED

[bobn60014]

It's funny, our TV to head measures approx 12 ft. and our 49 inch Samsung suits us just fine. I've never understood the full size, over the top experience that the manufacturers and salespeople tend to push.

[Cecelio]

You could push the sofa closer to the TV.

[PottedPlant]

OLED.
For us 73-inch. 8 foot viewing distance.

[OrangeKiwi]

You could push the sofa closer to the TV.

Also, lower it to eye level.

[zlandar]

83” OLED. The LG comes with a sturdy stand so you don’t have to wall mount.

Agree with above the TV in the picture is mounted way too high. Might as well hand out neck braces.

[mushripu]

We have a 40 inch 10 year old TV that we got used to. The we bought 65 inch some time back.
Looking at bigger TV, DW said she does not like watching it because the heads of the people look freakishly large.
Now I watch the TV and say to myself ' look at this big head'

[A440]

Many years ago I purchased a 50" Sony from one of the big box stores. It sits ~13 feet in front of the sofa.
At the time my wife commented that it was too big.

[lthenderson]

We have a 40 inch television 15 feet away. It never occurred to me that it needed to be any bigger. In fact, we like our television which is inside a armoire with doors that close so we can shut them and pretend there isn't a television when guests are around and we want conversation to be the order of the evening.

[MorgansRun]

I’ve got about the same viewing distance and have a 65” Sony OLED. Recently went to a cousin’s house with a similar distance and he mounted a 98” mini LED…Samsung. Looks amazing and bigger is better. But I’m partial to OLEDs.

[il0kin]

I have an 86 inch TV in our basement hangout room and if you’re on the closer end of the L couch to the TV (8 feet or so) it actually is too large to fully focus your eyes on. It’s amazing when you’re 10+ feet back in a straight line.

Setup is like this:

—TV—-

|
|
|
________
Couch

[iamlucky13]

The room layout seems like it could be better, although it's hard to tell from photos. I feel like the opposite wall might be a better location assuming it's not windows or open to another room. Regardless of location, the high mounting isn't ideal because it forces you to look upward at the TV when you're sitting.

I mention this because room layout determines viewing distance, and viewing distance is the primary consideration for size.

So first figure out if there is another location you like better. Then decide where the seats should be. Then read this article to figure out what size you want:

https://www.rtings.com/tv/reviews/by-si ... lationship

That TV looks very similar to mine. If it is a Panasonic ST, VT, or ZT series, then it is actually a really good TV. Although not HDR, the late model Panasonic plasmas probably still beat most of the non-OLED screens on the market for color accuracy and black levels, and I think it's still the case that nothing beats a plasma for motion smoothness. I would seriously consider keeping that TV unless it just plain isn't a good size for whatever room layout you choose. The saved money can go toward a soundbar.

[JoeNJ28]

Bigger the better imo for TVs. The issue I see often and your pic does it is just people mount them to high on the wall.

[wwhan]

That TV in the picture looks like it is mounted too high. It looks tiny in the TV picture, I guess since there is no artwork on the walls.

We have a 65 inch Samsung TV that came with the house and our viewing distance is about 13-14 feet, which seems about right for us.

It seems that the quality TVs are currently mostly 65" and up in size, though one can sometimes find a 55" set.

The OLED TVs have a pretty good picture. I prefer the Samsung software operating system over the LG software operating system.

If you are not going to add anything else to the walls around the TV, then I would get a bigger TV, mount it a little lower and just adjust the sofa distance for optimum viewing comfort. I have friends that use an Epson projector, instead of a flat panel TV.

[Bogle-007]

This is my favorite size and distance calculator for televisions.

https://www.inchcalculator.com/tv-size- ... alculator/

[lazydavid]

Bigger the better imo for TVs. The issue I see often and your pic does it is just people mount them to high on the wall.

Like for like, yes I agree. But unless a room is blindingly bright, I will ALWAYS take a slightly smaller OLED over a larger LCD/LED. In this specific case, an 85" OLED is superior to any 97" LCD.

[Dottie57]

It's funny, our TV to head measures approx 12 ft. and our 49 inch Samsung suits us just fine. I've never understood the full size, over the top experience that the manufacturers and salespeople tend to push.

I will be getting a new tv in the coming year. i think something in the 46” to 55” is as big as I want.

[JackoC]

There is a general rec you can lookup based on viewing distance... but in a room like that, I would just go as big as you want to pay.

Edit: Here is a link to one of them. Looked reasonable.

