I’ve read various articles debating the importance of the 1080p. I want to set the record straight once and for all: if you are serious about properly setting up your viewing room, you will definitely benefit from 1080p (and even 1440p.) Why? Because the 1080p resolution is the first to deliver enough detail to your eyeball when you are seated at the proper distance from the screen. But don’t just take my word for it: read on for the proof.
There are a few obvious factors to being able to detect resolution differences: the resolution of the screen, the size of the screen, and the viewing distance. To be able to detect differences between resolutions, the screen must be large enough and you must sit close enough. So the question becomes “How do I know if need a higher resolution or not?”. Here is your answer.
Based on the resolving ability of the human eye, it is possible to estimate when the differences between resolutions will become apparent. A person with 20/20 vision can resolve 60 pixels per degree, which corresponds to recognizing the letter “E” on the 20/20 line of a Snellen eye chart from 20 feet away. Using the Home Theater Calculator spreadsheet as a base, I created a chart showing, for any given screen size, how close you need to sit to be able to detect some or all of the benefits of a higher resolution screen. (Click the picture below for a larger version.)
What the chart shows is that, for a 50-inch screen, the benefits of 720p vs. 480p start to become apparent at viewing distances closer than 14.6 feet and become fully apparent at 9.8 feet. For the same screen size, the benefits of 1080p vs. 720p start to become apparent when closer than 9.8 feet and become full apparent at 6.5 feet. In my opinion, 6.5 feet is closer than most people will sit to their 50″ plasma TV (even through the THX recommended viewing distance for a 50″ screen is 5.6 ft). So, most consumers will not be able to see the full benefit of their 1080p TV.
However, front projectors and rear projection displays are a different story. They make it very easy to obtain large screen sizes. Plus, LCD and Plasma displays are constantly getting larger and less expensive. In my home, for example, I have a 123-inch screen and a projector with a 1280×720 resolution. For a 123-inch screen, the benefits of 720p vs. 480p starts to become apparent at viewing distances closer than 36 feet (14 feet behind my back wall) and become fully apparent at 24 feet (2 feet behind my back wall). For the same screen size, the benefits of 1080p vs. 720p start to become apparent when closer than 24 feet and become full apparent at 16 feet (just between the first and second row of seating in my theater). This means that people in the back row of my home theater would see some improvement if I purchased a 1080p projector and that people in the front row would notice a drastic improvement. (Note: the THX recommended max viewing distance for a 123″ screen is 13.7 feet).
So, how close should you be sitting to your TV? Obviously, you need to look at your room and see what makes sense for how you will be using it. If you have a dedicated viewing room and can place seating anywhere you want, you can use this chart as a guideline. It’s based on THX and SMPTE specifications for movie theaters; the details are available in the Home Theater Calculator spreadsheet.
Looking at this chart, it is apparent that 1080p is the lowest resolution to fall within the recommended seating distance range. Any resolution less than 1080p is not detailed enough if you are sitting the proper distance from the screen. For me and many people with large projection screens, 1080p is the minimum resolution you’d want.
In fact, you could probably even benefit from 1440p. If you haven’t heard of 1440p, you will. Here’s a link to some info on Audioholics.com. It is part of the HDMI 1.3 spec, along with 48-bit color depth, and will probably surface for the public in 2009 or so. You’ll partially be able to see the benefits of 1440p at the THX Max Recommended viewing distance and the resolution benefits will be fully apparent if you are just a little closer. I’ve read of plans for resolutions reaching 2160p but I don’t see any benefit; you’d have to sit too darn close to the screen to notice any improvement. If you sit too close, you can’t see the far edges of the screen.
In conclusion
If you are a videophile with a properly setup viewing room, you should definitely be able to notice the resolution enhancement that 1080p brings. However, if you are an average consumer with a flat panel on the far wall of your family room, you are not likely to be close enough to notice any advantage. Check the chart above and use that to make your decision.
ISF states the the most important aspects of picture quality are (in order): 1) contrast ratio, 2) color saturation, 3) color accuracy, 4) resolution. Resolution is 4th on the list and plasma is generally superior to LCD in all of the other areas (but much more prone to reflections/glare.) So pick your display size, then measure your seating distance, and then use the charts above to figure out if you would benefit from the larger screen size. So be sure to calibrate your screen! I recommend the following for calibration.
Recommended Calibration Tools
- Disney WOW: World of Wonder Blu-ray
- Disney WOW: World of Wonder DVD
- Alternative options:
- DVD: Digital Video Essentials (the original calibration disc dating back to the 1990s)
- Blu-ray: Spears & Munsil High-Def Benchmark Disc (my favorite but hard to find)
- Blu-ray: Digital Video Essentials: HD Basics (an update to the original, but I don’t like it as well)
- Automatic Hardware Calibrator: Datacolor Spyder 3
“I don’t like reading charts – just tell me what resolution I need”
If you don’t like reading charts and are looking for a quick answer, enter you screen size below to see how close you’ll need to sit to fully appreciate various screen resolutions.
