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Whatever happened to small TVs?

RatskyWatsky

RatskyWatsky

Are we human or are we dancer?
Member
Oct 25, 2017
14,931
My old 22 inch, 720p Philips TV is on the way out I think, so I've recently begun exploring what all my options are. 22 inches is the perfect size for the space, and while I would love a higher resolution, I really don't think I can accommodate something much larger. But judging from review sites, as well as looking at various TV models, it seems like these days 43 inches is what's considered small! That's twice as big! Where's my 22 inch LG CX!

Whatever happened to small TVs? 17-24 inches? Does everyone live in mansions now 🤔
 
entremet

entremet

You wouldn't toast a NES cartridge
Member
Oct 26, 2017
60,142
You can get a 32 inch. Those are more common than 22.

also, it's about margins and demand. No one is buying those tiny TV skus.
 
Fire Bocchi

Fire Bocchi

Member
Oct 25, 2017
1,648
yeah you're gonna need to buy a computer monitor at those sizes if you want anything of quality at those sizes

also buy a hdmi switch with audio extractor to use speakers with them
 
kosmickitten

kosmickitten

Member
Jul 2, 2019
154
Yea, as others said.. if you want anything small you need to go with a monitor now a days. Even in the monitor world, I don't think 22" is very common anymore. I think they are mostly 24" and bigger, with 27" being the standard. But on the plus side is it common to get them in 4k at those sizes.
 
Lkr

Lkr

Member
Oct 28, 2017
9,525
look specifically for a computer monitor

big screens are cheap to produce, and most people will always take bigger if it's an option. so here we wind up with 43" being the "small" TVs. I assume it will be 50 sooner than later. there aren't as many 47/49s anymore either
 

Deleted member 22750

Oct 28, 2017
13,267
Cp7fE6NXYAAo-Pt.jpg
 
RomanticHeroX

RomanticHeroX

Member
Oct 27, 2017
2,889
You can still get TVs that size at Best Buy or other places, but nobody is putting focusing on doing anything to improve those displays really. They have smart tv features if you want them but the panels aren't going to have parity with more popular sizes. My parents place doesn't have room for anything bigger than about 26 inches and at that size you just get whatever is decently priced.
 
ultramooz

ultramooz

Member
Oct 27, 2017
1,339
Paris, France
My boyfriend bought a 65 inch tv for our living room and it's too fucking big for the size of the room. I hate it and it burns my eyes when I sit on the couch.

I have to watch movies and series from the opposite end of the room, sitting at the dining table.

Watching Ru paul Drag race is like an LSD trip - colors are so vivid and saturated it makes me want to puke and gouge my eyes out.
 
Mr. President

Mr. President

Member
Oct 27, 2017
2,840
ultramooz said:
My boyfriend bought a 65 inch tv for ou main room and it too fucking big for the size of the room. I hate it and it burns my eyes when I sit on the couch.

I have to watch movies and series from the opposite end of the room, sitting at the dining table.

Watching Ru paul Drag race is like an LSD trip - colors are so vivid and saturated it makes me want to puke and gouge my eyes out.
Click to expand...
Click to shrink...
It's probably on Vivid change it to Warm.
 
Nordic4tKnight

Nordic4tKnight

Member
Oct 25, 2017
3,473
I got an LG 27" TV wedged on part of my kitchen counter. Have lots of friends and family that have small TVs in kitchens.
 
HeyNay

HeyNay

Banned
Oct 27, 2017
2,495
Somewhere
ultramooz said:
My boyfriend bought a 65 inch tv for ou main room and it too fucking big for the size of the room. I hate it and it burns my eyes when I sit on the couch.

I have to watch movies and series from the opposite end of the room, sitting at the dining table.

Watching Ru paul Drag race is like an LSD trip - colors are so vivid and saturated it makes me want to puke and gouge my eyes out.
Click to expand...
Click to shrink...

LOL I hear ya. You can alleviate this by calibrating the TV set. Most TV sets come with the brightness and saturation turned up way too high. Look up some calibration settings for the model and punch em into the TV settings and then adjust from there to whatever feels good.

Turning down the backlight is probably one of the best things you can do for your eyes. Especially if you watch TV in a dimly-lit room. Personally I keep two picture settings saved on my TV. One for day-time viewing, and another one that's exactly the same, but with the backlight turned down like 50% for night-time viewing. Not only does it make for more relaxed viewing, but it actually looks better when the lights are low.
 
blame space

blame space

Resettlement Advisor
Banned
Oct 25, 2017
15,420
just buy whatever they're all the same. sitting like 2 feet away from a 55" feels sick.
 
Silvergun-Blue

Silvergun-Blue

Member
Oct 26, 2017
9,939
ultramooz said:
My boyfriend bought a 65 inch tv for our living room and it's too fucking big for the size of the room. I hate it and it burns my eyes when I sit on the couch.

I have to watch movies and series from the opposite end of the room, sitting at the dining table.

Watching Ru paul Drag race is like an LSD trip - colors are so vivid and saturated it makes me want to puke and gouge my eyes out.
Click to expand...
Click to shrink...
Pc+master+race_beab7d_5642926.jpg
 
turbobrick

turbobrick

Member
Oct 25, 2017
13,085
Phoenix, AZ
Monitors might have less options for like HDR and stuff, but there's plenty in that size. Though there's still small TV's out there, but you might have to just find one online.

