Small Smart TV Recommendations
I am after some help in my search :-)
We have a small caravan (see profile pic) and as such not a lot of space for a TV. In fact we have been using our laptops and Wifi (or mobile signal) to watch TV. It works but is not so intuitive so we wish to have a proper TV set up. It will also help with listening to the radio as we do not have one installed either (2nd hand caravan, original owners clearly not specified one).
We do have a TV antenna, so getting a signal is easy enough. I have considered a USB dongle to connect to a laptop - but they have always been flaky in the past and I don't need more technology to 'fight' with!
There are mounting holes in the only place a TV can go, so a previous owner has had a TV on a bracket set up.
The issue I am facing is all smart TVs seem to be 24" and above. This is way too big. It seems there may not be a smart TV smaller.
By smart I mean something that has apps installed for iPlayer, Netflix, Prime Movies, Spotify etc. All TVs come with Freeview these days so live TV would be sorted.
An alternative you be to get a smaller TV and an Amazon Fire Stick for the smart features.
Any recommendation on small TVs (less than 20") please.
Thanks,
Paul
Comments
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Paul
I think your problem might be finding a sub 24 inch TV which is also designated as Smart? Cello do some small TV's , down to 16 inch but not sure if they are Smart.
David
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Not sure there are any that are smart TVs with a decent range of apps :-
- for smart TV part suggest a roku stick or chromecast tv, both have marginally more app coverage than fire stick. We use a roku in our motorhome, as the smart apps on our smallish Sony has only limited apps
- for the TV itself its either cheap and basic, or something like an Avtex or Cello which will run off 12v as well and has other good features but no smart apps to my knowledge, although the in built dvd player is a bit wasted these days IMHO
- a computer monitor could be used with a freeview box e.g. a now TV with freeview (2nd hand from cex), but the freeview boxes are typically larger that a stick and the monitor speakers are not usually that good
Edit - I'm assuming you couldn't pack the TV away and put it on table or worktop on site (what we do in our motorhome) and therefore get a bigger TV?
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I can't offer anything positive regarding smart televisions but ours is a Tesco's own 22 inch but is always put away in the back of the wardrobe during the daytime and for travelling. I'm not a huge television fan so I just don't want it taking up room during the day.
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Our 24" Avtex isn't 'smart' (it's a Series 7), but I have cured that with a Firestick - don't know it's there - just plugs into the back of the set and takes power from one of the USB slots.
As for Chromecast - that was my first port of call and it was rubbish - what a messing about trying to cast from your phone and it didn't work half of the time. The Firestick is seamless and operating our previously non-smart caravan TV is just as easy as the big smart set at home.
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Thanks all. Smart is not available sub 24", indeed the choice of TVs below 24" is limited to say the least.
Would like to go with a 14" Cello, but they are not wall mountable - only the 12" is. That may well have to do. Cheap enough on Amazon so will give it a go.
Will debate on the Roku/ Fire TV stick with the better half :-)
Sometimes keeping the 'smart' part separate from the TV is not so bad as many manufacturers don't update in a timely manner (if at all). A relatively cheap stick is easy enough to upgrade once in a while.0 -
I've just checked Avtex as they have gone in and out of smaller TV's. 24" is the smallest, but I noticed this:-
"The ultra-compact sleek design of the Avtex W249TS provides all the benefits of a 24” screen but with the external dimensions attributed to a 21” model."
https://www.avtex.co.uk/l320trs/w249ts
Colin
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I've got a 16" non-smart 12v/240v from my previous motorhome, a Falcon Traveller I think it's called. They advertise in the club magazine. I'm based just outside Portsmouth, if you are interested.
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See p.15 of March edition of the Club magazine - there's an ad there for a 21.5" 'Smart" Avtex.
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ok, found a Cello 16" TV on an Amazon Warehouse deal and got a Roku stick. Works perfectly and the TV is just the right size. Happy with my choice.
just waiting for right angled HMDI and USB to connect everything up properly so the cables and be properly hidden round the back :-)
One thing that is curious is the Cello TV came with a built in DVD player. Further investigation show that CEllo make a number of TVs with built in DVD players. The question I have is why not a built in BLU-Ray player? Surely it would not be more expensive to make and it would give greater use. I guess Cello have their reason - possibly licensing and I doubt there is any extra cost in manufacture as the tech is very similar.1 -
I wonder if the reason they don't install Blue-Ray is that most of the specialist TV's they make for the leisure market are relatively small and perhaps wouldn't benefit from Blue Ray resolution? The other possibility is whether they are more bulking thus making if difficult to fit.
David
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We did loads of research trying to figure out what to do about a TV for our new tiny caravan. In the end we went for one of these:
It is 24" but it fits diagonally on the little unit by the door or on the table and it should also go in the wardrobe if necessary, or in the car boot when travelling. The metal feet are sturdy but have rubber pads on the bottom so should not scratch anything.
We decided we wanted something where we could access pre-recorded programmes without having to pay for mobile data and if there is not a good signal for digital TV.
We set it up today and are really pleased. By putting in a USB stick, it is possible to record Freeview channels and playback from the USB. I have set a timer to record a film tonight while on standby so will see how that works. So as long as we keep some films and series on there that interest us, we should have a selection to take away.
I connected a small booster indoor aerial that we used to use on our home TV before we got the Fire Stick that we use now and the picture was perfect, since we don't have an outdoor aerial at home.
We haven't tried the tiny aerial that came with the Sharp TV yet, but that could be useful if we don't want to use 2 of our 3 power sockets in the caravan, although the TV also has a 12v adaptor so if necessary the TV can be plugged into that and the booster aerial into a 3 pin socket.
It also plays music files from the USB stick and the sound is not bad at all.
On top of that, I have been able to Miracast Netflix and Prime downloads from my phone successfully, without internet access or the home router connected on either the phone or the TV. Phone is Samsung A52 and I just use the Smart View setting on the phone and then set Miracast on the TV. Then the TV shows the downloads as I am playing them on the phone. The picture is not quite so good as on regular TV, but fine for our needs. This is something that did not work with our home TV and Firestick, so we were really pleased that we could do it with the Sharp.
I am sure if we occasionally want to, we can also use the phone as a mobile hotspot if we particularly want to use the Smart TV functionality, so we have flexibility here. And for a long trip we could buy a 30 day big data SIM card if necessary.
I thought people might be interested as this seems like a great TV solution for touring costing just over £200 with no need for external aerials, satellite dishes or expensive Internet access. We had looked at Avtex, Cello and just buying a regular TV as well as tablets and cheap laptops as possible solutions. However, none of them seemed to combine all of these features in one TV at a low cost as far as we could tell.
It also means we have a portable TV at home that can be used by family members in different rooms in the house, which we didn't have before. It should be easy to pack away for trips, though we might try and get some kind of carry case to protect it for travel.
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We have a Cello traveller TV its over 8 years old and still works well in this country. It has Freeview, Freesat bulit in along with a DVD player and a recordable USB port. We record things at home that we haven't managed to watch, preferably series or films then take the portable hard drive with us when going abroad. The only thing I would say is that the sound isn't great, especially for OH as he is hard of hearing certain tones but with a speaker bar it makes a great difference.
I would say why the DVD and not Blue-Ray probably because more people have DVD player than Blue-Ray players.
Cello also make a Ferguson travelling TV which is much better than the Cello we have, we bought one and thought it great unfortunately we broke the screen one day while removing it from the TV bracket
and couldn't get another one at that time. We now have a 22" Sniper TV which has a great picture great sound but I dislike the EPG 
I hope the OP knows he won't be able to rely on the Clubs Wifi to use his Smart TV.
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