More New TV Stands on Value TV Brackets

In the run up to Christmas it's been busy at valuetvbrackets as we add more TV stands to the range that we offer. There are a selection of sizes now available, and the Techlink TV stands are high quality pieces of AV furniture.

We have added the 80cm wide Techlink PTV4BGP which is great for TVs up to 37", the 110cm wide Techlink PTV2BGP for TVs up to 42" and finally the Techlink PTV6BGP which is for TVs up to 50" and is lower and sleeker than some other TV stands

Vita Audio at valuetvbrackets

Adding to the fantastic range of products available on valuetvbrackets are the Audio Vita DAB radios.

We have a selection of colours available of the award winning R2i DAB/FM radios with an iPod dock.

It has excellent stereo sound for great sound quality, clock and alarm function, high contrast display and remote control of the R2i and iPod functions.

Available in Midnight Black, Dream White or Walnut Veneer, this is a really high quality and attractive product.

valuetvbrackets now stocking Techlink

There are plenty of new products coming to the valuetvbrackets in the next few days - so keep checking in to see the latest Techlink TV stands, and also a selection of cables and other accessories that will help to make your home entertainment experience even better.

This is the Techlink OVU100B, it's ideal for TVs up to 42", has a great piano black paint finish and a clear glass shelf.

Keep looking in for great new products before Christmas

Christmas is rapidly approaching, and at Value TV Brackets we are adding some new products so that we make sure we can offer the best range possible. Keep checking in on the site to see what's being added, or here on the blog for more information of the latest offerings and details on the Christmas shipping information.

Deal of the Week

Here's a great deal for a TV bracket and TV stand for the next week - the LCD 7000 is down to £19.99 and the 90cm All Black TV Stand is down to £59.99, and that includes delivery for both of those.

(Offer runs until 10/12/09)

Most Boring Video on YouTube

I came across a blog entitled "Is the HMRC tax video the most boring on YouTube?" and had to have a quick look to see if our valuetvbrackets instruction videos had made it in or not. I know that they aren't the most exciting videos that have been put on YouTube, but I'd like to think that they are helpful and get information across in an easy to follow way. And hopefully a they are a little more fulfilling than watching paint dry (2200 videos)!

What makes a good instruction?

Over the last few weeks I have been doing a bit of work on product instructions, and I can tell you it can be a bit of a minefield. I have worked on instructions for different products, and had different design briefs for the instructions too.

Conversations can go something like this:

1-"We need a new instruction - people keep calling to say that it doesn't have enough images, and too many words."

2-"OK, let's go for a nice big picture showing how everything goes together, we'll get rid of the text so people aren't confused by it."

So an instruction is made with a big picture and very little text, and then people call to complain that there isn't enough text!

There are examples of really bad instructions, like this for a frying pan lid, and sometimes the meaning isn't quite right, like this bin, but quite often there is a case of different people take in information in different ways.

Here at valuetvbrackets we are trying to help with our instruction videos. Here's one for our TV stand, it's not too tricky but this makes it really clear.

The TV brackets are harder, but the videos, like this one for the PL6000 37-50 TVs definitely make things a bit easier.

Are the any examples of good or bad instructions that you've come across? What makes a good instruction in your opinion? Let me know.

Royal Mail Postal Strike

Just a quick note to say that the proposed Royal Mail postal strike won't have any effect on deliveries from us at valuetvbrackets as we send out our deliveries with Fedex UK. This allows us to deliver on the next working day, and get confirmed, signed for, delivery with on-line tracking for our customers.

The importance of cable management

Having got a new DVD player at the weekend after the old one conked out (it would only play Desperate Housewives - not ideal when hoping for something a bit more manly!) I had to hook it up to the TV.

This involved:

Removing the old DVD player

First find which plug it is attached to, done by trial and error

Unplug and spend next 10 minutes untangling the wire from the others

Get frustrated that the hole on the back of the TV cabinet is not big enough to get a plug through!!

Eventually squeeze the plug through the hole

Try and shove the new DVD player's plug back through the small hole

Get the thing plugged in - to find that my lovely partner wants to watch Desperate Housewives!

There is a point to my little rant - that being that it is quite nice to find something that has been designed to make using it easier rather than harder. Take the ipod for example, I'm no genius but can make music come out of mine and I have never looked at an instruction manual as it's designed with its use in mind.

The same goes for the cable management on the TV stands that we stock - it guides the wires out of sight and can keep them neat and tidy so that you don't end up tearing your hair out when you come to get yourself a new DVD player.

Here's a picture of how it can be done if you want to avoid a lot of messing around setting up your new TV on a TV stand.

What do VESA have to do with TV Brackets?

