When is standard cable going to be broadcast in widescreen?

Page 3 - Seeking answers? Join the AnandTech community: where nearly half-a-million members share solutions and discuss the latest tech.

Jeff7

Lifer
Jan 4, 2001
41,596
20
81
Originally posted by: PizzaDude
Originally posted by: Jeff7
There are going to be some protests if this happens. My dad is among the crowd who says "What are those black bars? Get rid of them!" when he sees a widescreen DVD. He will not watch a movie that is widescreen format. He just can't stand it, he says that "the black bars are too distracting."

I meanwhile hate letterboxed versions because they chop off about 25% of the movie.

It doesn't chop off any of the picture, it's just formatted differently so you can use the whole screen. I have a 4:3 TV right now and would much rather watch a fullscreen dvd because then the picture is a full 27" instead of having the "distracting" black bars...

No, it chops the picture. Watch Star Wars Episode 4 in 4:3 format sometime. At the end, C-3PO and Chewie are chopped off. Well, you can at least see Chewie's right arm.
Maybe "letterbox" isn't the right word. The DVDs say "Full Screen".
And cropping the picture manually doesn't always do it, as sometimes the main characters or action is happening at the sides of the screen, which calls for panning - the "pan and scan" I see mentioned.
I can always see when a pan is being done on a movie formatted for full screen. It always looks like a really jittery.


I still just find it a bit disgusting that the corporations are so obsessed with fat profits that they can't decide on one damn standard and stick with it. Were there standards wars for the 4:3 ratio? Was there a lobbying effort for the benefits of the 5:4 ratio? Or maybe the 3:2 ratio, for those who dislike infinitely repeating decimals?


Originally posted by: notfred
I don't know why black bars bother people. They're equally as distracting as the black and/or silver frame around the whole picture that is the edge of the TV. That is to say, not at all.
That's the point I tried to make to my dad. Or at the theater, don't the HUGE "black bars" at the top and bottom of the screen bother him then? (The black bars are of course the walls of the theater behind the screen.)
The black bars are static, and thus should not be distracting. If they had a pattern of Chris Farley dancing nude, then they'd be distracting, and probably lead to mass suicide. But they are just black. No problem.


Originally posted by: PizzaDude
I just think it's ridiculous to waste screen space like that.
Well, I suppose you could always reprogram the DVD player's firmware to include the nude Chris Farley theme......



 

redgtxdi

Diamond Member
Jun 23, 2004
5,464
8
81
Originally posted by: mrSHEiK124
SDTV looks good on HDTVs that don't suck ass. Believe it or not redgtxdi, HDTVs that don't mangle SD pictures DO exist. LCDs definitely don't fall into that category though, they tend to cope the worst with things that aren't native resolution.

Which TV's are those?

'Cuz I think Pioneer, Panasonic, Sony etc. would like to know so they can kneel at the feet of the mfgr that does!

:confused:
 

Reckoner

Lifer
Jun 11, 2004
10,851
1
81
Of course SDTV isn't going to look as good on an HDTV. An HDTV will expose all the imperfections an SDTV output relays.
 

redgtxdi

Diamond Member
Jun 23, 2004
5,464
8
81
Originally posted by: PaulNEPats
Of course SDTV isn't going to look as good on an HDTV. An HDTV will expose all the imperfections an SDTV output relays.

That's only the smallest part of the problem.


The problem is in resolution.........period!
 

spidey07

No Lifer
Aug 4, 2000
65,469
5
76
Originally posted by: PaulNEPats
Of course SDTV isn't going to look as good on an HDTV. An HDTV will expose all the imperfections an SDTV output relays.

Well some poor folks mistake scan lines for a "sharp" or 'better' picture. If you sit proportionately the same from a small (36") SDTV to a large HDTV you see the same thing.

SD looks great on all 3 of my HDTVs.
 
Aug 16, 2001
22,505
4
81
Why can't the TV manufactureres just make the TV put black bars on the side when viewing 4:3 broadcasts on a widescreen TV?
I'm not going widescreen until I can see undistorted normal TV. $2000 for a distorted picture - no thanks.
 

Thraxen

Diamond Member
Dec 3, 2001
4,683
1
81
Originally posted by: FrustratedUser
Why can't the TV manufactureres just make the TV put black bars on the side when viewing 4:3 broadcasts on a widescreen TV?
I'm not going widescreen until I can see undistorted normal TV. $2000 for a distorted picture - no thanks.