That one gives a single answer, later one linked a 30" range. It's 9' from my usual sofa seat to the screen, it says 65" which might or might not fit on the TV table, I wouldn't wall mount. Our current 14 yr old TV is 46". We thought it was gigantic compared to the 2nd 27" tube TV it replaced. The first 27" tube was in turn huge compared to the 13" from our old apartment we used initially, yeah we've been in this house a while. I guess we'll go biggest that doesn't look weird because it *just* fits, when the 46" breaks, or shows signs of deterioration? I can't see any now.

[lazydavid]

I will be getting a new tv in the coming year. i think something in the 46” to 55” is as big as I want.

I have one TV that is limited due to its specific location to no larger than 55", but otherwise that sounds like a nice PC monitor. Currently typing this on my desktop and 49" display.

[Dottie57]

I will be getting a new tv in the coming year. i think something in the 46” to 55” is as big as I want.

I have one TV that is limited due to its specific location to no larger than 55", but otherwise that sounds like a nice PC monitor. Currently typing this on my desktop and 49" display.

Laughing here.. i prefer a 24” monitor. Different strokes.

I don’t have a tv room. The new tv will be in the den along with a loveseat, bookcase and work desk.

[rogue_economist]

That is way too large. A big TV in a room too small for it screams trashy. For 13 foot viewing I'd say 55" is fine, anything larger starts to look wrong unless its a dedicated theatre room.

[lazydavid]

Laughing here.. i prefer a 24” monitor. Different strokes.

That was the goal. Thanks for taking it the way it was intended.

[hunoraut]

as big as you're willing to pay. 65 looks a step too small from the couch location. digitaltrends youtube channel is one of the best for television. someone in the family has a Hisense 75 U8 and its a really good value. the quality is not far off from my 2022 LG OLED for casual viewing.

unsolicited opinion, but i suggest you add wall paneling there like a vertical wood plank style panel. it will help fill out the white space, makes the whole wall (instead of just the tv) as the focal point, and also improve the room acoustics a bit.

[LilyFleur]

In my living room, my 65-inch wall-mounted Roku smart TV is ten feet from our eyes (it usually is pulled out from the wall at least 12 inches. We sit on a sofa. The TV integrates into the wall nicely because it is centered on a recessed part of the wall (next to it, the wall comes about about a foot around the fireplace). The vertical center of the TV screen is 53 inches from the floor, and that is very comfortable for us. This TV, a TCL, was purchased in 2018 for $650 on sale from Costco. It's still going strong.

In my bedroom, I have a recently-purchased 55-inch TV (a low-cost Hisense from Costco) about nine feet away, a bit lower to the ground on some chests. It also is quite comfortable to view from my bed. I had space for a 65-inch TV on the bedroom wall, but it seemed overpowering in that room given the layout of the room. I find it to be a good TV-watching experience. I use a Roku box with it.
https://www.costco.com/Hisense-55%22-Cl ... 55065.html


That TV looks small on your wall. Do you anticipate more than 2 people watching at a time? I wouldn't want to watch a movie on the part of the sofa that is perpendicular to the TV. It would make my neck hurt.

I think it would not be comfortable either to watch an 80-something-inch TV from the recliner.

I think minimally you need a 65-inch TV for that room, to look in proportion with the wall. If you go bigger, I would recommend rethinking the furniture configuration for comfortable viewing if you'll have more than two people watching.

I concur that the TV wall needs something else going on. I think a grouping of very nice-quality potted plants perhaps in the right corner, including a tall fiddle-leaf fig, would soften the room a bit. And if the plants extend a bit into the room (ie, a triangular placement, rather than a row close to the wall), it will help folks not to walk into the TV if it is extended out into the room.

[ocean]

JTS....if you are anywhere near San Diego ...Please, please let me buy it off you!!!
I have a 42 inch panasonic plasma and I am totally in love with it, however, it is slowly starting to fail. It's really heavy about 80 pounds if you have not tried yet to get it off the wall....

[physics911]

At 13' back, it is unlikely that you can go too big, but I still caution against just buying for size.
I was a chief engineer for a broadcast company for over a decade (translate to, I spent a lot of time doing and thinking about TV stuff). People underestimate the eye strain that comes from a too big of a TV. To exagerate the point, think of sitting in the front row of a movie theater - you end up leaving with a neck ache and sore eyes. Just be aware that you will subconsciously be moving your eyes around a lot on gigantic screens, and it can lead to eye fatigue.

I know it isn't the topic of your post, but if you are trying to optimize your entertainment experience, spend more effort on your audio setup than your TV. A great sounding audio system is what is going to blow your socks off.

