Welcome to a guide for television stands

With the advent of slimline TVs, which weigh a substanial amount less than the old traditional CRT TVs, the stand upon which they sit can now use a selection of new materials. The favourite at the moment is glass, perhaps because an old 32 inch traditional CRT television would smash the glass to pieces the minute it was placed upon it. Before slimline LCD and Plasma TVs were for sale a TV stand would have been made out of three materials, most commonly plastic in conjunction with metal, or wood.

Q: Will the colour of the stand match my TV?

This can be a tricky process, websites do not always represent the colours in a clear light always. It's especially tricky with wood and silver plastics. Black is more simple, but glass is the least risky to match up.

Q: What is ''VESA''?

This has little to do with free standing stands, but is about wall brackets. The official name for VESA is the "Video Electronics Standards Association". They make sure brackets meet there regulations. A wall bracket certified by them is peace of mind. You do not exactly want a bracket to fail destroy your TV, and potential cause harm to anyone underneath it.

Q: What if my TV is bigger than 46 inches?

You will find that alot of glass stands will only support screens of upto 42-46 inches. The actually problem is not the dimensions of the screen but the weight. If your lucky you may have a large screen which does not weigh too much. Check both the weight of TV, and how much weight the stand can take.

Q: What kind of brackets are available?

The most common is the "Universal Bracket", it's an alternative to a VESA fittings. They support a variety of screen size with suitable hole spacing and dimensions for each. Also there are "Flat Wall" brackets which hang an LCD and PLasma screens like a picture or mirror to the wall. This is the closest way to hang a TV to a wall. Then you have a "Tilting Wall" bracket where you can alter the viewing angle of the screen. Useful if your TV is in a corner or higher than eye height. The most fancy type of bracket is the "Motorised Wall" bracket, so with the touch of a control pad you can tilt high rise TVs. Finally there is the "Cantilever Wall" bracket with a swivel ability for vertical and horizontal tilting.

Conclusions

First and foremost you want a stand which matches the decor of your room. This is the primary reason why people want to replace the stand which comes with the TV. It either looks too modern or old, it looks cheap, and it's made from plastic.

As long as you like the look of your stand then next you should consider,

- How many shelves does it have?, can it house my dvd player, digibox, vcr, stereo and video console as well.

- If your planning to upgrade your TV or other devices in the near future is it flexible enough to support your new devices?

- Is it made from high quality materials, how long will it last, will the wood or glass scratch easily?

- Can you hide cables behind it, or will they clearly be visible and make a mess of your room?

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The information contained within this site is general in nature, and may not be applicable to all TV stands. We can also not guarantee the accuracy of the information.