Whats hot in the evolving world of flat screen TV wall mounts

So you finally got the flat panel TV of your dreams. Sleek, compact and high definition, it’s the crowning glory of your home entertainment system. So how do you best showcase this jewel? The experts advise – take it to the wall.

Wall mounting a flat screen has become one of the most popular ways to display a TV; it makes a stunning impression, gives everyone a great view and keeps delicate electronics out of the reach of little hands. And thanks to some innovations by mount designers, hanging your flat screen has never been easier, or afforded you so much flexibility in terms of decor and use.

Here are some hot trends in wall mounts to help you show off and enjoy your new flat screen TV:

Look Mom – no cables!

In the early days of wall-mounting, your appreciation of how great your flat screen looked hanging on the wall might have been diminished by the tangle of cables connecting the TV with auxiliary units like cable or satellite boxes, DVD players and surround sound systems. A new generation of “cable-free” wall mounts eliminates the problem with in-arm cable channels that protect and conceal cables the entire length of an extension arm.

Don’t take this laterally

Older mounts allowed you to hang the TV on the wall – and there it stayed, unmoving, regardless of the seating arrangement in your room or where you happened to be when you wanted to watch. If you weren’t sitting right in front of the TV, you might not get the best view in the house. New mounts allow you to move a TV laterally – left or right on the wall bracket – so it’s positioned how you want it on the wall. It’s also a useful feature if your wall studs are off-center.

Other mounts allow for a full range of movement, so if your flat screen is mounted over a console table, but you happen to be sitting in the recliner on the left side of the room, rather than on the sofa in front of the table, you can move the TV for the best view from wherever you’re sitting.

Lighten up

Old-style heavy steel mounts were often unwieldy to manage and mount, especially for do-it-yourselfers. Mounts made of extruded aluminum compare to steel in terms of strength and durability but are much lighter, making installation easier. Plus, they’re eco-friendlier since aluminum is an easy to recycle material.

Get your motor running

Not only can your mount move, it can move by itself, thanks to motorized versions that allow you to adjust the position of your TV without ever leaving the comfort of your armchair. A new mount, debuting from Sanus, supports 37- to 56-inch flat panel TVs weighing up to 110 pounds. A remote control allows you to move the TV by extending the mount up to 9 inches from the wall and swiveling it up to 120 degrees. Fully retracted, the mount sits just 2 inches from the wall, unlike older, bulkier motorized models that require more depth for the motor. The 35-decibel motor is quiet enough for a library. Visit www.Sanus.com to learn more.

You can never be too slim

Super slim is the hottest trend in flat panels and a new generation of wall mounts continues the minimalist concept by keeping super slim flat screen TVs closer to the wall than ever before. Mounts like the VisionMount LL11 Super Slim mount emphasize the sleek look of ultra-thin LCD, plasma and LED TVs by placing them just over half an inch from the wall. Proprietary technology makes the mount easy to install and allows easy cable access without removing the TV from the mount.

More cable news

HDMI cables can make all the difference in how great the picture is on your high-definition flat screen TV. Good quality cables deliver images so crisp and clear you might think you’re looking through a window, rather than at a TV screen. But until now, the cables have been unsightly and awkward to use in tight spots, or with super slim screens. The next hot thing in HDMI cables is a head that pivots 180 degrees, making it easy to connect to hard-to-reach ports in tight places and behind TVs mounted on low-profile wall mounts.

By ARAcontent