How to figure distance vs. TV screen size?

Google is your friend – check these sites out:
http://reviews.cnet.com/8301-33199_7-57468333-221/how-big-a-tv-should-i-buy/
http://www.crutchfield.com/S-QvMQm0VlU0i/learn/learningcenter/home/TV_placement.html
http://howto.wired.com/wiki/Calculate_the_Optimum_TV_Screen_Size_for_Your_Room

For a home theater the calculation for 9 foot distance to screen it comes out at over 65 inches.

I’ve seen the charts and done the math. All of them encourage one to buy the largest screen that will not make you go blind. Having a 65” screen in my bedroom is ludicrous. unless I tilt it horizontally and put my mattress on it.

i am trying to decide just how small is doable.

You will have to go to the TV display area at a local store and take a string that is 9 foot long. Stand in front of a TV with the string on the floor watch a News banner scroll across the bottom, see what size you need to see the words and read the sentences.

That’s a good idea. I do carry a tape measure in my pocketbook.

I think you’ll find 42 to 46 inch will allow you to read the words on screen.

My brother helped me with this same question. He said that your eyes should always capture the entire screen. Bigger isn’t necessarily better; if the screen’s so large that you need to move your eyes around to see the whole picture, you’d be more comfortable with something smaller.

He recommended cutting a piece of string equal to the distance between where your TV will be and where you usually sit and watch. If you take that string to the TV store, it’ll help you find the largest, but most comfortable, screen size.

I think the suggestions submitted by @Tropical_Willie and @SadieMartinPaul are more useful than the following, but I’ll post it anyway for the sake of entering my 2 cents regarding what screen size you’ll find the most suitable for you:

I have a 37” screen, and I have no trouble reading the text on the screen from about 10’ away.

My vision is about 25/20 and I don’t need glasses to see clearly beyond 12”.

37” might be smaller than desirable for you, but I’m fairly sure that you won’t want anything larger than 42”.

It might be a lot cheaper just to buy the 42” and get special Rx glasses.

I do remember the days of the CRT screens that seemed fine and yet were nothing like today’s three-ring circuses. You knew that they were the Beatles even though you had to squint at the black and white screen.

Thanks, everyone. I will revisit this (and the actual store with my string) after the holiday week-end.

http://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/s/ref=is_s_ss_i_2_16?k=small+binoculars+for+theatre&sprefix=Small+binoculars
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http://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/s/ref=is_box_?k=Small+plastic+binoculars
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Like you, I felt that a too large TV looked pretty overwhelming for a bedroom. So I opted for a 32” TV.

But, I have one of these right next to my pillow and they come in handy for when the print is just too tiny.

You can get the more expensive fancy looking “theatre glasses” or you can get the $10–20 plastic ones which are sometimes marketed for kids.

The ones I have are around 3” X 5” lightweight plastic and work perfectly for reading print on the screen.

It may seem a little strange but works just fine for me and I’ve honestly forgotten whether mine were listed as being for kids or not. They’re black and cost around $10 and I found them on one of the deal sites which I check regularly.

Sure beats paying $300–400 more for a giant monstrosity of a TV in my rather small-medium bedroom.

I chose the 42” which does look huge in the room, but I can read the crawl and the CC’s. Of course, if I am lying down in bed and wearing my bifocals, I cannot read anything due to the angle of vision. I am looking through the bottom (reading) part of the lens.

So, I will now purchase yet another pair of glasses with only the long-distance part of the Rx. If I use an ancient pair of frames, that’s only another $200.

Or, simply lie in the dark with my eyes shut and the TV sleep timer on, listening to a shopping channel…nice to fall asleep imagining a $39.99 beige rayon top with matching animal print scarf.