There is a new trend in design choices for your living room. From TV stands that are mounted on the wall, to ones that magically pop up from wooden cabinets, whole industries are springing up to either hide or prominently display our most prized possession, the television.
CENTER OF THE ROOM
In the old days, before technological advances brought us movies and TV on demand into our homes, the center of the living room area was the fireplace. Or the chairs were arranged in a circle to facilitate conversation and tea service. Today large entertainment units can fill an entire wall. And there are countless entertainment components to fill every available slot:
- Wii
- CD/DVD player
- DVR
- MP3 player
HIDE IT OR SHOW IT OFF?
First you must decide if the television is an item you want to display or to hide until you are ready to use it. Lift top TV cabinets are very popular as they can make any other feature of the living room the centerpiece. This is especially popular for folks who collect art or who want their family photographs to be the main eye catcher.
For those who spend the better part of a month’s paycheck on their TV, the last thing they want to do is HIDE it. There are many option for displaying the television prominently. Unfortunately many of the options don’t take into account that there will be times when guests will not be watching the TV like when you are entertaining several people at a cocktail party.
CORNER TV STANDS
Corner TV stands are the best option if you have a large enough corner because you can arrange the furniture around the living room in such a manner as the TV can be the focus, but it does not necessarily need to be the focus. A few side chairs will make the living room easily transformable from a circular sitting social atmosphere to a “everyone sitting around watching the TV” atmosphere.
There are many factors to take into consideration when deciding on a TV cabinet, whether you intend to put it in the corner or against the main wall or even off to the side with the ability to roll it in and out of the room.
VARIETY OF STYLES
First, decide on the décor. Is your home more cozy and wooded or more modern with glass and sleek lines. There are a variety of materials that TV cabinets are made from. Choose the one that best matches your other furniture.
Second, take special note of the features and specs of your television. May LED TV’s are able to be viewed from angles as tight as 179 degrees without loss of resolution. Other less expensive models need to be viewed nearly straight on, keep this in mind when deciding on proper placement.
Finally make sure that you have not fallen in love with a design model that will not support the weight or breadth of your television. Prices on televisions have dropped dramatically over the last 10 years. In the past if you wanted a TV bigger than 25 inches, you needed 3 men to carry it and a few months car payments to afford it. Now, televisions as big as 40 inches are available to the masses, some under five hundred dollars even.
Stores like Walmart and Costco make their bread and butter profits in electronics from the sale of flat screen oversized televisions. Just because you can afford a 50 inch television does not mean that your living room can handle it though or that it is the best option for your home.
What else is in the room where you want to place the television? Is there a fireplace? A window? French doors? how much space do you have against the largest wall? The best option is often on the corners of the room. Take into account the height of the unit with the television atop it. Take into account the lighting in the corner. You don’t want lights directly overhead, there could be competing glare interfering with the picture quality of the television.
Make sure there are ample outlets. Remember you will need to plug in more than the television, you will likely need a source strong enough to handle a multi-outlet surge protector. You will need an outlet for the video player, and the DVR at the very minimum.
Whatever you decide upon, don’t forget to at least consider the corner unit as an option for your TV stand.