Years ago we wall mounted the first flat screen TV we ever owned. It was probably 2007, and there weren’t a lot of accessories at that time beyond a wall mount. Even though the majority of people still seem to just get a TV stand, there are many that enjoy having the big flat screen mounted directly to the wall. The difference is that now there are many more options than before. Also – with the advent of Prime, I usually just buy everything I need on Amazon, which I will explain as I go.
How to Choose a Wall Mount
There used to be but one affordable wall mount solution – the standard flush mount (which you can still buy today). However, now you can affordably purchase a wide variety of wall mounts. Last year we purchased a standard wall mount on a black Friday sale at Wal-Mart for $29.99. The same wall mount sells at Meijer’s for about $70. Most of the big box stores have something similar for $50 – $99. This is insane. You can get a high quality wall mount from $13-$32 on Amazon delivered to your home in 2 days with free shipping (with Prime).
Here’s a basic flat screen TV wall mount for 20-55″ screens that is a flush mount. It is not only the cheapest quality TV mount you can buy, but it also comes with a free HDMI cable and a level. I trust Cheetah mounts because they are quality and have sold tens of thousands on Amazon (and they have a lifetime guarantee). I have never seen a quality mount in a retail store for this price, let alone one with an HDMI cable and level in the box.
So mounting your TV directly flush against the wall can look really great, but it can be a real pain in the butt if you ever need to plug something into one of the inputs on the back. Some TV’s had side mounts which make it easier, but a lot of the big ones have then on the back side. We have a 60″ Samsung LED Smart TV which has the mounts on the back. If we need to plugin a hard drive, or HDMI device it takes two of us to take the TV down, and then put it back up. Also the last time we had to do this I noticed that the main HDMI input cable is being bent, because our flush mount is pressing it right up against the wall. What to do?
If you have this issue what you need are some 90 degree HDMI cable adapters. Just plug them into the input, and plug your cable into them – problem solved. I was really happy when I found out you could get a pack of 4 for just $7.
There are also all kinds of right angle and 90 degree USB adapters available as well – in case you need to hookup a cable for that 5TB hard drive, or even to make it easier to use a USB memory stick, Roku, or Chromecast.
So since wall mounts are your basic mount, what are your other options? We also have a TV mounted in our bedroom wall. We watch this one from the bed. If you want to do this what you are looking for is a TV that has about 15 degrees of tilt – to make it easier to watch while lying down. If you want to the ability to move the TV to a left or right viewing angle (to say watch the living room TV from the kitchen or another room), then what you need is a wall mount with an articulating arm. Thankfully enough – Cheetah sells wall mounts for each of these scenarios for $26 and $32 respectively
How to Cover the Wires for a Wall Mounted TV
So if you’ve successfully mounted your flat screen, LED, or plasma TV to the wall the next question naturally becomes “how do I cover the wires”? There are all kinds of solutions – I think I’ve seen it all because I did all kinds of searches to see what I could find. If your doing something similar you may or may not find the same things depending on what search words you use. I was using things like cord shield, cord cover, cable cover, cord coverup, wire covers, and all kinds of other things. It looks like “cord cover for wall mounted TV” might get you the most relevant results.
So – after all that searching (and buying multiple solutions), we found one particular cord cover that really stands out. It’s made by a company called Electriduct, and these are really commercial level quality products that should last for years and years. They make cable covers in various sizes and colors to match just about anything you have, including ones that are metal and wood patterns. They are also available in various widths. Find the size and color cord cover that works best for you here.
Once you have your TV mounted and cords all tidied up – you might want to also Learn How to Stream Anything Free with KODI, we really like the new Android TV streaming solutions that are now available!
