Which TV to choose?
With the 2022 Olympic Games just around the corner, many people are tempted to buy a big screen. So it's a good idea to offer you a technical guide to help you make this decision. Since size remains the number one source of initial dissatisfaction, it's vital that you make the right choice.
In addition to the format, other characteristics need to be taken into account, such as image resolution, refresh rate, dynamic range, etc.
With the start of the Olympic Games, which will be followed by the U.S. Super Bowl, we're in for some great viewing thanks to the first broadcast of the games in in 8K resolution. China Media Group (CMG), China's leading state-owned media company, has just announced the launch of CCTV-8K, aîne TV channel in 8K format deded dedicated to broadcasting the upcoming 2022 Olympic Games in Pékin, so there's no doubt that we'll have clips available here on streaming platforms like YouTube and Co. so...
Follow the guide.
What determines the required stand-off distance?
There are many myths about this, but you should know that brightness doesn't give you a headache, and your eyesight doesn't deteriorate from staring at a screen too closely. The real reason for distance is a question of comfort and viewing immersion. In the past, we had to stand farther away from our screens because the image was imprecise, and our eyes and brains got tired trying to focus our gaze. To understand what's going on, stare at your hand for a minute and suddenly look away: there will be a delay before you clearly grasp the distant visual. Your eyes will have adapted. If your screen is blurry, your eyes will be constantly trying to adapt, leading to fatigue. Since the introduction of high-definition (HD) televisions in 2005, this problem no longer exists.
With the difficulty of focusing no longer an issue, what remains is the desired immersion in the image. In other words, if you're too close, you won't see the whole picture, and if you're too far away or the screen is too small, you won't feel at one with the action.
Viewing distance versus diagonal format
TV screens are measured diagonally, not width or height. The size of a TV refers to its diagonal length, which comes from measuring from the top left corner of the TV screen to the bottom right corner. Most screen sizes are expressed in inches.
Depending on the resolution of your screen, the distance required will vary. In this respect, there has been real progress. For reference, a 55-inch screen used to require viewing from a distance of 13.75 feet, whereas a 4K resolution screen will now require a distance of just 5.5 feet!
There are different resolution levels, but only 4K and 8K are currently available, with very little full HD and only in small formats. 
Demonstration of the amount of visual information depending on resolution.
Terminology
The SD for "Standard Definition" has between 480 by 525 lines of pixels on broadcast and 750 by 576 on DVD. This format is discontinuous, just think of tube TVs...
The HD and Full HD: the former comes in 720 by 1280 dots or pixels, while the latter offers 1080 by 1920 pixels. Most of the equipment offered by traditional cable services falls into this category.
4K offers almost 4000 horizontal lines or 2160 by 3840 pixels/line. This is the most common format. It can be found on certain cable TV channels, as well as on all digital platforms such as Netflix, Disney, Amazon, YouTube and others.
The 8K available now for 3 years offers the very best in realism and will be in the spotlight during the Beijing 2022 games. 4320 by 7680 pixels will form a screen with more than 33 billion dots!
General rule for calculating distance from your screen
Old ratio: SD
We aim for 3.5 to 4 times the diagonal.
32 inches recommended distance of 9 feet.
55 inches recommended distance approx. 14 feet.
Intermediate ratio Full HD
For better-defined HD, opt for 1.5 to 2 times the diagonal.
32 inches recommended distance of 5 feet.
55 inches recommended distance approx. 7 feet.
98-inch Samsung NeoQLED television
These super TVs offer performance that approaches natural vision, the ratio required is greatly reduced. That's why we add to the minimum viewing distances an approximate distance at which you start to distinguish individual pixels or dots, so you can enjoy a more immersive experience without viewing distance restrictions, and look closer without noticing individual pixels. As you'll see in the following table, you can get really close to a 4 or 8 K TV before the experience really degrades.
Recommended distance for modern TV sets
Ideal distance: 8.5 feet for maximum immersion.
Maximum distance for satisfactory immersion: 13.4 feet.
Close-up distance without seeing pixels: 4.9 feet for 4K and 2.5 feet for 8K.
Ideal distance: 7.5 feet for maximum immersion.
