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I know I put a similar question here before but I wasn’t really able to reach a conclusion on what to after that, and I realised I need to be clearer.
I’ve decided to get tvs, al least in some of the rooms. Most obvious place to watch would be from bed - can I get a vote on how many people would be able to see the picture well enough from that distance? To be more specific, the distance would be to the end of the bed and then about an extra meter to the walk or chest of drawers. I feel like for many of us we wouldn’t be able to see this far? And if not, would a 32 inch do the trick?
I’ve seen lots of bedrooms, and kitchens, and even bathrooms, with little TVs. I’m not sure people lay in bed and watch these TVs. I think they are used as background noise. They listen to the news while making dinner, or have them on to fall asleep.
If that is the only TV they have access to it may be a different situation, but if there is a large TV for them to watch in the lounge, then a TV to watch in bed might just be for ambient noise.
That said, I don’t have a tv in my bedroom, or kitchen, or bathroom. When I bought the house there was one in all those places and they are all gone now. However, the TVs we do have to actually watch are 66” and 86”. Anything smaller and I might as well be watching on my computer.
I agree that if you have a large one available in another room, small could be OK. Adequacy depends a lot on what people watch. Dramas and news are probably fine small, but shows that highlight scenery, big stunts, etc. don’t work too well on a small screen. We have 32 inchers in our bedrooms.
From what distance? @Bosty64 the only way hosts here would know this is to set up a TV of the size you mention in a bedroom from the distance you intend to have yours.
Why don’t you just do this yourself and you will have your answer.
I wouldn’t watch a 24” from that distance. I’d use my laptop. 32” - I might watch that but I’d be continually wishing for a larger TV.
As an aside, have a plan for what sources the guests have for TV before you buy TV’s. Will they just sign into their own apps (like Netflix)? If they are mostly international guests, can they even access their own apps?
We put in a FireStick and have a guest account for Amazon Prime and Netflix. But we also have a large movie library and DVD/BluRay player for each TV since the sources are “geofenced” (severe limitations on what’s available to watch since our property is in the Caribbean).
I think many people will know without setting up the exact scenario Helsi! Based on their experience of looking at other TVs and things! Most of us have stayed in hotels with TVs at end of the bed For example. I know I wouldn’t be able to see a 24 inch tv from bed. It has been more than ten years since I’ve had a tv but I still realise that.
Re distance, Regardless of exactly where it was placed , we know that is going to be a minimum of two meters away more or less, based on bed measurements! I did say how far though -To the end of the bed and approx a meter.
Not all of us have TVs in our bedrooms. I’ve never had one.
In hotels in the UK we don’t have TVs at the end of our beds. They tend to be on a wall. Yes I can see them but I have no idea what size they are, so that doesn’t help you I’m afraid. @Bosty64
If you want to check visibility why don’t you take both sizes and check them in the rooms you want to have your TVs in?
I had a complaint that even a 32" TV was too small. We had a 32" in only one of the bedrooms due to size constraints of hanging space in that particular room. So my answer is No. We ended up purchasing and installing a extending wall swivel bracket in order to hang and provide a 43" TV instead to make guests happier
Yes that’s what I thought but nobody else said this so far so I wanted to check.
Yes reason for preferring smaller TVs is that they are easier on the eye! I’m not a fan of wall hung TVs either, unless in a dedicated tv room.
If from feedback it’s clear that 24 inch is too small to see from the bed for most, as I suspected, then I’d be interested whether people felt 32 inch would be big enough. If also too small, I think I’ll skip TVs. Maybe just putting one in the largest room where it could be watched on an armchair away from the bed.
It’s more for background as I think some people appreciate that while travelling. And I think if you’re settled in bed laptop is fine. So it’s more for when you don’t actually want to watch something specifically. None the less I wouldn’t buy a tv that cannot be seen from the bed, as that wouldn’t make sense in a rental - ie I can’t make those assumptions and would open myself up the negative comments in reviews.
This reminds me of one guest who mentioned (in person) that he likes to have a TV in the bedroom not to watch, but to leave the sound on in the background. We don’t provide one in the bedroom. I did give it consideration but ultimately decided not to do it.
If you do put one in there I guess I would just say don’t go too small. The majority of people use TVs for watching so catering to the minority (using it for noise) is leaving the majority unfulfilled, e.g. something to complain about.
You need to decide who you are pleasing - your eye which dislikes large TVs (presumably you mean from a decorating perspective), or the guest that watches TV.
My advice? Either put a large enough TV in to be watched, or skip it. If I recall correctly, you have several rooms. Try a 45” (or larger) TV in one room. Advertise it and see if that room gets booked more or at a higher price.
Not really because I put a lot of effort in to the decor and I know a lot of people choose my rooms because of it, so I do need to consider the look on top of other things.
Thanks for your advice. However I’m not stuck on what to do here. I’m already going to put in a large enough tv or none at all (except in the room with separate seating area), hence this thread - to ask people what to them is large enough? Everyone’s eyesight is obviously different and just trying to gauge necessary tv size
In the 50s and 60s, people sat across the room from 19" screens. In the 2020’s, people expect not to just ‘see’ the tv, but enjoy what today’s programming offers - high quality visuals that are much more detailed than tv of the 50s and 60s. The stories and visuals are much more complex, and a tiny screen 10 feet away would be very frustrating to watch.
Put a framed picture on the dresser you are looking to use, and then see how much of the picture you see. Of course, you will see the frame and what is in it in a general sense, but certainly you cannot expect a guest to stare at that tiny frame for hours and enjoy modern programs.
A 24” TV, even if it were right at the foot of the bed (odd place to put it) would be useless to me. I need to read closed captions. Could never do it at that size.
No I’m good I know my answer to that, as I’ve mentioned. I don’t need to set up scenarios at home to find out whether I could see a small tv from my bed. However, I cannot base what people generally could see on what I could see alone so just wondered about others out there. Could you all see a 24 inch tv from bed? Thank you for confirming that you also would not enjoy that. I’m gonna leave the tellies!
Just my opinion – but I would find it frustrating, and be thinking “Didn’t they think this through?” when you want them to be thinking (and reviewing) “My host thought of everything”
In our guest suite the living room has a huge screen TV. And the bedroom has a small TV (size of a desktop computer screen) on a bookshelf less than a yard from guest’s eyes while sitting in bed. We upgraded both with soundbars to avoid guests thinking “has the host ever actually tried to listen to this tinny little speaker.”
