116cm Is How Many Inches

Should I buy a 65-inch Telly?

(Image credit: LG)

Should you lot buy a 65-inch TV? The short reply is: if yous can beget it, a bigger TV is frequently a better Idiot box. In the UK, the average screen size grew from around the size of a 32-inch Tv at the turn of the century upwards to that of a 40-inch Television set by 2010. Equally 2019 became 2020, the average size of the new TVs sold in the Great britain was almost 50 inches. Who knows what that will mean the most popular size of 2021 will be by the cease of the year.

Every bit you might expect, economies of scale mean that the more popular a certain screen size is, the more affordable (in relative terms) it becomes. You simply need to check out the price of one of our favourite 50-inch TVs of 2020, the outstanding Panasonic HX800, to see what's what.

When we reviewed the HX800 in June of terminal year, the 50-inch version cost £899 (around $1,200 / AU$1,650) – and it'southward now routinely available for £699 (around $950 / AU$1,270) or so. Compare this to the forty-inch version of the aforementioned television: £649 at launch, on sale now for effectually £599. If a much bigger screen is so relatively inexpensive, why would you choose the smaller one?

A large screen doesn't hateful a big budget

The temptation when buying a new Tv set is to become the biggest one that'south available inside your budget. The average customer upgrades their Television receiver once every six or seven years – so the last thing you desire is to get home and be struck past pocket-sized-screen buyer's remorse, right? So if your upkeep will stretch to a 65-inch 4K TV, why not?

It's non like there aren't quite a few worthwhile 65-inch TVs around, besides, and for a range of prices. If you're admittedly determined to future-proof your new TV equally much as possible, of course, then you're looking at an 8K resolution Samsung Television set – the QE65Q950T will set you lot back the thick end of £6,000 / $eight,000 – or you might consider the less well-specified QE65Q800T alternative for most half of that amount. For the remainder of u.s.a., though, in that location'south enough of choice where the more real-world 4K resolution is concerned.

Our electric current favourite is LG'due south stunning CX OLED – for a fraction nether £two,000 ($ane,799 / £1,799 / effectually AU$ii,700) you lot can be the proud possessor of a super-slim, high-performance OLED Tv set with back up for both Dolby Atmos and Dolby Vision, and HDMI 2.1 compatibility for your shiny new PS5 or Xbox Series X.

Merely you shouldn't overlook Sony'south almost-every bit-impressive A8H OLED. It's a piddling more affordable, enjoys typically Sony picture quality and has a fearsomely clever audio system that uses the entirety of its smashing big screen to produce audio.

Of form, you lot don't have to get deep into four figures to treat yourself to a prissy new telly. Hisense's admirable 65U7QF may not exist as achieved a performer as the alternatives from LG, Samsung, Sony and all the rest – merely information technology's yours for less than £800 / $1000. Quite a bit less, if you shop around – which is a value suggestion that's hard to argue with.

Hisense U7QF QLED — (Image credit: Hisense)

Sizing upwards your space

Only because y'all can beget a 65-inch TV, though, information technology doesn't automatically follow that y'all should become directly out and buy one. There are factors to consider before yous get out your credit carte du jour and get-go folding the back seats of your car down.

The virtually fundamental question of all is: do y'all have the necessary space to accommodate a 65-inch Telly? We don't mean the surface to put it on, or the wall to hang information technology on, either – we mean the altitude from which you'll need to sit in guild to enjoy a comfy viewing experience.

Nosotros've all been to the cinema to see a pop flick during its first few days of release, which means at some point nosotros've all ended up sitting besides close to the screen. It's rotten, isn't information technology? Can't have in the whole screen at one time, can't help but notice dissonance in the picture, can't help merely be made to feel a flake queasy past rapid or unpredictable on-screen motion. Well, it'll exist simply the same if you lot're sitting too close to your Idiot box.

Showtime of all, bear in mind that Telly screen sizes are measured on the diagonal. So the '65-inch' measurement indicates the distance from the bottom-left corner of the screen to the top-correct corner. This is especially relevant if you plan to mount your TV on the wall – in purely decorative terms information technology might look bully above the fireplace, just unless you watch Idiot box from a bar-stool it's almost sure to be too high to view comfortably.

That means you need to mensurate the distance between where the TV is going to be and where you intend to sit when watching information technology.

4K resolution screens are easier to watch from a short distance than 1080p Full Hard disk drive equivalents – cheers to the massive uptick in pixel quantity – but however you don't want to be too shut. A adept rule of thumb for 4K screens is to consider a altitude of somewhere between ane.five and 2 times the screen size as the minimum viewing distance. That means you lot need to be sitting no closer than 2.5m to your new 65-inch television – and, ideally, more similar three to 3.5m.

Sit too shut and yous won't be watching your TV screen so much every bit watching the pixels that make upwardly the picture. So if y'all can't get the sort of distance from your screen that nosotros recommend, well, y'all're better off facing the facts and selecting a slightly more modest television.

Samsung Q800T QLED — (Prototype credit: Samsung)

The biggest benefits for a 65-inch Television

Merely if you can put sufficient distance betwixt yourself and the screen, you're skillful to go. Simply just because y'all tin can conform a 65-inch TV, does it automatically follow that you lot should? What tangible benefits are at that place to a big 65-inch television, anyway?

Well, at the risk of stating the obvious, a bigger screen ways a bigger image. That, in plough, means a more immersive, intense and life-similar viewing experience – especially if your new screen is equipped to take advantage of cutting-edge technologies like dynamic metadata HDR. If you're paying superlative dollar for a 4K Netflix subscription, or you've got a 4K Blu-ray histrion for a truly premium picture, those extra inches volition translate direct into a more brilliant and cinematic watch.

And if you requite your money to Philips for a 65-inch version of 1 of its Ambilight-equipped OLED TVs (the 65OLED935+ is a truly outstanding TV, and – thanks to Bowers & Wilkins – for once information technology's a screen with audio quality to match up to the picture quality), the effect of those rear-facing LEDs beaming light onto the wall behind the screen is fifty-fifty more pronounced than it is on the smaller variants.

Gamers, too, will savor those extra screen inches. Equally long equally you make certain your new 65-inch TV is equipped with HDMI 2.i – which rules out the Philips Tv set, but most definitely rules in the likes of Samsung'due south outstanding QE65Q95T QLED screen – every next-gen console characteristic can be accommodated. The likes of variable refresh rate, 4K/120Hz passthrough and HGiG HDR tone-mapping but add to the already thrilling visual experience served up by both the Xbox Series X and Playstation v – and here, too, a big screen actually allows you to be drawn into the activity.

In short, so, there's no reason not to think long and hard about a 65-inch TV when you're researching your new TV – provided yous accept the infinite to get a realistic altitude abroad from information technology, at to the lowest degree.

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Simon Lucas is a senior editorial professional with deep experience of print/digital publishing and the consumer electronics landscape. Based in Brighton, Simon worked at TechRadar'southward sis site What HiFi? for a number of years, as both a features editor and a digital editor, before embarking on a career in freelance consultancy, content creation, and journalism for some of the biggest brands and publications in the world.

With enormous expertise in all things home entertainment, Simon reviews everything from turntables to soundbars for TechRadar, and also likes to dip his toes into longform features and buying guides. His bylines include GQ, The Guardian, Hullo-Fi+, Metro, The Observer, Pocket Lint, Shortlist, Stuff T3, Tom's Guide, Trusted Reviews, and more.