Maximum distance for satisfactory immersion: 11.8 feet.
Close-up distance without seeing pixels: 4.4 feet for 4K and 2.2 feet for 8K.
Ideal distance: 6.5 feet for maximum immersion.
Maximum distance for satisfactory immersion: 10.2 feet.
Close-up distance without seeing pixels: 3.8 feet for 4K and 1.9 feet for 8K.
Ideal distance: 5.5 feet for maximum immersion.
Maximum distance for satisfactory immersion: 8.7 feet.
Close-up distance without seeing pixels: 3.2 feet for 4K and 1.6 feet for 8K.
Ideal distance: 4.3 feet for maximum immersion.
Maximum distance for satisfactory immersion: 6.8 feet.
Close range without seeing pixels: 2.5 feet.
NOTE THAT BEING A LITTLE FARTHER OR CLOSER IS NOT DRAMATIC!
You'll be satisfied as long as the TV is of high quality.
Things to know besides distance
You've measured your room and determined where you'd like to sit and watch - that's good, but it doesn't end there.
There are at least two other criteria to look for: HDR and refresh rate.
HDR
Resolution tells you only one thing: the number of dots used to sharpen the contours of the images produced. Let's imagine that these points are about as bright as each other, you won't see much, believe me! This is where the recent technology known as HDR, HDR10+, comes in. HDR stands for High Dynamic Range 10 bits, and has to do with contrast and color intensity. A TV featuring this technology will give you a much sharper, more vivid picture, so you'll be able to look even closer, because there's more to look at.
RAFRA RATEÎCHISSEMENT
The second criterion will be to require 120 Hz versus 60. A 60 hertz TV will refresh the picture sixty times a second, while the other will clock in at 120. The more often the image refreshes, the less blur there will be in action reproductions in games, sports and other high-speed activities.
Final consideration: the installation style
Depending on your room, you can decide whether to place the TV on a piece of furniture, on the wall or even directly on the floor. One manufacturer even offers a TV that disguises itself as a painting-like frame when not in use!
The objection we hear less often, fortunately, is where the customer deprives himself of a larger format in order to "fit the TV" into a wall-mounted cabinet. Please: don't deprive yourself of what large TVs have to offer. Today's resolution is such that to reduce the format so that the new TV resides in the same place as before, is to deprive yourself of a most enjoyable experience. What's more, the price difference between formats is a fraction of what it used to be. Just imagine, we're now up to around $2,000 and more for an 85-inch format!!!!
Soundbars: essential or not?
Depending on the model chosen and the type of viewing, you may opt to enhance the acoustic quality to promote an unsurpassable ambience, or even better audibility. First of all, if you're looking for realistic listening, you'll either need to buy a sound bar or opt for a better TV. We invite you to ask for a sound demonstration of the TV you want. You'll be surprised to hear a rich, well-balanced sound from a higher-end model compared with a more economical one. It's night and day. The more expensive TV, in addition to offering a definitely more realistic picture, will offer you a pleasant sound, while the Econo models will have a "grichou" sound.
On the other hand, if you mainly watch action movies, you'll need to opt for a sound bar to really be enveloped by the soundtrack. Better still, ask to see and hear a high-fidelity set (cinema sound system) to experience the ambiance of the cinema at home. That's the subject of a future column!
The last word
Any excuse is a good one to treat yourself, so why not take advantage of occasions such as the Olympic Games, as well as major annual sporting events, to spoil yourself? With today's cinematic advances, a brand-new TV is a guarantee of endless entertainment. Whether you're a fan of games, movies or on-screen sports, your home comfort bubble will be all the better for it. Gone are the dayswhen grand-papa kept his TV his defective, green-and-white TV until the day he died. These days, televisions are technological products of constant and significant development. Like most things today, changing models brings its own share of wonder! Explore the idea of 8K, too, so you can stay ahead of the curve and keep a current-technology TV for years to come. Incidentally, YouTube now broadcasts 8K and mainly nature documentaries. Having a big TV means seeing for real!
We wish our athletes proud medals, and as always, we invite you to... stay tuned!
The Wall 583 inches by Samsung!