It’s been a mystery to me for years. Selling TVs I always counselled
customers that “no one has ever regretted buying a bigger TV.” And five
years ago, as flat panel prices continued to drop I coined the phrase “50 is
the new 42.”

Well guess what? 60 is the new 50. And yet, talking to manufacturers and
retailers for some stories that I’ve been working on, the strongest retailer
sellers are still in the 42-46-inch range.

Flat panels are thinner, lighter, and most importantly less expensive than
ever. Given what you can pay for a 60-inch flat panel today I find it really
hard to believe that budget is a factor restricting sales. And on the
logistical side the aforementioned factors make it easier than ever to max
out on the screen size you can put in a room. It’s not like ten years ago
when a 60-inch CRT RPTV was three feet thick and weighed four hundred
pounds. I have plenty of funny stories (well, they weren’t funny at the
time) from those days about customers who bought a 60-inch RPTV only to
learn that they should have measured their doorways, or the L-shaped bend in
the stairs leading down to the rec room.

Consequently, the fact that 46-inches is still the best seller puzzled me,
until I finally had an epiphany this weekend. It’s actually more of a
forehead-slapper, because I can’t believe it hadn’t occurred to me until
now.

Loading up my groceries in the parking lot of Costco the other day I was
people watching and I noticed something that should have been obvious: the
reason 46-inch flat panels are the best seller is because it’s the largest
screen size whose box will stand upright in the back of most makes and
models of SUVs. You’re simply not going to get a 60-inch screen in the back
of even a Chevy Suburban.

Dealers, don’t let your customers suffer from Small Screen Syndrome any
longer. Offer attractive delivery options. And potential customers who ended
up at rAVe while googling for product information, please buy your TV from a
dealer who will deliver and, better yet, install it for you. And don’t cheap
out, buy the biggest damn TV you can afford. You’ll be glad you did.