Lots of HDTVs do have that feature.
 

mrSHEiK124

Lifer
Mar 6, 2004
11,488
2
0
Originally posted by: redgtxdi
Originally posted by: mrSHEiK124
SDTV looks good on HDTVs that don't suck ass. Believe it or not redgtxdi, HDTVs that don't mangle SD pictures DO exist. LCDs definitely don't fall into that category though, they tend to cope the worst with things that aren't native resolution.

Which TV's are those?

'Cuz I think Pioneer, Panasonic, Sony etc. would like to know so they can kneel at the feet of the mfgr that does!

:confused:

As I already pointed out, my TV BARELY does any upconversion to display the picture, decomb filter on the 480i signal, and an ounce of upconversion to 540p, hence the fact that it looks damn near the same as it would on a 54" SDTV, if they existed. The problems YOU'RE talking about exist on LCDs, Plasmas, and some DLPs. This guy pretty much has it nailed:

Originally posted by: Thraxen
Originally posted by: redgtxdi
Originally posted by: Thraxen
Not all SDTV looks like crap on an HDTV. Digital channels look just fine. Sure, they don't look as good as HDTV, but they don't look any worse on an HD set than a non-HDTV.

Same answer applies here.

You seem to have missed the point that my CRT HDTV doesn't upconvert. Digital signal + digital TV + no native resolution + no upconversion = perfectly good picture. That, in turn, renders your point false. Not all HDTV's have problems with all SD content.

EDIT: By the way, I seem to recall you moaning and whining about SD content on HDTVs in quite a few threads, and getting owned too, redgtxdi.
 

cKGunslinger

Lifer
Nov 29, 1999
16,408
57
91
Originally posted by: dullard
Originally posted by: DrPizza
I must be among the relatively few who realized the majority of content was 4:3 - i.e. television broadcasts. So, I bought a 4:3 television

Yes, there are 40+ inch HDTV's with a 4:3 ratio; not all HDTV's are widescreen.
Now, when purchasing movies, I always buy the widescreen version so that I get the entire movie, not a cropped movie. I don't have a problem with the black bars on the top and bottom, because it's a big enough tv.
Scroll up Dr. It is just you and I left in this world.

I watch more hours of widescreen DVDs per period that I do of 4:3 broadcast TV. Ergo, I purchased a WS television.
 

redgtxdi

Diamond Member
Jun 23, 2004
5,464
8
81
Originally posted by: mrSHEiK124
Originally posted by: redgtxdi
Originally posted by: mrSHEiK124
SDTV looks good on HDTVs that don't suck ass. Believe it or not redgtxdi, HDTVs that don't mangle SD pictures DO exist. LCDs definitely don't fall into that category though, they tend to cope the worst with things that aren't native resolution.

Which TV's are those?

'Cuz I think Pioneer, Panasonic, Sony etc. would like to know so they can kneel at the feet of the mfgr that does!

:confused:

As I already pointed out, my TV BARELY does any upconversion to display the picture, decomb filter on the 480i signal, and an ounce of upconversion to 540p, hence the fact that it looks damn near the same as it would on a 54" SDTV, if they existed. The problems YOU'RE talking about exist on LCDs, Plasmas, and some DLPs. This guy pretty much has it nailed:

You seem to have missed the point that my CRT HDTV doesn't upconvert. Digital signal + digital TV + no native resolution + no upconversion = perfectly good picture. That, in turn, renders your point false. Not all HDTV's have problems with all SD content.

EDIT: By the way, I seem to recall you moaning and whining about SD content on HDTVs in quite a few threads, and getting owned too, redgtxdi.[/quote]


Wrong........never owned.......only confirmed as other posters have noted here in this very thread.

Resolution is the issue.

CRT HDTV's don't count. They don't HAVE a native resolution!!!


And as for your TV?? You got one a them thar fancy 540p sets do ya?? :confused:

So let me help you.........

480i converted to 540p displayed on a 720p native set = GARBAGE!!

You're dillusional, but that's OK.....................Remember, "Perception Is Reality!" If you perceive that you're seeing quality SDTV, then good for you!!

The math, however, simply does not lie!

Sorry! :beer:
 

BD2003

Lifer
Oct 9, 1999
16,815
1
81
Originally posted by: redgtxdi
Originally posted by: mrSHEiK124
Originally posted by: redgtxdi
Originally posted by: mrSHEiK124
SDTV looks good on HDTVs that don't suck ass. Believe it or not redgtxdi, HDTVs that don't mangle SD pictures DO exist. LCDs definitely don't fall into that category though, they tend to cope the worst with things that aren't native resolution.

