This is an important issue with widescreen televisions. It is one that often goes overlooked on the sales floor and in living rooms. Here are the facts:
- Widescreen televisions have a 16:9 aspect ratio
- HDTV programming has a 16:9 widescreen aspect ratio
- Almost all other TV programming (analog and non-HD digital) has a 4:3 aspect ratio
Why This Is A Problem
This is an issue because most television programming is produced in a 4:3 aspect ratio. The minority of programming is high definition, which is produced in a 16:9 aspect ratio. Because televisions are made in either a standard (4:3) or widescreen (16:9) format, there is always a conflict with an image being stretched vertically or horizontally. In the case of widescreen televisions, the stretching is horizontal.
FYI - widescreen televisions are beginning to dominate the market.
Picture Modes
Luckily, most if not all widescreen televisions have a picture mode that allows the user to toggle between a wide (16:9) and standard (4:3) mode. This means that a person can watch non-HD programming in the 4:3 picture mode, and then go to widescreen when watching HD programming. Some TVs have a picture mode that will automatically adjust to the correct aspect ratio. Other people will watch all programming in the wide picture mode, and learn to adjust to watching a stretched picture.
Definition
A stretched picture is when a 4:3 image is pulled on the sides to fill the entire screen. People and images end up looking fatter/wider and shorter.
So, what’s the big deal?
Some people don’t like a 4:3 picture stretched or distorted because it does reduce the overall visual and picture quality. Some people don’t like the bars on the side of the screen when a widescreen is in a standard (4:3) picture mode because it looks different.
Solution
There is no fix-all solution for this issue, unless you own a TV that will automatically adjust to the intended aspect ratio. The stretching of the picture is a side-effect, the price we are paying for the better resolution that is digital and high definition. This is definitely something to consider when buying a television, but keep in mind that there is no right or wrong within this issue. It is just the way it is, and there is no way around it unless you buy a 4:3 aspect ratio television..
Buying Advice
I wouldn’t make it be the deal breaker in choosing one widescreen TV over the other, and I am not sure how I feel with recommending a 4:3 HD-capable television. In my opinion, the future of TV is leaning toward a widescreen format. Right now, display technology is moving years ahead of the TV production companies. In ten years, it is possible that everything on television will be digital widescreen. I don’t think that all television programming will ever be solely high definition because it is too expensive, but 16:9 is possible.
The bottom line is that when buying a widescreen television we have to accept either a stretched image or a toggling between widescreen and standard picture modes depending on the resolution of the signal.