Note about “or closer” viewing distances calculated above: if you sit closer than the distances shown above, you will be able to see some (but not all) of the detail offered by the next higher resolution.
for a 15.5 inch screen laptop should i go for 1080p full hd led screen or 1366×768 led screen!???
For computer screens, more resolution is always better.
You are AWESOME! This was clear, very informative and easy to understand. Answered all my questions in one article.
Thank you!
Great website! i know now that at 5-6 feet away my 26″ 720p hdtv will not be better than a 37″ hdtv:)
Greater the distance better the resolution. Correct? When I glanced through the article, I thought it other way and thinking about buying a 32″ rather than a 42″ because my room is only 10×8 sqft.
You always want a bigger screen if it fits in your room and budget.
My 27 inch monitor is perfect for my 10 and half by 15 and a half foot front room,I wouldn’t want or need any bigger,massive screens look stupid and ugly in most peoples houses,but they get them to make a statement and to try and out do each other with the biggest possible screen.
way over my head. i am looking at cam-corders. trying to find out what the specs. mean.does 1080p matter with cam-corders?
Only if you’re going to watch your home movies on a screen where the 1080p resolution can be appreciated (i.e. see above.)
Hi Carlton
I need ur guidance in setting up my Living Room ,
I am about to Purshace an LED ( Samsung Series 6 : 40 or 46 Inch )
I’ll be watching it from about 11.2 ft , i wonder what size to get 46 or 40
I will mainly be using it for:
– Movies : 720p : 70% of time
– Movies : 1080p : 30% of time
– SD Satellite Transmission : 480p Most of time ( News channels , etc )
Thanks alot for your valuable recommendations
You can plug your info into the calculator and get the results. Get the biggest TV you can. I’d personally go for something larger than 46″.
Here’s an update on previous comments. In March I lost an eye to cancer. My other eye is “fuzzy” from laser surgery. So (in order to get better resolution and larger images) we purchased a 42″ Panasonic TCP42GT25.
This machine has some useful options; e.g. besides the HD formats, we can view SD at 4:3 or expanded full screen or justified full screen. Furthermore, we can view jpg photos and access the Internet, as well as view DVDs and old VHS tapes.
The important thing for me is to be able to read text banners and be able to see the entire screen without moving my head. After two month’s viewing experience I have discovered that a viewing range of 8 feet is just right for most HD presentations and for stretched SD formats, while 6 ft is good for 4:3 SD presentations. This TV purchase is turning out to be the best antidepressant of the year. 😉
Bruce, I’m very sorry to hear about your eye and I hope your recover continues to go well. Having the TV (and the sound system) setup properly can greatly improve the viewing experience, as you have testified. Continue to enjoy your new setup and best wishes to you!
Folks, someone please please help me. I’m about to buy a 106″ projection system except the wall I’m going to focus on is only 12 feet wide with about 3 feet on the right taken away by a door opening. What that means is, with the screen width of 7’8″, I would be left with a miserly 1’4″ on the left side, where I could set up the left front speaker. I do have a nice distance of 14′ (maximum) which is perfect, per Carlton’s calculations.
I’m worried about the space on the left of the screen though and the placement of the speaker. Do you see this as a problem? Is it even worth it? I have to decide very soon. I’ll really appreciate a quick response.
Thanks in advance!
Sid
You can fit a narrow tower speaker on that side. That is probably your best option. It won’t matter if the speaker overlaps the board of the screen either. You other option is to get an acoustically transparent screen and mount the 3 main speakers behind the screen in the wall.
Thank you very much! I have another question. I’ve seen only fixed screens at Best Buy etc. but I’ll be using a pull down, except, there’s a pesky thermostat about 3/4″ width in the middle of the wall. I haven’t actually seen a large pull down projector installed so my question is, does a little space exist between the pull down screen and the wall? Is there some way it can be installed so as to create some space and negate the protrusion of the thermostat?
Regards,
Sid
Sid, it depends on the screen, but you should be able to mount it so there is space behind. HOWEVER, the screen would be more likely to sway due to air blowing on it or people walking by. You may want something to protrude from the wall at the bottom of the screen to keep it in place.
may i suggest that you use tower speakers and if they are too wide place them laying down under the screen. there are box speakers made for this also. just remember that they need to be at least 5 ft. away from each other for proper stereo separation. as for the screen, placing it in a frame that can be mounted on a hinge up top and pulled down into position and locked until no longer needed would be nice.
