In these modern times where we are surrounded with all kinds of devices that either make our life easier or just improve our entertainment. When it comes to TV, the same rule applies, or both of them do. Depending on the type of user, some people use them for entertainment only, or some use them for productivity as well as entertainment.
Since this is the type of technology that gets outdated relatively quickly, you have found yourself, or will find yourself, thinking about getting a new TV. As with any new piece of hardware that you intend on buying you always need to give it a good though and see what would work the best for you. The decision is individual, but there are a few key points that need to be taken into consideration before going out to buy your new TV.
Location
The very first thing is where do you indent do put your TV. You can have it mounted on the wall or have it standing on a piece of furniture. Mounting it on a wall requires you to measure out what would be the maximum size that would fit on it. On the other hand if you decide to use the stands you will need to take into consideration that every manufacturer for every device has different type of stand, some are at the outer edges of the TV, while others are near the middle.
Size and resolution
These two factors are somewhat interlinked.
First let’s talk about the size. Once you decided where your TV will be, you can measure the distance from the TV to where people will be looking at it. There is a crude calculation that you can do to calculate how big of a TV you should get – multiply the distance (in feet) with 0.85 which should give you a rough estimate. There is a calculator that you can use which should give you a more detailed report.
The second factor is the resolution. Depending on what type of user you are and what you want to use your TV for, the resolution may play a key part in the decision. These days the lowest resolution that you can go is Full HD, while the maximum is 8K. the reason why the size and resolution are interlinked is because if your TV is far from where people would be sitting them Full HD and 4K would look more or less the same. Below is a table that should visually represent this. In my case I went with 4K TV mostly because I work on it and sit a bit closer than usual, so this might be a good enough reason to go above Full HD.
Software
One way or another, most TVs today have some kind of an operating system, but unlike the ones that are only intended to be used for watching cable TV, there are also smart that have a lot more functions. If you are the type of person that would like to watch YouTube videos or you are subscribed to Netflix or Amazon prime, go with a smart TV. Personally, I would recommend going with LG’s WebOS which at this point seems like the best operating system for a TV.
Ports
Again, this is individual and would depend on what you intend to use the TV for. If you have multiple HDMI devices that you would like to connect to your TV then go with a model that has more ports. The same rule applies for USB ports.
Budget
This factor is the deciding one. If you already calculated that you would need 80 inch 4K TV and your budget is couple hundred dollars then you will need to make certain sacrifices. On the other hand, if you have a bigger budget, you can get a model that is future-proof so that you don’t get in a situation where you would need to get a new TV in a few months.
Also, if your budget is open, you might want to consider a sound system for your TV, mostly because the built-in speakers in most modern TVs are below average, while a decent sound system would definitely improve the experience.
These are the main criteria that should be a good guide when you come in a situation where you need to buy a new TV.
