US Consumer Info

With so many TV LCDs on the market it’s difficult to tell which ones best for you. A great place to start is by considering the following five aspects of TV LCDs.

The first aspect is the viewing angle. If you often have friends over to watch TV, you’re going to want a wide viewing angle so everyone can see. Many TV LCDs suffer when being watched at a wide angle – blacks tend to lighten and colours will fade. Some TV LCD’s do better than others depending on the panel, so look out for those with In-Plane Switching panels, which help to reduce these effects.

Plasmas tend to handle motion better than LCD TVs, but there are plenty of LCD’s on the marketing that specialise in sports viewing. Many have motion-compensated frame interpolations (similar to refresh rates) up to 200Hz, close to what plasmas can do and with minimal artifacts. Combine that with their slimmer size, lighter weight and lower power consumption and you’ve got yourself a much more rounded purchase.

Next is the viewing angle. If you often have friends over to enjoy your TV with you, you’ll be needing an LCD TV that accommodates a wide viewing range to prevent loss of blacks and faded colours at acute angles. Many LCD’s specialise in viewing angle features, so keep an eye out for in-plane switching panels, which help to reduce these effects.

Screen size is also important. We’d all love to buy the largest tv we can afford, but it’s important to consider the screen size and your room size first. Sitting too close to a tv can promote poor posture, cause eye strain and headaches, and reveal undesired video artificats. Sitting too far away from a screen can lose the detail in your viewing and cause you to squint.

Another important factor is the screen size. It’s always tempting to buy the largest TV you can afford, but consider your room size first. Sit too close and you’ll notice undesired video artifacts – sit too far away and you’ll lose the detail. Having too large a screen can also cause headaches and promote poor posture – having too small a screen can cause headaches.

Another important factor is built in freeview HD tuners. There are lots of great HD channels out there for free and you want to make sure you can enjoy them all! Get yourself an LCD with a built in freeview tuner and all you’ll need is an aerial for some great HD TV watching.

The last factor to consider is the resolution. Lower resolution tv’s will need you to sit further away to avoid seeing compression artifacts, although these artifacts are becoming less and less apparent with the improved upscalers we’ve seen in recent years.

Conversely, higher resolutions will allow you to sit closer and enjoy the great detail that is HD TV. For detailed information on recommended viewing distances for your TV LCD, read our viewing distance post here.

So before you buy your tv, consider all these aspects and make sure you thoroughly research your purchase. Good tv’s can last up to and beyond 10 years, so make sure you get the right one for you. If in doubt, visit a retailer and have a watch in store. Take a note of the viewing distance and consider your room size. Once you’ve found the perfect one, bring it home and starting enjoying your tv viewing!

Simplytvwallmounts is a blog providing all you need to know about choosing, purchasing and installing tv’s and tv wall mounts. To find out more about wall mounting an LCD TV visittv wall mounts.