If you are looking for a TV bracket to wall mount your TV, there's a chance that you will have come across the acronym VESA. But who or what is this VESA bunch and why do they care about getting your TV mounted on the wall?

Well, VESA (or the Video Electronics Standards Association, to give them their full title) is a body that creates standards for a variety of things to do with video electronics. When their standards are applied to TV brackets they are setting out the size and position of the holes on the back of the screen that the TV bracket attaches to.

The particular standard that is used in relation to TV brackets is the Flat Display Mounting Interface, and, as is often the case, Wikipedia is a good source of further reading on the subject.

Obviously, this is important to people making or selling TV brackets because if we know where the holes are on the TV it makes it a lot easier to know whether or not the bracket will work with the TV. There are a few different sizes that are commonly used, which are: 75x75mm, 100x100mm, 200x100mm, 200x200mm and 400x200mm (these sizes refer to the sides of an imaginary rectangle where the centres of the holes are the corners).

When we at valuetvbrackets are selling brackets we put the VESA sizes that the bracket will fit with on the information for the product. We even have a few little diagrams for some of the brackets to try and so the hole positions as clearly as we can.

Here's an image we have for the Full Motion 15"-30" Double Arm TV Bracket and Full Motion 15"-30" Single Arm TV Bracket that we sell. It is showing that they will fit with TVs that have 50x50mm, 75x75mm or 100x100mm hole spacings.

If a TV does not use VESA hole spacings (and there are plenty that don't) you will need to look at the 'universal' brackets that are on offer. When you look for a universal bracket it is still important to check the distances between the holes on the TV do not exceed the maximum width or height that the TV bracket can attach to, or else you won't be able to get the bracket attached to the TV.

With the 'universal' brackets on valuetvbrackets we have the maximum width and height information available on the product information page.

Whilst it makes wall mounting your TV easier if you have a TV with VESA fixings, I don't think anyone ever didn't but a TV just because the wall mounting holes were in the wrong place!

Curry's TV Ad

I suppose a lot of people will have seen the recent Curry's TV Ad where the chap puts up his TV, gets a bit excited dancing around the front room before his TV falls off the wall.

We have a lot of people that are a little nervous about putting their new pride and joy on the wall for this very reason. To try to help at valuetvbrackets we've put together a load of instruction videos to show you how to put your TV bracket up properly, here's one for you to have a look at:

We have plenty more videos of our brackets on the website.

If you like the the look of this bracket, it's the LCD 1.

How to choose a TV Bracket

There are a number of things to consider when you decide to fix the TV bracket to your wall. I'm going to list the important points and explain who to get the right bracket for you.

The things to think about before buying a TV bracket are:

• Your TV - how big is it? How heavy is it? Can you attach a bracket easily?
• Where do you want the TV to go? What type of wall are you attaching it to?
• Does the bracket fit with the TV?

First, and most important is your TV - I don't know that many people buy a TV bracket and then get a TV to fit with the bracket! The size and weight of the TV will mean that you can reduce the number of brackets you look at - because most of them won't fit. A big bracket will look silly on a small TV and a large TV will not be safe on a small bracket.

Next you need to decide where you want the bracket to go. If the TV is going in the corner of your bedroom, you will want a different type of bracket to if you want to put the TV over the fire place in the living room. The two basic choices are a wall bracket that is flat to the wall or one that is on an arm.

If the TV bracket is flat to the wall it will be closer to the wall, but you will not be able to swivel the TV from side to side. If the TV bracket has an arm you will be able to swivel the screen to position the TV at an angle to the wall or across a corner.

Finally, you need to decide if the bracket and TV will fit together. On the back of the TV there will be some holes that you can put screws into. Measure how far apart these holes are and check that these distances match up with the bracket (for a bracket described as VESA fixing) or does not exceed the maximum hole fixing dimensions (for a bracket described as 'universal'). Also, make sure there is space for the wires to connect to the back of the TV, and see if they are likely to be covered if you put a wall mounting bracket on.

At valuetvbrackets we have tried to help where we can with the information that you need, we include details of the hole fixings that each bracket can fit with and also have some handy video guides to installing the TV brackets which show how the different brackets work.

Opening Blog

Right then, this is the first blog that I am going to be writing hopefully every week. It's here to help people to find out about www.valuetvbrackets.co.uk which is the website I work on which is selling TV brackets in the UK.

This blog isn't going to be full of hard sell and bombardment of the readers with loads of info only about the products on the website though. The idea here is to let people know what I have found out about during the work on valuetvbrackets, and to offer some help and advise about mounting your TV on the wall, amongst other things.

Just to let you know a little about the website, it's been up and running for about a year, sells mainly TV brackets, but also has some TV stands available too.

If you have a particular question, let me know and I'll try and post the answer!