Table of Content
Digital signage is increasing in popularity and quickly becoming an integral part of our lives. It is everywhere and assists in our travels, helping us get to our destinations comfortably. It also plays a crucial role in making our purchases as fluid as possible by showing us ads relevant to our interests or movies currently playing in theatres. For businesses and consumers, digital signage offers the perfect solution for connecting in more meaningful and personalized ways. The engagement it brings is remarkable and a great asset in driving sales.
At first glance, some digital signage displays and domestic televisions might appear quite similar. You may not distinguish the two, but they serve two entirely different purposes. So, what is the difference between digital signs and TVs, and what should you be choosing? Take a look!
Engineering
Residential televisions are LCD screens for entertainment. They are not designed to be used 24 hours a day and can suffer from image retention problems and color fade if used for prolonged periods. Digital signs run on commercial-grade LCD panels which are designed for constant use. These displays operate with little to no downtime and often feature extra ventilation and cooling fans to ensure that the screens do not operate above their optimum temperature window.
Using a residential TV for commercial purposes is not advisable since you end up running it longer than you should. Most TV warranties do not cover 24-hr usage of TVs, and if the screen was to cause a fire or any damage, your business insurance might not be helpful.
Management
One of the primary features of digital signs is their ability to support remote management. They come with connectors such as RS-232, allowing the providers to remotely access, monitor, and troubleshoot issues whenever they want. With a digital sign, you get control over the displays regardless of your geographical location. You can dictate what people see through your displays wherever they are.
TVs are built for use at home and come with audio/video connectors to help hook up cable TV and streaming services. They do not support connectors that facilitate remote management.
Professional monitors are brighter with higher contrast compared to TVs
The purpose of digital signs is to engage customers and convince them to purchase products and services from your business. For you to achieve this objective, quality is everything. Luckily, digital displays are relatively brighter and have a higher contrast ratio than domestic TVs. They are built to catch the attention of a particular target audience from afar. Domestic TVs are only for entertainment purposes, used mostly in home settings. They are viewed from proximity and should not necessarily be bright.
Size
If you walk down the streets of a vibrant city, there is a high possibility that you have come across the gigantic digital displays. Most businesses and brands use massive screens to play their ads to capture their target audience's attention from far. The signage market allows access to unique shapes, sizes and futuristic screen options. The diversity allows businesses to exploit this opportunity for driving brand awareness.
Domestic TVs are relatively smaller in size. They are not meant to be viewed by many people from a long distance. They serve the family, and there is the privilege of choosing whatever size the homeowner is comfortable with.
Professional monitors do not have external buttons or controls like TVs
The essence of digital signage is to stream live advertising and enhance brand awareness with a specific target audience. As such, most of these signs will be located in public places or target a broad audience. They will not have external buttons or controls for the display like domestic TVs. Once a digital sign is installed, there is no need to change the display in person. There is remote access that allows you to determine what is played and how often to change it.
You can use a remote to dictate what to view or what not to on a TV. Likewise, you can use the external controls to change a display, but that only changes for that particular screen.
It is more comfortable to update content regularly with digital signs than with TVs
Digital signs make use of screens controlled through software, making it easier to switch out content compared to other solutions. If it is adverts, you have control over what you display, and you can update it when need be, and all your screens will be showing the same thing simultaneously.
On the other hand, domestic TVs are not built for this purpose. They are a source of entertainment and do not have the software to display ads and business promotional information conveniently. In case you want to connect them to digital signage software for remote management, as a rule, you will need to purchase and connect the external HDMI media players, which will be able to power your TVs. However worth mentioning, that today there is a nice option with Android TVs, which have Google Play Store inside, where you can easily find, for example, Look app player, install it on your TV and make it remotely managed digital signage without any external hardware.
Warranty
Warranties are essential when making any capital investment. They give value for money, and you can rest assured that you will be well covered if something happens. For televisions, you will not get a warranty that considers heavy commercial use. Most TV warranties tend to be a year and limited, while digital signs' can last up to three years. If you are a network operator and choose to use TVs rather than commercial displays, there is a high possibility that you do not understand the implications and risks involved. You will end up having to replace a percentage of your screens within a short time.
Digital signage rarely features brand logos as opposed to TVs
Digital signage solutions are mostly used for advertisement purposes, so they do not feature brand logos and have a professional, sleek and elegant design. They are a solution that business owners use to increase their brand awareness and not that of the manufacturer. A TV is not mostly used to create brand awareness, and it can have any logo without undesired effects.
When furnishing your business with digital signage screens and software, it is good to understand the difference between digital signs and TVs. At first sight domestic TVs look like simple and, which is most important, cost-effective solution. And for some projects, we believe, it can be a proper choice. But do not hesitate to count the ROI in the time frame of 3-5 years and you might be unpleasantly surprised by the results. It would be best to have a solution that can serve you as effectively as possible and for a long time. The above comparisons should help you make the right choice.
