When you’re going out to buy a smart TV, there are a lot of things to consider to make sure you get one that will work for the needs of your family. And when you’re actually at the store, there is going to be a lot of things to steal your attention and interrupt your thought process.

Technology is often accompanied by a lexicon of psychobabble that can be totally confounding, and fast-talking salespeople take advantage of this. So here are some tips to help you get a TV that is worth your money.

Seeing is believing

We refer in the opening to “salespeople.” The reason we do this is that, first of all, if possible, we recommend you should take a look at TVs in person.

While online reviews and comments on Amazon and other websites may be helpful, nothing beats seeing things for yourself. Plus, if there is a problem with the TV, you can just bring it back where you got it. It beats emailing and waiting on the phone.

Show me the money

While there are a lot of factors when making a purchase, how much you want to spend from the start is something that you can figure out pretty quickly.

Understand that if you’re someone who wants the biggest and the best you’re going to be talking about $1,500 or much more, while there are entry-level TVs that cost as little as $300 or less.

Another thing to keep in mind is that you will not have the best TV on the market for more than a few months because they are always improving. So set that budget and get to it.

Does your space measure up?

Take a look at the space where you would put your TV and see how much space you have to work within the first place. This is another way to set your limits early.

Even if there’s a great deal on a 70-inch TV, it doesn’t matter if you don’t have the shelving, wall space or counter space for the television in the first place.

Do yourself a favor and find a way to narrow your search before you walk into the store.

Pay attention to ports

Next, you should think about how your family interacts with TV.

Does your family play a lot of video games on consoles like Xbox and PlayStation? Do you still utilize physical media like Blu-ray discs and DVDs? Do you use a soundbar or subwoofers in your home theater setup?

You have to know the answer to these questions or you might end up buying a TV that can’t fit your needs. If the salesman doesn’t know enough about the item that you’re looking at, which happens, take a look at the set itself, look in the back, on the sides or its packaging.

You might be able to ask for paperwork or a printout about the product or simply look up the specs for the television with a phone. This way when you get home you can be sure that the purchase will be worth it.

But never just take someone at their word. People on the sales floor get key facts wrong constantly.

Extra Equipment

Consider whether you want to mount a television or put it on a stand.

Something I’ve noticed over time and through research is that TV mounts cost a whole lot more at the store than they do when you buy them online.

Even when you compare prices at a local Walmart to the price of buying from Walmart online, the prices will be vastly different. We are talking $50 to $90 and up.

HDMI has changed over time

You might need new HDMI cords. If the TV you are replacing is 6 years old or older, it may not have the most current HDMI technology. The reason this is important is that if you buy a TV that has more advanced HDMI technology and try to use older chords, you might find the picture won’t display correctly.

This is not a guarantee, but at this point, it’s best to make sure you have high-speed HDMI cords.

Again, like the TV mounts, most big box stores sell very expensive HDMI cords. Some brands charge $80 just for one. You can most definitely get a better price than that online from a store like Newegg or even Amazon.

Try before you buy

Smart TVs are supposed to be fun and add entertainment options. But it’s hard to enjoy something that is hard to understand. Because of this, you should insist the store allow you to use the TV before you buy it.

See how easy it is to navigate. Some smart TVs hide their settings five menus deep; others put all the key functions right out in front. Some TVs automatically adjust all of their content settings to whatever you’re watching.

You want to make sure when you get it home that you don’t have to Google how to change the channel or add YouTube.

Be choosy about the operating system

Be wary of antiquated platforms. There are still Smart TVs on the market that are leftovers from an era when operating systems were basically thrown away from one set to another.

If you are depending on a smart TV for apps like Netflix, YouTube, Amazon Prime and HBO Now, you want to make sure that you’re buying a TV that will not only support the apps that are already on the market but be ready to pick up when the latest thing comes out as well.

At the moment, there are five operating systems that you can depend on. The big five are Roku, Fire OS, Android TV, Web OS (found on LG TVs) and Samsung’s Tizen. Those five operating systems receive regular updates and have app support for the major streaming apps, and it is not likely that support for something you use every day will end.

This is not the case with what I would call in-house operating systems. Luckily, nowadays, most TVs already come with one of those five operating systems.

How smart is your house?

Consider the rest of your home. Do you have a lot of Internet-connected appliances? Do you have a doorbell with a camera? Or lights that respond to voice commands? What do they connect with? Are they Alexa-enabled are they controlled by Google Home technology?

It’s really helpful to know this sort of thing because some TVs are built with that sort of specific technology in mind.

Some TVs can follow voice commands using all of those nifty small speakers. Others can’t. Some TVs can be used to turn on and off the dishwasher, or see who is at the door and give you information about who’s calling on your cell phone.

Functions like these usually aren’t at the front of your mind when buying a TV because we think of television as media delivery devices instead of something like a computer that sits in the middle of your living room. But if you think about it ahead of time and get a TV that fits the lifestyle your family already has, you will all be happier for it.

Make sure you can tune in

If you plan to use an antenna, you better make sure whatever you buy has a place to plug it in as well as a built-in tuner.

Technically there is no such thing as a TV that can’t support an antenna. But some stores sell an item called an HD display or 4K display. For all intents and purposes, it looks just like a TV but it’s really just a giant computer monitor.

If something is sold as a TV then it has to have an ATSC tuner, displays do not include them.

Ryan Downey is the executive director and editor of The Streaming Advisor.