Which TV's are those?

'Cuz I think Pioneer, Panasonic, Sony etc. would like to know so they can kneel at the feet of the mfgr that does!

:confused:

As I already pointed out, my TV BARELY does any upconversion to display the picture, decomb filter on the 480i signal, and an ounce of upconversion to 540p, hence the fact that it looks damn near the same as it would on a 54" SDTV, if they existed. The problems YOU'RE talking about exist on LCDs, Plasmas, and some DLPs. This guy pretty much has it nailed:

You seem to have missed the point that my CRT HDTV doesn't upconvert. Digital signal + digital TV + no native resolution + no upconversion = perfectly good picture. That, in turn, renders your point false. Not all HDTV's have problems with all SD content.

EDIT: By the way, I seem to recall you moaning and whining about SD content on HDTVs in quite a few threads, and getting owned too, redgtxdi.


Wrong........never owned.......only confirmed as other posters have noted here in this very thread.

Resolution is the issue.

CRT HDTV's don't count. They don't HAVE a native resolution!!!


And as for your TV?? You got one a them thar fancy 540p sets do ya?? :confused:

So let me help you.........

480i converted to 540p displayed on a 720p native set = GARBAGE!!

You're dillusional, but that's OK.....................Remember, "Perception Is Reality!" If you perceive that you're seeing quality SDTV, then good for you!!

The math, however, simply does not lie!

Sorry! :beer:[/quote]

CRT TV's don't count because they are the the prime example of why you are wrong.
 

mrSHEiK124

Lifer
Mar 6, 2004
11,488
2
0
Originally posted by: redgtxdi
Wrong........never owned.......only confirmed as other posters have noted here in this very thread.

Resolution is the issue.

CRT HDTV's don't count. They don't HAVE a native resolution!!!


And as for your TV?? You got one a them thar fancy 540p sets do ya?? :confused:

So let me help you.........

480i converted to 540p displayed on a 720p native set = GARBAGE!!

You're dillusional, but that's OK.....................Remember, "Perception Is Reality!" If you perceive that you're seeing quality SDTV, then good for you!!

The math, however, simply does not lie!

Sorry! :beer:

Wrong again, I stated multiple times that I have a 1080i set (1080i60 to be exact), so a 540p30 signal looks EXACTLY THE SAME. And you're quite right, the math doesn't lie. Judging by the fact that I sit a good 10 feet away from my screen so I can get comfy, I shouldn't be able to see a buttload of flaws in my SD cable signals. And up until a couple of months ago, I still had a 27" SD CRT, and I actually prefered watching my SD content on my HDTV, simply because the TV was brighter and had better color. And to make things worse for you my uninformed friend, the same flaws will exist on said SD signal on an SDTV, YOU JUST HAVE TO SIT CLOSER TO SEE THEM. SDTV looks like sh!t on my 19" LCD (1280x1024), because I tend to sit 1 foot away from said screen, more than close enough to see all the flaws in said CRAPPY SD signal. SD content looks like garbage to me, now that I've gotten used to HD content, whether its on an SDTV or an HDTV.
 

BD2003

Lifer
Oct 9, 1999
16,815
1
81
As far as widescreen goes, there are effective stretch modes. The one in particular I use stretches only the sides for the most part. Which sounds like it would be even more distorted, but most of the time, the action is right in the center of the screen, mostly unstretched, while the ambient picture youre not paying attention to is in the corners.

Works great for news and reality tv, so-so for popcorn movies and sitcoms, not so well for sports, and if you want to watch a well filmed movie, just rent the dvd, or watch it in 4:3.
 

BD2003

Lifer
Oct 9, 1999
16,815
1
81
And if your TV and set top box is so crude that it does a static, fixed resize from 480i to 720p, instead of a dynamic bilinear resize, you might want to think about getting a new TV or set top box instead of generalizing against ALL HDTVs and spreading misinformation.
 

mrSHEiK124

Lifer
Mar 6, 2004
11,488
2
0
Originally posted by: BD2003
And if your TV and set top box is so crude that it does a static, fixed resize from 480i to 720p, instead of a dynamic bilinear resize, you might want to think about getting a new TV or set top box instead of generalizing against ALL HDTVs and spreading misinformation.

Well f*cking said. Although I don't use the feature, our PACE/Scientific Atlanta box has a very good upscaler built into it.
 

redgtxdi

Diamond Member
Jun 23, 2004
5,464
8
81
Originally posted by: BD2003
And if your TV and set top box is so crude that it does a static, fixed resize from 480i to 720p, instead of a dynamic bilinear resize, you might want to think about getting a new TV or set top box instead of generalizing against ALL HDTVs and spreading misinformation.