That said, I do agree with you OP that smaller TV's have kinda gone away, and its unfortunate. I have a 37 inch TV, and if/when I have to replace it, I'll have to get something cheap, as nicer TV's are only 50 inches or larger it seems. Problem is I don't have enough space for that.
 
blame space

blame space

Resettlement Advisor
Banned
Oct 25, 2017
15,420
even in the $300-400 range it goes from a shitty 720p 32" to a shitty 55" 4k smart TV real quick. just get the big one baby. USA! USA!
 
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trashbandit

trashbandit

Member
Dec 19, 2019
3,910
It's probably more expensive to produce smaller, but not tablet/phone small, sized screens at this point. Demand has probably dropped as well.
 
Soliloquy of a Dogge

Soliloquy of a Dogge

Member
Oct 27, 2017
12,979
ultramooz said:
My boyfriend bought a 65 inch tv for our living room and it's too fucking big for the size of the room. I hate it and it burns my eyes when I sit on the couch.

I have to watch movies and series from the opposite end of the room, sitting at the dining table.

Watching Ru paul Drag race is like an LSD trip - colors are so vivid and saturated it makes me want to puke and gouge my eyes out.
Click to expand...
Click to shrink...
This made me choke on my sweet tea. Sorry but it's fucking hilarious.
 
Herne

Herne

Member
Dec 10, 2017
5,319
There are plenty of 22" monitors out there with HDMI and built-in speakers. They'd be a good option. Think there's even a good number of 19" still as well.
 
wollywinka

wollywinka

Member
Feb 15, 2018
3,099
I have fond memories of the 14-inch Sony Trinitron, my bedroom TV from 20 years ago. A bargain at ÂŁ350. Lol.
 
Teriyaki Blues

Teriyaki Blues

Member
Oct 28, 2017
2,035
electristan said:
You could look at PC monitors with HDMI inputs, there is a lot of variety there
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^ This is absolutely what I do, I play all my games on computer monitors with HDMI inputs. Picture quality is often way, way better than a similarly sized TV, and they have better menus to get that picture just where you want it. Good luck, OP. If you can go as high as 27", they're everywhere. I got mine at Costco.
 
Pargon

Pargon

Member
Oct 27, 2017
12,020
HD happened. And economies of scale.
Small, pixel-dense panels can be more expensive to produce, and difficult to sell.
People want larger displays, and those that want smaller ones don't want to pay a premium for them.

That being said, I was looking into options for a small TV in the kitchen a while back, and there really didn't seem to be any good options.
I wish someone would put those 13–17" OLED panels they are producing for laptops into a monitor/television with an HDMI input.
 
Rellodex

Rellodex

Member
Oct 29, 2017
2,169
HeyNay said:
LOL I hear ya. You can alleviate this by calibrating the TV set. Most TV sets come with the brightness and saturation turned up way too high. Look up some calibration settings for the model and punch em into the TV settings and then adjust from there to whatever feels good.

Turning down the backlight is probably one of the best things you can do for your eyes. Especially if you watch TV in a dimly-lit room. Personally I keep two picture settings saved on my TV. One for day-time viewing, and another one that's exactly the same, but with the backlight turned down like 50% for night-time viewing. Not only does it make for more relaxed viewing, but it actually looks better when the lights are low.
Click to expand...
Click to shrink...

As a rule I only calibrate my own panels and won't touch anyone else's. Especially someone who is TV-proud, and even if they ask.

Set up my parents tv once, years ago, only to have them freak out about how dull the colors looked and how the motion smoothing "that they bought the tv specifically for" was turned off.

It still makes me irrationally frustrated to think about.

And to this day their tv features actors with orange skin, nighttime scenes that take place in a dark void, every athlete wearing uniforms colored by some sort of glowing plasma, and a brightness/contrast ratio that seems to be programmed to the low frequency oscillator from a 2010 dubstep bass drop.
 
CatAssTrophy

CatAssTrophy

Member
Dec 4, 2017
7,621
Texas
As a few people mentioned the pixels per square inch is expensive the higher it gets and I can't imagine it's easy to produce them either.

PC monitor realm feels like it's skewing heavily towards larger and larger these days too. Most 1440p monitors are 27" and up.
 
Fnnrqwin

Fnnrqwin

Member
Sep 19, 2019
2,299
Just curious, but how small is the space and how close are you sitting to the TV? I have to imagine you could make a 32" screen work at least.
 
El Bombastico

El Bombastico

Avenger
Oct 25, 2017
36,050
This thread is making me nostalgic for the crappy 20" Vizio LCD that was my very first HDTV. My parents bought it for me in 2007 shortly after I'd gotten my PS3.
 
GamerJM

GamerJM

Member
Nov 8, 2017
15,639
At a certain size/distance away from the TV, wouldn't resolution improvements start to become significantly less important?

I used to be in the monitor gang, and I still technically am, but I recently bought a 43" "monitor" that I use instead because I wanted to go 4K and I sit too far away for getting a smaller 4K monitor to make as much of a difference (plus this is literally the only monitor I could find that has HDMI 2.1, 1ms input lag, 144hz, HDR, and 4K).
 
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