Trust me, an outdoor TV is the best thing you can buy

A dedicated outdoor TV? Surely that’s a luxury too far, and who could possibly want one? Turns out, I do.

I’ve long been a fan of watching outside, particularly sport.

Back in 2010 when ITV HD launched, I set up a friend’s inflatable projector screen and we watched the England vs USA World Cup game. It felt amazing, except for when ITV cut to a car advert, rather than showing the goal, but you can’t have everything.

Since then, improvements in technology have meant that projectors have got better, smaller, brighter and smarter. Come the Euro 2020 final (actually held in 2021), we had our garden full of friends, a projector screen attached to my office at the bottom of the garden, and the game at a massive size.

But that particular event showcased the downsides of using a projector outside. First, the day was warm but drizzly, which isn’t ideal for a projector, so we needed an outdoor shelter over the garden to keep the equipment dry.

Secondly, when it’s warm enough to watch outside, it’s also bright outside until late. Even super-bright home projectors (3000 Lumens or higher) struggle with full sunlight, so you tend to have to start with a small image, then you pull back as it gets darker to get a bigger image.

And, when it’s all done you have to pack up until you next want to watch, then you have to get everything out and set up all over again. When it’s fully dark, having a huge screen outside is fun, but who wants that hassle daily?

This is why outdoor TVs make sense

With an outdoor TV, such as the Sylvox Pool Pro 2.0, you don’t get quite as big a picture as you can from a projector, and the largest outdoor TV I’ve seen for home use is 75-inches. But, there are plenty of advantages.

First and foremost, outdoor TVs are weatherproof. So, once they’re installed, they’re ready to go when you are, and if it does rain, you don’t have to pack them away.

Secondly, they’re built for outdoor use. That particular Sylvox TV is built for full sun, so you can watch it even with the sun shining directly on it. That’s just not possible with a home projector of any kind.

With the weather not only getting warmer during the day but also at night, as the recent heat waves have shown, sitting inside is horrible. Having a TV set up outside, ready to go, turns the garden into a makeshift lounge.

Over the past three weeks I’ve watched more TV outside, both during the day for things like Wimbledon and into the night for the World Cup and just general watching. And, on Saturday 11 July, we’ve got people round to watch England play Norway. 

With the garden TV, we’ll just turn it round to face the chairs we’ve set up in the garden and we’re good to go. 

If you’d asked me before I reviewed an outdoor TV what I thought, I’d probably have said it’s a cool extra but ultimately only for those with cash to burn. Ask me today, and I’d say it’s an essential part of my life, and I wouldn’t be without one.