[vested1]

A lot depends on the size of the wall behind the TV. We have an 83" LG OLED in the living room that is mounted on a 25' long wall, and a 75" LG OLED in the master bedroom that's mounted on a 20' long wall. The 75" TV looks larger than the 83" TV. Both TV's are about 12' from our heads.

[AlohaBill]

We had a 13" Sony Trinitron in Dhahran, Saudi Arabia. We had a Sony Betamax too. Tv was only broadcast from 2 to 8 pm. They put on Dallas, but any scenes with girls in bikinis, people drinking, kissing were all cut out. An hour show was about 20 minutes. One time for news there was a picture of the space shuttle blowing up. The newsman, a Saudi, said : the space shuttle blew up. It was 8 and the broadcast shut down.
When we returned to the states we got a 27" Toshiba. We had a JVC 55" rear projection tv . We now have a 55" oled LG tv that I have my grandchildren play catch with a hardball nearby. I’m hoping for an errant throw leading to a brand new 65" oled LG tv. So far no luck. The current tv is beautiful and getting old. I’d like to get a 65 " one before I go gently into that good night.
Another tv story. At the end of my Peace Corps stint, I retuned to Majuro. I was walking around and I saw a crowd of people standing around a house.I went up to the house and the people had a tv and they were watching reruns of Star Trek! On the island I was on they had a generator for the wireless and two lightbulb sockets: one in the generator room and another in the schoolroom. I hear they have photovoltaic power now. Cheers!

[hedge_hog88]

This room looks perfect for a projector.

[hunoraut]

This room looks perfect for a projector.

I thought the same thing. Although with the price of 75/85 dropping over last few years, projectors are no longer as attractive for size/$ especially given other inconveniences.

[hedge_hog88]

This room looks perfect for a projector.

I thought the same thing. Although with the price of 75/85 dropping over last few years, projectors are no longer as attractive for size/$ especially given other inconveniences.

Why so? I wish I have a room that big with easily controlled ambient light for a projector. The thought of installing/removing/updating a 85" flat-screen gives me heartburn.

[hunoraut]

Why so? I wish I have a room that big with easily controlled ambient light for a projector. The thought of installing/removing/updating a 85" flat-screen gives me heartburn.

Wiring; input selection; common features like eARC and wifi less available in projectors.

Theres just so much more sales in the TV category that it gets more development and economy of scale.

[rivercrosser]

You could push the sofa closer to the TV.

Also, lower it to eye level.

My pet peeve. I never could understand why people mount their TV's up high on a wall or fireplace. Uncomfortable to watch.

[Cosmo]

That is way too large. A big TV in a room too small for it screams trashy. For 13 foot viewing I'd say 55" is fine, anything larger starts to look wrong unless its a dedicated theatre room.

^This. Unless it's a dedicated theatre room.

Cosmo

[Northern Flicker]

If it is not a so-called smart TV, I definitely would just keep it, especially given that it already is mounted to the wall. Why borrow trouble having to remove the old and install the new?

[mortfree]

75”, 85” or 86”

consider an adjustable wall mount so you can raise or lower the tv as needed.

Unless you know the perfect height for a fixed wall mount position- given that there are no obstacles (e.g. fireplace)

[hunoraut]

My pet peeve. I never could understand why people mount their TV's up high on a wall or fireplace. Uncomfortable to watch.

On a wall, likely as a first order impulse to fill a space. This is where it's important to add decorations like shelving and plants to balance it out.

On a fireplace, often without choice. Many houses are built with the natural placement for couches facing the fireplace, and because you cant stick the tv in front of the fireplace, the obvious remaining space is the large panel above the mantel.

[dajanssen]

Man rule 1, have to buy a TV bigger than your age.

[CloseEnough]

Entertaining thread.

I recently upgraded from what had been state of the art 42 inch plasma to a 55 inch LG OLED. A completely different world, I had no idea the picture was so much better. When I bought the 42 inch I thought it was a big screen for smallish room, we sit maybe 10 feet away. The 55 inch is perfect for the room and amazingly does not take up that much more space because the bezel around the outside of TV is so thin compared to the plasma. And, MUCH lighter. Added a Sonos sound bar.

For those with a cabinet, an inside mount with full swivel can work to go larger than the cabinet size, with the TV on the diagonal. With this I put a 40 inch into a 32 inch cabinet, and, I'm about to go to 42 which I think I can squeeze in. viewtopic.php?p=7127661&hilit=tv#p7127661

As I said, entertaining thread

[_nvrltthmknwyrnxtmv]

What is there does look tiny for the space. My vote is for 100".