I as soon as dreamed of proudly owning a 100-...

Ever since flat-screen television sets first hit the scene within the late Nineties and early 2000s, producers have been attempting to push the boundaries as to how large of a panel they will feasibly promote to shoppers.

It did not take lengthy for a standardized set of dimension lessons to emerge: 42, 50, 55, 65, and 75-inch TVs are commonplace, whereas smaller and bigger fashions may also be readily bought at many shops.

Lately, nevertheless, corporations have been trying to one-up one another within the super-massive TV area, as is the case with the latest HiSense 116-inch Mini-LED panel, which was showcased on the 2025 Consumer Electronics Show (CES) again in January.

For the longest time, I used to be firmly within the ‘greater is healthier’ camp, hoping to in the future outfit my front room with the largest TV display I may handle to suit by way of my door body. The enchantment is obvious: a extra immersive house cinema expertise, and far more display actual property for having fun with TV reveals, video video games, and extra.

For as nice as a home theater setup sounds on paper, full with an imposing 100-inch centerpiece show, I’ve come to comprehend that the concept is each impractical and antiquated – here is what led me to this willpower.

Huge flat-screen TVs are impractical

On the entire, house theater setups are costly and space-consuming affairs

Hisense

To place it merely, flat-panel TV units grow to be a logistical nightmare anyplace above the 65-inch dimension. Any bigger, and it is a real problem to suit the product into an ordinary car, lug all of it the best way house, and set it up inside a typical front room area.

It is also essential to contemplate that bigger TVs aren’t all the time higher TVs. The larger the display, the extra unfold out every particular person pixel is, which implies that decision and film crispness will take successful. That’s, until you are prepared to dish out cash on a very high-end mannequin.

These high-end supersized TVs are prohibitively costly, too — Samsung’s 110-inch Micro LED model prices $150,000, and the aforementioned Hisense 110-inch Mini-LED panel is at the moment listed at $15,000.

On high of all this, you may have to have a leisure or front room that is bodily giant sufficient to comfortably home a TV of such a grand show dimension. Samsung offers a helpful ‘recommended viewing distance for your TV’ help web page which outlines optimum setup situations — for a TV with a 98-inch display dimension, the corporate recommends a viewing distance of 9.8 ft (3 meters).

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As of late, higher options can be found

Why hassle with a 100-inch TV when projectors and headsets are readily available on the market

Pocket-lint / Samsung / XREAL

Even with all these impracticalities and pricing considerations in thoughts, the attract of a large and opulent TV house theater setup has, till just lately, overridden my extra affordable instinct. If I could make a 100-inch TV work, why not soar on the chance?

There are two elements which have since modified my outlook on super-massive TVs as a complete: a need to scale back the presence of digital muddle in my house, and the existence of sensible augmented actuality (AR) glasses and moveable projectors.

Except for taking over a considerable amount of bodily room, I discover most fashionable large-screen TV units to decrease the ‘heat and comfy’ enchantment of most dwelling areas. All-black show panels, low-cost shiny plastic outer casings, and fixed mud assortment make me yearn for the wood and knob-filled CRT TVs of yesteryear.

It is maybe unsurprising, then, {that a} new class of painting-style tv units has began to take off — Samsung’s The Frame is a wonderful instance of a tech product attempting to organically blend in with its environment, and shopper reception appears to be positive.

Then, there’s the existence of AR glasses and moveable projectors, that are product classes which might be a viable consumer-facing different to the big-screen TV way of life and all its problems.

The XREAL Air 2 Pro, for instance, is a $400 pair of AR glasses that supply a 130-inch spatial show, full with a 46-degree discipline of view. They plug instantly into your current devices through USB-C, price a fraction of a super-giant TV’s price ticket, and may be stowed away in your nightstand drawer.

Miniature projectors have come a great distance in recent times, too. Samsung’s The Freestyle is probably the perfect example: its compact and moveable design is right for nomads like myself, and it may possibly remodel any dwelling area right into a 100-inch house theater setup in seconds. At $800, it is not an inexpensive product, however it’s additionally a fraction of the price of a standard XL TV setup.

With all these elements in thoughts, I’ve come to see my TV-free front room setup as an asset versus a disappointment. As of late, I really feel extra inclined to economize for an eventual buy of AR glasses or for a mini-projector, whereas sparing the necessity to reserve bodily area in my home for a large flat-panel show.

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