What is the right size for my monitor?
32″, 55″ or 75″? The choice depends mainly on the distance between your audience and the screen, as well as the way you are going to be using the monitor. For example, if it is a menu board, you are unlikely to be able to opt for a small display as this must also be readable at great distances and from different angles. On the contrary, if the monitor is installed inside a touch totem, you will not need large screens, as the distance between it and the user is very close, in order to provide interactivity.
These are only a few examples. Let us now see which monitor is best to install depending on the distance between the screen and users.
The right ratio between monitor size and audience distance
What attracts the user’s attention?
The size of the monitor relative to the distance from the audience is an important parameter to take into account. In fact, a monitor larger than necessary not only costs more and consumes more power, but also serves no purpose.
A person truly pays attention to everything within a 20° angle of their field of vision. The brain completely ignores the rest.
So buying a 65″ when a 32″ would suffice doesn’t mean you’ll be able to focus your audience’s attention on more content. In fact, if the screen is positioned 2 metres from the audience, the zone of attention will always fall into the 20 degrees given by this distance. You can see it clearly in the picture opposite.
Choose the right size: the diagonal
The diagonal is the measurement of the distance between the two opposite angles of the monitor.
It is usually expressed in inches. You will never hear someone say “I bought an 81 cm monitor” but rather “I bought a 32-inch”. However, knowing how many centimetres correspond to the diagonal in inches can be useful to help you be clear about the size of the screen you are about to buy. In this way, you will also be able to understand if the monitor is the right size to be installed in the chosen location.
To help you make this choice, you will find below an image with the widths and heights of the most popular monitors and, following this, a table with the measurement of their diagonals expressed both in inches and centimetres.
| Diagonal monitor in inches | Diagonal monitor in cm |
|---|---|
| 10″ inches | 25.40 cm |
| 24″ inches | 60.96 cm |
| 32″ inches | 81.28 cm |
| 43″ inches | 109.22 cm |
| 49″ inches | 124.46 cm |
| 50″ inches | 127 cm |
| 55″ inches | 139.70 cm |
| 65″ inches | 165.10 cm |
| 75″ inches | 190.50 cm |
| 86″ inches | 218.44 cm |
| 98″ inches | 248.92 cm |
Now you have all the information you need. You just have to choose the right monitor for your digital signage system.