Small TVs are close to inconceivable to search out in the present day, and that is a disgrace

In terms of TVs nowadays, many individuals subscribe to the notion that larger equals higher. In lots of circumstances, that is true. In your lounge, the place you spend most of your time watching, it is good to have one thing massive, particularly in case you have a household. Even your bed room can profit from a bigger TV as a result of your mattress is perhaps positioned on a wall distant from the TV.

Alternatively, there are a lot of conditions the place having a giant TV is a detriment. In small rooms the place you do not have quite a lot of wiggle room for seating, having a 65-inch TV could be brutal in your eyes from being too shut. It is perhaps onerous to think about, however there was a world the place 13-inch CRT TVs had been commonplace, however TVs of that measurement have primarily dried up.

I’ve a bar in my basement that might profit from a TV that measurement, however other than utilizing a pc monitor with a Roku Streaming Stick plugged into it, there aren’t quite a lot of selections. I would wish to keep away from utilizing a monitor if I can, however I do not know if there’s going to be one thing that trumps it.

Small TVs are going extinct

Not a lot we will do about it

To be truthful, there aren’t many situations the place having a small TV is best than a giant one. As TV reveals and flicks are sometimes output at a better decision, it is good to have a giant TV to match that. There isn’t any sense having a 32-inch TV in your lounge anymore, however that does not imply you continue to cannot match one into your own home in a unique room.

I’ve a basement bar that might, in idea, match a 55-inch TV there, however it would not be snug. That is the place having one thing small that might maybe match on the bar itself turns out to be useful, and that is the place the lack of small TVs hits the toughest. I perceive I can nonetheless discover a 24-inch TV on the market, however I am speaking about one thing even smaller than that. We used to have the ability to discover tiny TVs, and beneath 10 inches was inside the realm of potentialities. I do not forget that my aunt used to have a tiny TV in her kitchen to observe one thing whereas cooking, however a Google Nest Hub has primarily taken the place of that in the present day.

These sizes had been frequent when CRT TVs had been of their heyday, and I do not assume you will be discovering an HDTV at that measurement. I just lately picked a 20-inch CRT TV out of the trash that is great for retro gaming, and the display measurement is ideal for what I am on the lookout for. The draw back is CRTs are very cumbersome, even the 13-inch mannequin pictured above, to allow them to’t fairly match the place I need them to. Sadly, I haven’t got many trendy choices to suit a display measurement like that, and it is onerous for me to justify spending round $100 on such a small TV. This leaves one in every of my solely choices as an outdated pc monitor I’ve in my closet. I can simply plug in a streaming stick and get it working as a TV, however then I’ve to dig up audio system for it.

It appears like each route I take has its share of execs and cons, and that is not one thing I need to take care of. I simply need to decide up a TV that matches comfortably at my bar with out taking over the entire space. In 2025, that is perhaps an excessive amount of to ask for. It was quite a bit less complicated when the market was flooded with TVs of all sizes, however your huge field retailer is just about 55″ or up.

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TVs have gotten larger and cheaper

It is principally factor

Samsung / Pocket-lint

After I was rising up, I thought of myself fortunate to have a 20″ TV in my bed room. Quick-forward to in the present day — I’ve a 65″ TV, so I’ve come fairly a good distance. What’s wild about it’s that yow will discover a 65″ TV for beneath $300, though it will not be one of the best ones. What I am saying is it isn’t even one thing that may break the financial institution like TVs up to now of comparable high quality would. It is for that reason that I discover it so troublesome to spend over $100 on a TV at a fraction of the scale.

To search out one thing smaller, I’ve to begin taking a look at tablets. Tablets aren’t precisely recognized for his or her wonderful image high quality and sound, so utilizing one as a TV is not on the high of my advice checklist. On the brilliant aspect, you may usually discover a finances one for round $100, just like the Lenovo Tab. Nonetheless, a finances pill like that has to chop corners, and the Lenovo Tab M9 solely has a 9-inch display, so placing it up at a bar will not suffice. It really works completely advantageous for watching one thing in my lap, however sitting a number of ft away is not superb, and that is not even entering into the sound.

When you assume again to older CRT TVs, you usually discovered them with a set of stereo audio system constructed proper in. I did not assume a lot of them again then as that was the usual, however contemplating how dangerous TV audio system have gotten now, it appears like magic they had been ever good. It looks like the hunt for bigger screens meant the sacrifice of stable sound. For some folks, that is completely advantageous, however it’s unusual we will not have each.

Contemplating TV sizes have solely gotten bigger and extra reasonably priced, I am unable to envision a world the place smaller TVs make a comeback even when I need them to. Individuals worth ease over all the things, and that appears like an enormous cause why bodily media is quickly shrinking in favor of streaming. If you may get an enormous TV for $500, there’s actually not a lot of a cause to not do it. Outdoors of area of interest causes, there isn’t any cause to get a small TV anymore.

Sadly, I want one for a distinct segment cause, and that is why I am lamenting the lack of one thing that was so frequent just some a long time earlier. It is attention-grabbing to see how briskly issues change, and that 20″ TV I had in my bed room all these years in the past is microscopic in comparison with the choices obtainable in the present day. Unusually sufficient, I would like to have that TV again, however it has lengthy since disappeared.

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