Out of curiosity, as you seem to know your stuff. My friend and I have been watching the show, Game of Thrones for the past few weeks and we got into a discussion on what screen it was best to watch it on.
I like to wait for when it is aired on television as my family has a 48″ Plasma 1080P HD screen about 6ft away from the screen. My friend, however, says he thinks it is best on a 22″ 1080p HD standard screen, but close up (on his computer screen).
Is there actually any difference between the two? Are bigger screens actually better if you stick to your chart of viewing distance? If so/not, why?
Cheers mate! I’m not a TV whizz, so your opinion could turn the tide of the argument!
Joe,
This is a slightly different application question, not about home theater, but about business conference room use. We are planning a 70″ Sharp Aquos LCD monitor for the room for business PowerPoint and Excel spreadsheet presentations. An 11′ long conference table sits lengthwise in room (end near display), 3′ from the display. So the closest person seated at the side of the table is about 4-5′ and the farthest is 14-15′ feet from the display. My question is simply: “Is a 70″ screen TOO big for this room? I.e., will the people up close be too close?”
70″ is not too big.
So I’m thinking in getting a Full Hd 1080p 23″ Lcd P2370 Series 7 Samsung, for gamming propuses… so is it worth it or not? I already have a samsung 23″ but it’s 720p, I usually sit right infront of my tv about 2 and a half feet from it.
My main question would be is it worth to upgrade from my 23″ samsung 720p to a 23″ samsung 1080p if I sit about 2 and a half feet from my tv?
Hello,
I have LG 50” plasma tv having resolution of 1365 X 768. many times i observe that it is not showing full picture for example if m watching a movie during titles, credits(or names)are not showing 100% its cuts. my query is can i get full image in full HD tv or its broadcast problem.
You are experiencing a problem with overscan and 1:1 pixel mapping, both of which are a function of your display. Do a Google search on those and your TV model number to find out if you can adjust settings to improve it.
Greetings,
I am shopping for a LED 1080p 120 HDTV (no 3D, not ready to plunge into this infant technology). I will place the tv on a stand and the viewing distance will vary from 7′ – 15′. Please assist me by recommending the TV size should I buy?
Hi Carlton,
Quick Question. I’m looking to purchase a projector for my church and trying to choose between a 1080p and 720p projector. Does the graph above stay the same if we start with a 720p projector as opposed to a 1080p projector. Meaning if our beginning resolution is 720p, will you reach the full benefit of 720p at 25 feet still with a 120 inch screen or does that distance move forward or back since I would be starting with a lower resolution?
Thanks,
Jeremy
Aloha:
Just finished viewing several exchanges in which Carlton Bale had many answers. About the best exchange of info I’ve seen yet – polite, civil and to the point. Thanks guys – appreciate finally seeing an exchange of info without denigrating comments tossed in. (Sorry I can’t add to the discussion – I’m relatively new to all of this, so all I can do at this point is just ‘listen’.) Regards, Norm B.
Interestingly, I find this tool useful for calculating the viewing distance for text based on a given resolution / screen size. I.e., for a 26″ 720p display, I can sit about 8 feet away and still read web pages.
I was reading on various sites about 720p vs 1080p, including the cNet guide and various others. Looked at screenshots/pictures too. It seemed for me 720p was enough. Then, while reading TV reviews I realized that there are no high end 720p TVs. So if i wanted high quality i had to buy an 1080p TV even if I didn’t need the resolution.
My 15.4″ laptop from 2003 has a resolution of 1920×1200, I find that it would be nice to have a higher resolution, but QXGA are out of production and I have yet to find much video higher than 1080p. 4K is still a way off and it seems that there is no immediate need given our living spaces are getting smaller not bigger!
24 and 30 frames per second, not minute.
I am currently thinking of buying a projector. But what resolution will be best in my situation? I will be sitting 8 feet away from the screen with a size of 70 inch.
The beamer must be 3D, so 720p or 1080p?
I’m looking for a 26″-32″ gaming and netflix friendly TV for my dorm room. I’m mainly buying it to play xbox360 from 4-6ft away. Are 1080 26″ tvs worth it for this distance? Would a 720p 32″ LED be the best option? And lastly, how trustworthy are the unknown brands? I’ve looked at iSymphony, Vizio, Westinghouse, Dynex and Voire. I’m hoping to spend no more than $340. Seems like with 1080p I’ll be better prepared for future tech but people say it’s more worth it on bigger Tvs. Sound is no issue, I plan on using external speakers
Why not try a monitor,I have a 27 inch BenQ monitor and it’s great,I have my xbox,my xbox 360 and game cube all plugged into it and use it for games and DVD’S?
