suzycat1,

I recommend, to avoid neck strain, that you look directly as closely to the center of the television in a relaxed position. Mounting it higher is good if you can recline a little bit, but for most "couch sitters", a low stand would likely be idea. That's just my opinion, and it can vary with your preference.

The stand itself can be relatively small if you like the smaller designs, but I'd recommend having a stand big enough that the entire base of the television is on it.

I don't recommend removing the stand unless you've got a wall mount that you're going to use to attach the television to the wall.

Thanks for considering Samsung. Keep me posted!

--HDTech