Choosing screen size
The expression "bigger is better" actually makes a pretty reasonable guideline when choosing TV screen size. Our experience has been that in most situations — and especially for a home theater system — you should go with the largest screen your room, viewing distance, and budget will accommodate. That's because we occasionally hear people wishing their TV's screen was bigger, but rarely hear them wishing their screen was smaller.
Sitting the right distance from your TV is an important part of optimizing the viewing experience. Sitting too far away diminishes the overall impact. At the same time, sitting too close is also less than ideal. A good indication that you're sitting too close to a screen is if you find yourself distracted by the screen's "structure" — those tiny "dots" (pixels), or for CRT-based TVs, horizontal scan lines. Fortunately, with today's high-definition TVs, you can sit closer than you could with older analog TVs.
If you're not sure which screen size is best for your room size, check the guidelines below. You can also use our guidelines to get an idea of appropriate viewing distance from your current TV, or a TV you're considering. We've used a viewing distance range because the ideal distance may vary slightly based on signal quality and other factors.
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Note: This chart should not be used to determine screen sizes for front projectors, because front projector screen recommendations are not based solely on viewing distance.