It doesn't matter.

Either way it's in the video processing!


In regards to generalizing against ALL HDTV's, my apologies...........Sony's HDTV CRT's (specifically SFP, the best kind)........are all but gone these days. I make the assumption in this argument that the crappy looking SDTV we're talking about is in "panel" sets that we're all familiar with since I've yet to meet somebody that says SDTV looks like crap on their CRT (non-resolution-biased) TV set!!


And, lastly, again.............

"Perception Is Reality" If *YOU* think you're seeing great SDTV on your HDTV panel.............(note I said PANEL to remain PC for the ignorant)............then pop the cork............put a few on the BBQ...........you're in HOOOOOG Heaven and as delirious as the rest who think that SDTV looks fine..........bilinear upconvert or otherwise.

Oh and LetItWave may as well stop what they're doing 'cuz you've already got the panels to prove their techonology is not needed anymore! ;)



And to Mr. Sheik...............

Originally posted by: mrSHEiK124
And to make things worse for you my uninformed friend, the same flaws will exist on said SD signal on an SDTV, YOU JUST HAVE TO SIT CLOSER TO SEE THEM. SDTV looks like sh!t on my 19" LCD (1280x1024), because I tend to sit 1 foot away from said screen, .

You're kidding, right?? You didn't just say that, did you?? :confused:

Oh and I'm neither uninformed.....(quite the contrary in your case).........nor am I your friend.

For the 3rd time now............

"Perception Is Reality"..........if *YOU* think you're seeing good SDTV on your 1080i panel......(540p is half of 1080i by your math, so so after a little decomb filter & then a hardly-noticeable upconvert to 540p means your TV is giving your GREAT SDTV, right?)........then pop the cork yourself.......you're in gratificationville!

:beer:
 

BD2003

Lifer
Oct 9, 1999
16,815
1
81
Originally posted by: redgtxdi
Originally posted by: BD2003
And if your TV and set top box is so crude that it does a static, fixed resize from 480i to 720p, instead of a dynamic bilinear resize, you might want to think about getting a new TV or set top box instead of generalizing against ALL HDTVs and spreading misinformation.

It doesn't matter.

Either way it's in the video processing!


In regards to generalizing against ALL HDTV's, my apologies...........Sony's HDTV CRT's (specifically SFP, the best kind)........are all but gone these days. I make the assumption in this argument that the crappy looking SDTV we're talking about is in "panel" sets that we're all familiar with since I've yet to meet somebody that says SDTV looks like crap on their CRT (non-resolution-biased) TV set!!


And, lastly, again.............

"Perception Is Reality" If *YOU* think you're seeing great SDTV on your HDTV panel.............(note I said PANEL to remain PC for the ignorant)............then pop the cork............put a few on the BBQ...........you're in HOOOOOG Heaven and as delirious as the rest who think that SDTV looks fine..........bilinear upconvert or otherwise.

Oh and LetItWave may as well stop what they're doing 'cuz you've already got the panels to prove their techonology is not needed anymore! ;)



And to Mr. Sheik...............

Originally posted by: mrSHEiK124
And to make things worse for you my uninformed friend, the same flaws will exist on said SD signal on an SDTV, YOU JUST HAVE TO SIT CLOSER TO SEE THEM. SDTV looks like sh!t on my 19" LCD (1280x1024), because I tend to sit 1 foot away from said screen, .

You're kidding, right?? You didn't just say that, did you?? :confused:

Oh and I'm neither uninformed.....(quite the contrary in your case).........nor am I your friend.

For the 3rd time now............

"Perception Is Reality"..........if *YOU* think you're seeing good SDTV on your 1080i panel......(540p is half of 1080i by your math, so so after a little decomb filter & then a hardly-noticeable upconvert to 540p means your TV is giving your GREAT SDTV, right?)........then pop the cork yourself.......you're in gratificationville!

:beer:

You keep on contradicting yourself. You say perception is reality. Then you go on to try to prove to us how your perception is superior, because you understand something about resizing that we all don't.

So make up your mind. Either:

1) Youre right, and anyone who doesnt know about it is wrong.
2) Everyone sees what they see, resizing approximations be damned.

Either way you lose, because you're either wrong in fact, or it doesnt matter.

