We all know how important it is for business to get things right. It applies to everything we do on a day to day basis. Sometimes, I am sure we can agree, we do what we need to to ensure that things get done (also known as – It will do for now.) There will however be times that we think we have done the right thing and given it the very best, at least as far as our knowledge goes, it’s what we don’t know, that we truly don’t know.
So, when choosing the right kind of monitor for your meeting room, it’s important that you do indeed make the right choice.
But how?
We could give you the formula immediately and it is at the bottom of the blog if you just can’t wait. But there are things you do need to consider before you skip ahead of our good advice and just read the bottom line.
- Are you using one monitor or two. Two monitors means you can use the minimum size dictated by the formula and while we are on this subject please put them next to each other. We have seen plenty of rooms with the excel spread sheet displayed on a monitor on one wall and the person explaining it on a second monitor on a different wall. No one knows where to look and it just makes for a bad experience
- Decide what level of detail is usually displayed on the monitor. Excel spread sheets, plans and technical detail need a larger screen format.
- When you get a lower resolution monitor ( usually cheaper) this means that you will require a larger monitor to see things clearly enough.
- Can your wall support the weight of the monitor? A large Monitor will weigh between 50 and 100 Kilos so if this comes loose or pulls the wall over it won’t be a laughing matter. People often fail to consider the load bearing capacity of their wall.
- Is the monitor going to be a multipurpose device such as being a video conferencing screen sometimes and entertainment or interactive device at others? In this case choose the larger size.
- What distances are the closest person and the furthest person from the screen location? Compromise from the centre line is often used but a better way is using the 3 meter rule for the furthest person away.
- What height is it at? Lifting the elevation and tilting the top of the Monitor forward will help viewing and reduce reflection from lights. Generally this means you can use a smaller monitor ( saving money) and achieve a good result.
- For video conferencing, where is the camera going to be mounted? The larger the monitor the further away from the vertical centre line the camera will be. If it’s important that the far end can see you clearly and at a natural angle choose a smaller monitor or consider getting two side by side with the camera mounted between them.
- Larger means more expensive. Always.
- One last point on resolution – 4k or UHD? It will be 4k as commercial monitors don’t come in anything else these days.
If after reading all the above points you decide it’s too hard to work it out and you think…”stuff it I will just buy a filthy big monitor and be done with it..” A monitor that is too big will leave the room looking unbalanced and out of scale like a painting that fills the wall. It will provide a poor experience for people seated nearest to it and think about the poor person on the screen being alarmingly oversized while everyone notices the bit he missed while shaving this morning in glorious 4k. The message here is – don’t do it!
The Formula
The rule of thumb we promised for size selection is for every two to three metres of distance you are away from the monitor ideally you need to allow 32 centimetres of vertical height.
Example: a 5 metre long board room table 2 metres away from wall the Monitor is to be mounted on. The furthest person away will be seated at the end of the table 7 metres from the Monitor.
- Smallest size Monitor divide 7 metres by 3 metres =2.333 x 32cm = 75c m vertical monitor height this is a 55” monitor
- Largest size Monitor divide 7 metres by 2 metres =3.5 x 32cm = 112 cm vertical monitor height this is a 86” monitor
Brands? Well that’s a whole other topic. We sell Samsung, Commbox, Sharp, LG and others. If you need a monitor, stand, screen, trolley or projector you should talk to us.
Fast Track do this for a living and we love what we do. Talk to us before you start and save yourself some pain. If what you have needs fixing we will be happy to help. If you’d like to talk to one of our professional team members about the best solution for your requirements, then fill out the form here and contact us today, we are here to help!
