How big of an TV is good for viewing from <6ft away?

[Bboy_Jon]

eh? i want a 27 incher but ya i kinda feel like saving some money

I need a TV! (hdtv) not a computer monitor

thanks

[damarble]

IT comes down to personal preference really. I use a 20" in by bedroom at about 10ft away and it's ok, but a bit small, so I'm guessing 27" would look really good at under 6ft.

[Mr. Roboto]

Well did you want an LCD or CRT flat tube? 16:9 or 4:3?

[Bboy_Jon]

id like widescreen, and crt or lcd i dont really mind

i want somethin around <450 (ive found refurbs, which im cool with)

[doublejack]

If you're talking about just less than 6' away, I would go for a 32" or 35" tv. The general rule of thumb I go by is that the screen hight should be about 1/3rd to 1/4th of the viewing distance for optimal viewing. So assuming a 16:9 widescreen set, the height is about half the diagonal.

35" set = 17.5" height. 17.5 x 3 = 52.5" or 4.375' 17.5 x 4 = 70" or 5.83'
32" set = 16" screen height. 16 x 3 = 48" or 4' 16 x 4 = 64" or 5.33'

You could even go with a 38" tv, but that's probably pushing it a little.

If on the other hand you will be much closer than 6', like half that far, then I would go with a 20" or 27".

Just as a comparison, I have a 42" plasma in my family room with the prime viewing seats about 10' away. I wish the screen were bigger. I could easily go for a 50 incher, and would be even happier with more than that. The problem is the wall I have the TV mounted on is only about three feet wide, so it just isn't possible to mount a larger set. What I find myself doing is sitting in a gaming rocker chair about six to eight feet from the screen and it works out so much better.

[dfonda]

http://www.cnet.com/4520-7874_1-5108580-2.html

Here's a chart for distances.

[doublejack]

http://www.cnet.com/4520-7874_1-5108580-2.html

Here's a chart for distances.

That's a good chart. I believe the sweet spot is a little less than the midpoint between the min and the max.

[David]

When selling TVs I went with viewing distance = 3.5 * TV's diagonal size, plus or minus a bit if customers wanted a more cinema like view, or didnt want the TV taking over the sitting room.

[myndlessdayz]

wow. I have a 60 in and I sit about 20 ft away. 7.5 for min? I think thats too close =\

[doublejack]

wow. I have a 60 in and I sit about 20 ft away. 7.5 for min? I think thats too close =\

It really comes down to personal preference. 7.5' is maybe a bit too close for me with a 60" picture. But to sit 20 feet away I would need at least a 100" or 120" screen. Possibly even larger.

[jiggamanjb]

I have a 26" Toshiba CRT HDTV. I sit about 7' away and it seems a bit small sometimes. I think something in the low 30's would work very nice, but this does the job. I got it cheap on ebay for < $400 (http://search.ebay.com/search/search.dll?sofocus=bs&sbrftog=1&from=R10&satitle=toshiba+26&sacat=-1%26catref%3DC6&sargn=-1%26saslc%3D2&sadis=200&fpos=49505&ftrt=1&ftrv=1&saprclo=&saprchi=)