So you've managed to figure out that Sony CRTs have good pictures. Then go get one, and instead of being such a negative nancy trying to convince everyone how bad everyone else's picture is, convince everyone about what theyre missing.

Which I might add has little to do with the OP. You've learned plasmas have a bad picture. It has a lot more to do with other factors than it does to do with resizing. Plasmas are not synonymous with HDTV, in my eyes, they're bottom of the barrel. Their draw isnt in the picture they display but the size and inobtrusiveness of the screen.

And the kind of person who cares about what their TV looks like when it's off probably isnt the same guy who cares what it looks like when its on.

You want quality, you are going to have to go with DLP, or CRT, and take up the extra space and weight. Don't let a psycho convince you all HDTVs are bad because he bought the wrong one for his needs.
 

SSP

Lifer
Oct 11, 1999
17,727
0
0
It depends on the TV though. Our tosh does a wonderful job of stretching the 4:3 over the screen. You hardly notice any stretching. I've seen some sets at stores and they look terrible and some look good.
 

magomago

Lifer
Sep 28, 2002
10,973
14
76
after reading this and seeing how peoplec omplain about losing real estate on their screen...


to think that I buy WS versions of my dvds (i prefer the entire movie) so I can watch them on my 4:3 13 inch sdtv :x that must make some of you guys want to cry...
 

redgtxdi

Diamond Member
Jun 23, 2004
5,464
8
81
Originally posted by: BD2003

You keep on contradicting yourself. You say perception is reality. Then you go on to try to prove to us how your perception is superior, because you understand something about resizing that we all don't.

So make up your mind. Either:

1) Youre right, and anyone who doesnt know about it is wrong.
2) Everyone sees what they see, resizing approximations be damned.

Either way you lose, because you're either wrong in fact, or it doesnt matter.

So you've managed to figure out that Sony CRTs have good pictures. Then go get one, and instead of being such a negative nancy trying to convince everyone how bad everyone else's picture is, convince everyone about what theyre missing.

Which I might add has little to do with the OP. You've learned plasmas have a bad picture. It has a lot more to do with other factors than it does to do with resizing. Plasmas are not synonymous with HDTV, in my eyes, they're bottom of the barrel. Their draw isnt in the picture they display but the size and inobtrusiveness of the screen.

And the kind of person who cares about what their TV looks like when it's off probably isnt the same guy who cares what it looks like when its on.

You want quality, you are going to have to go with DLP, or CRT, and take up the extra space and weight. Don't let a psycho convince you all HDTVs are bad because he bought the wrong one for his needs.


Well, I don't know how else to explain it to you. The math doesn't lie, so in essence everybody (including you) who thinks they're seeing good SDTV on their HDTV panel is........well......yup.......WRONG!!!

SDTV doesn't look good on HDTV panels. Can we stop there?? (No, of course not, you're still under the delusion that SDTV looks fine on your HDTV so that obviously won't work).

So here's more to chew on..............

It also doesn't matter!! "Whoaaa, you say??" :confused: Yup, that too!

But here's the important part. Between here and avsforum, I've rec'd enough PM's & personal e-mails to warrant giving people a fair chance.

Case scenario.............

Someone walks into Costco and sees their favorite (let's say Panasonic 'cuz they're arguably good by most folks' standards. Wouldn't want to say Maxent 'cuz somebody might decide that THAT'S the reason the TV looks like crap, right??). Only problem is that at Costco, they'll ONLY ever see the HDTV feed.

They take the TV home & voila!! SDTV looks like crap!! So they switch from the NTSC tuner & put their line into the QAM tuner. Hmm.......now they got these neat little menus but still SDTV looks like crap. OK, so they call up their local cable company & get the latest/greatest Motrola STB. Guess what............still looks like crap. Now wait a minute. This isn't what it looked like in the Costco sittin' up on that thar pretty orange rack. What happened??

SDTV at 480i on a 720p native panel is what happened!!

Can we stop there?? No probably not. So I'll explain to you the conversation I had with my buddy who manages a local Costco here in Southern California..............

"Red.......Do you know what the majority of our HDTV returns are in regards to since we've started carryin' the damn things? (He's from North Carolina, thus the accent ;) ).

"Why, no, what's that?"

"PQ, buddy, PQ! Everybody that returns 'em says the same thing. 'It looked horrible when we got it home!'"

These very words were quoted to me as I checked out with mine (which I seriously thought I could tune to perfection). One week later, I returned my set. And, yes, I knew what I was doing!


