Aspect ratios of widescreen movies on TV, DVD etc.

Note: Ok, this is highly movie related but please let it in the NBJ section, since it is indirectly very important for my diploma. Thank you.

Saying that, I would like to ask everyone to answer who has got a serious opinion on the topic. Thank you.

I put this in rather open questions and no questionnaire because I don't want to use the results directly in my paper. It should be more of an aid what to consider in my paper.

Here's the questions:

Do you mind black bars on your TV screen when watching a movie? Do you think they are necessary? Why, why not?

Do you think it is ok when the picture always covers the full screen (US citzens?)?

Do you realize when a movie is shown in correct/incorrect aspect ratio?
When do you realize that?

Do you you get upset when a microphone appears on top of the picture?
What do you think is the reason for it?

If you own a widescreen TV how/when/why do you use the aspect ratio button? Do you watch standard pictures with black bars on the left and right?

Do you pay attention on the aspect ratio signs on DVDs?


You don't need to answer every single question (in fact, you don't need to answer at all if you don't want to ), it's just some hints. Feel free to add whatever comes to your mind regarding aspect ratios, maybe how things are handled in your country.
Thanks in advance.

I have a widescreen TV and will always watch a presentation in its original aspect ratio, so I don't mind watching a 4:3 presentation even if it means having gaps at the sides. Also if I watch something on my PC (4:3 monitor) I will watch it in its original aspect, so I would watch a 16:9 or even 2.35:1 ratio picture even if it meant having black gaps at the top and bottom.

It seems most of my family are content to watch 4:3 presentations stretched to fit 16:9, making them almost twice as wide as they should be, but I cannot stand to watch anything like that.

One thing that does annoy me is DVD's that use letterbox instead of anamorphic widescreen, so not only does a DVD player not pick this up and you have to change it manually but it is wasting image in which your image could be stored and thus be higher quality.

I know true widescreen is 1.77:1 and TV's are 1.85:1 so there is some clipping which occurs but that is done by the production company and is usually explained on the case of DVDs at least (it generally says enhanced for widescreen televisions)

I am content to watch anything in the ratio it was made. Hitchcock made all of his movies at full frame 4:3 I think and thus I would watch them that way. If a movie was made at 2.40:1 I'd watch it at that too as pan&scan on DVD players simply crops the image to the center, and as such you may lose a lot of image, more importantly you may lose more valuable parts of the image then a professionally pan&scanned copy.

Anamorphic widesreen is also coded letterboxed on the DVD, but yes it is of higher quality.

It's the other way around.

Thank you for the rest. Could you tell me aynthing about how British TV channels broadcast movies?, Pan&Scan, letterboxed or does it happen that you get to see a movie in scope?

Well on analogue tv here BBC, ITV and Channel 5 broadcast movies in 14:9 usually, Channel 4 seem to broadcast in lettrbox 16:9 and tvs can auto detect this and will correct the zoom on your tv (widescreen) to fit it to the screen.

Digital tv seems to be mostly 16:9 for movies and even news broadcasts and such. Sky movies can be set on the menu to play as pan&scan 4:3 or full widescreen or letterbox widescreen.


...and I actually just measured my tv and it is 1.77:1, I obviously just got them mixed up...and it annoys me how they are advertised as 28" but only have a 26" visible screen size.

Well full frame would be 12:9 and widescreen is 16:9 so they opt for a medium which means that people who have 4:3 tv's don't have to have huge borders top and bottom nor do people with 16:9 tv's have to endure large borders at the sides, just small borders for everyone.

As I said though with digital broadcasts they can transmit everything at 16:9 and then let the digital decoder have a setup to alter it for your tv.

Yes, I mind the black bars on the top and bottom. Hate them.

Most movies over here that you buy on DVD are widescreen - I am sure you can get them various ways, but widescreen is what I usually get, so it must be more widely available?

I very recently finally got a wide screen TV and think it is the best way to watch TV/movies/concerts.

I don't know what you are talking about with the rest sorry.


Oh, what's your major?

So do you think you get to see more with a full screen?

It is because they try to show the film like it should be shown.
What about TV? Do films have black bars there usually, or not?

What I mean for instance is when you watch normal TV (4:3) it doesn't fit the screen of a widescreen TV. Do you make it fit with the cinema/widescreen/zoom button on your remote or do you watch it with black bars on the left and right?


I am studying Media Technology, my major being Video and TV technology, although that sounds more professional than it is.

I'm studying Multimedia Systems, we do some programming and more technical stuff but my favourite parts are the audio/video stuff.

I don't know if I see more, but the black bars annoy me

No, if I watch movies via TV, I don't have the black bars - usually. I think there was one where I had a black bar on the bottom only. I'll try and pay more attention from now on

I didn't know I had that feature. So, no, I don't fool with that.