I’m pretty sure this is just a typo, though please excuse me if I’m wrong, but shouldn’t your quick answer calculator say how many feet or **FURTHER** one should sit to see the full benefit? Right now it implies that with a 42″ TV I can sit anywhere between 0 and 12 feet and will see the same picture quality from a 420p source.
I would imagine that the closer you get to the TV the more pixelated the image would appear, as I believe your article and graph suggests, right?
Hi Carlton!
Pretty cool graphs you have put together! And a nice calculator in the bottom. + for that.
Though im missing a conversion to the European metric system, would be awesome to have that grade in the output distance in the calculator. (and the diagrams as well)
Also, i would like to join Jens in his question, seems fair to be seated X to Y feet away to be able to enjoy the show – if you are too close to the monitor then the pixel start showing instead. =)
Great work!
/ Wassbergh
Adding metric to the webpage made it a bit too confusing and required more coding. If you want metric units, I suggest you use my Home Theater Calculator spreadsheet, which uses either English or Metric units.
For most modern displays made in the last 5 or so years, you have to be really, really close before the pixel structure breaks down. It’s not a function of resolution, but on the display technology and the gaps and contrast between each pixel. On my 123″ (3.1 m) screen, I have to be about 2 feet (0.6 m) or closer to notice pixel structure.
Great article. I truly believe that 1440p is optimal for the majority of individuals. I love the chart and the calculator.
I only have three thoughts.
1) On the calculator, I would like to see the distances expressed to tenths of feet or in inches.
2) I would argue that the lower limit of the range should be called “optimal” instead of saying you’d have to sit no further than that for full benefit. If you sat closer, you’d start seeing the pixelation which means it is the distance where you’ve actually achieved the maximum threshold distance for any degree of benefit between the higher and lower of the two resolutions on that boundary.
3) If the industry continues to divide the resolution by two for stereoscopic 3D, 2880p would start be of value.
Patrick, I did have 1440p on a previous version of the chart, but since no content or HDTV is readily available at that resolution, I removed it in favor of 4k. The lower range may be optimal for resolution, but not necessarily for field-of-view, which I believe it more important for the overall viewing experience.
As for the additional resolutions and more precise distances, they are all available via the Home Theater Calculator Excel spreadsheet, which is linked in the article. I think it would be too much detail to include in this article, so I included it elsewhere for those who want the next level of detail.
How about the minimum viewing distance? I have a 15.6″ 1080p display on my Dell XPS 15z . When viewing it from roughly a foot away, i am able to make out the pixel borders and can see vertical/horizontal lines on the screen.
So, is there a calculation for the minimum distance as well, along with the Pixel : Pixel border size ? ( similar to the dot pitch? )
Test it for yourself: https://carltonbale.com/visual-acuity-viewing-distance-test-it-for-yourself
Ok, This test was painful!
* The `visual acuity’ distance turns out about a foot , right about the time the eyestrain kicks in!
It turns out that there might be a problem with the LCD (i’m not sure how, maybe a missing coating/ ? )
Hi,
I am in serious doubt,I want to buy a new TV, and I have these options a Sony 32″ Bravia KDL32CX520 LCD TV and a LG 50PT250 50″ HD Plasma TV. These are the options that suits my budget now.
What do you recommend me?, Should I prefer more resolution in a small screen or a bigger screen. My living room is big enough for a 50 inch, but I don’t know if I am doing a bad business, buying an old model.
Thanks
Diego, without a doubt, go for the bigger screen. It’s clearly the best choice between the two options. High resolution on a small screen is wasted unless you sit it in your lap.
Thank you!
My room is 13×19 and I plan on having 2 rows of seating w/
1080p projection.
What is the reccomended screeen size adn at what distance should I arrage the first and second row seating?
Hi Carlton.
I bought a 42″ Panasonic plasma with 1024 x 768 native resolution. Does your chart on this page take into account the horizontal resolution? I know your calculator does.
Thanks.
The chart assumes square pixels, or more specifically applies to the biggest pixel dimension. Since your TV has pixels that are wider than they are tall, your vertical resolution is slightly exceeds 720p, but your horizontal resolution is a bit less. So the line for representing your TV would be slightly above the 720p line in the chart.
Got it. Thanks, Carlton.
I have a suggestion. This is a awesome tool and a great explaination of how it all works. If I could make one suggestion on enhancing the calculator it would be adding the distance a higher resolution begins to be apparent. That is when it’s value begins to be realized. Then again disregard this if it is almost always the same distance the lower resolution is fully realized.
Thanks for the site. Great info
Right, the distance where 1080 starts to be realized is just a tiny bit closer than where 720p is fully realized.
Hi
If I have a 1080p display(plasma) but viewing standard definition TV programing at 9ft,do I use the chart as 720p?
You use the resolution of the source material, which would be 480i/480p.