Lastly...............you can pick your favorite Pioneer plasma. Go to AVSforums and find the Pio thread & write down ALL the perfect settings for that particular television. Get the greatest STB known to man for your Sat,Cab, FIOS, whatever. Dial in everything exactly the way it should look its best. Now............show that picture to 100 people. Some of them will say it's fine. Some of them will say it looks like crap.

Who's right??

So regardless of how badly you want it to be black & white YOURSELF. Your points 1 & 2 propositions above just don't hold water. It's actually BOTH!! I just want to be sure people know what A LOT of us have experienced.....(whether that's MOST or SOME or FEW)......before they go spend $5K down at Costco, CC, BB, Fry's, whoever & end up wasting a whole weekend after they have to return the whole thing 'cuz looking at SDTV is a lesser experience than it was when they had their good old CRT.......(let's say RCA just to shake things up, eh?)

Sorry........dunno what else to tell ya'! :beer:
 

mrSHEiK124

Lifer
Mar 6, 2004
11,488
2
0
redgtxdi, you want to say panel to remain PC, I think you say panel to save your ass. I do not have an LCD, I do not have a plasma. I have an old school rear projection HDTV, circa Winter 2002. I also got a damn good deal on it ($1500). I challenge you to come to my house and look at the SD picture, from where I sit to watch TV, on the channels I watch. Next you're going to tell me OTA analog stations look like sh!t on my TV, well, sorry to break it to you but those always look like sh!t. Do you think anyone cares if SP VHS looks bad on an HDTV? Besides, I'll even go as far as saying HDTV looks like sh!t on plasmas, mainly because they suck and are at the very bottom of the HDTV lineup when it comes to picture quality but closer to the top when it comes to contrast ratio. LCDs suffer horribly from SD resizing too, because they have native resolution to deal with. For the 4th time, I have a CRT RPTV that displays my SDTV signals about an inch away from their native resolution, stop being delusional, it looks just as fine as it ever did on my old 27" SD CRT.
 

Special K

Diamond Member
Jun 18, 2000
7,098
0
76
Originally posted by: mugs
Originally posted by: Special K
Why can't the filmmakers start producing movies in a 16:10 aspect ratio so that people with HDTVs can use the whole screen?

For the same reason they didn't produce 4:3 movies for years when all TVs were 4:3.

What reason is that?

I guess I could understand it more back then because the difference between the aspect ratios used for movies and the 4:3 aspect ratio was a lot greater than the difference between the 16:10 aspect ratio and the ratios used for movies.

 

LukFilm

Diamond Member
Oct 11, 1999
6,128
1
0
Originally posted by: PizzaDude
Originally posted by: kmr1212
Originally posted by: PizzaDude
Originally posted by: Jeff7
There are going to be some protests if this happens. My dad is among the crowd who says "What are those black bars? Get rid of them!" when he sees a widescreen DVD. He will not watch a movie that is widescreen format. He just can't stand it, he says that "the black bars are too distracting."

I meanwhile hate letterboxed versions because they chop off about 25% of the movie.

It doesn't chop off any of the picture, it's just formatted differently so you can use the whole screen. I have a 4:3 TV right now and would much rather watch a fullscreen dvd because then the picture is a full 27" instead of having the "distracting" black bars...

fullscreen = pan and scan.

congrats, you're losing 43% of the picture :thumbsdown:

What are you talking about? There is nothing cut off when you watch a full screen dvd...

Am I missing something here?

Also, can you clarify what pan and scan is?

LOL, you are KIDDING, right? Wow, just wow.
 

LukFilm

Diamond Member
Oct 11, 1999
6,128
1
0
There are many misguided individuals in this thread. Meanwhile, I'm loving my HD and SD picture on my 50" HP PL5000N plasma and 42" Westinghouse LCD TV.
 

DrPizza

Administrator Elite Member Goat Whisperer
Mar 5, 2001
49,601
167
111
www.slatebrookfarm.com
*sigh*
Fight all you want about opinions of what looks okay, what's tolerable, and what's not.

But, HDTV doesn't mean widescreen!
HD stands for "high definition"
There are high definition 4:3 televisions and there are high definition 16:9 televisions. I personally own the former. My widescreen DVD's show the entire movie, with a black bar at the top and bottom of the screen. It's very tolerable, as it's a large screen (40-something inches). Everything else that's made for 4:3 (i.e. virtually everything that isn't a widescreen DVD) is undistorted and uses all the real estate.

Also, for two screens with the same diagonal size (the way televisions are measured), a 4:3 has a larger picture than a widescreen.