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Tip #1: Check out "widescreen-friendly" 4:3 TVs
With so many major changes re-shaping television — not only aspect ratio, but also flat-panel technologies and the shift to digital signals — consumers are still buying more traditional 4:3 direct-view TVs than anything else. If you're leaning toward a 4:3 screen, you should know that some models do a better job of displaying widescreen DVDs than others. By using the set's picture-drawing ability more efficiently, these TVs deliver the
best possible picture quality when viewing the growing number of "anamorphic" ("enhanced-for-widescreen") DVDs.
The way it works is, the TV re-configures its scanning area, compressing all the TV's image-producing scan lines into a 16:9 shape. Yes, you'll still see the black bars, but the picture area in between will look smoother and more detailed. You'll typically find this capability on higher-end TVs with 27" or larger screens. It's more common on HDTV-ready models, but there are a few non-HD TVs that include it as well. Some models are
able to detect this special signal and reconfigure the screen automatically, while others require that you switch it manually. Sony and Panasonic have championed this feature for years — Sony calls it "16:9 Enhanced" mode. If you're considering any type of 4:3 TV, look for this feature — it's little-known, but it really works!
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When some 4:3 TVs display anamorphic widescreen DVDs, they waste precious scanning lines on the black bars above and below the image (left). More advanced TVs can slightly compress the height of each line so you see the full 480 scanning lines in a 16:9 window (right). Because no scan lines are wasted on the black bars, image resolution is improved by 25%! |
Tip #2: Don't get burned by screen burn-in
One of the downsides of viewing sources with different aspect ratios is the increased potential for screen burn-in. Burn-in can happen when certain types of screen display images which don't fill the screen, like a widescreen image on a 4:3 screen or a 4:3 image on a 16:9 screen. TV manufacturers actually recommend that you only view a limited amount of material (typically under 25%) that doesn't fill the screen.
What does screen burn-in look like? You'll actually notice faint ghosts of the black bars when the image doesn't fully fill the screen. This can happen whether the bars are on the top and bottom, or the sides. The types of TVs that are most susceptible to screen burn-in are plasma TVs and rear-projection CRT TVs. Recently, TV manufacturers have begun including anti-burn-in features, but it's still something to be aware of.
LCD- and DLP-based
TVs are virtually immune to screen burn-in, or in the case of rear-projection LCD models like Sony's Grand Wega, much more resistant to burn-in.
The bottom line: which type to get
Since one screen size clearly doesn't fit all program formats, take a good look at what you watch, and which programs matter the most to you. If local and network shows account for most of your viewing, and you expect to have limited access to HDTV signals in the near future (and if you don't watch many movies on DVD), a 4:3 screen will probably be more satisfying. (But definitely consider a model with the type of widescreen
viewing mode described above.) Large direct-view TVs — say 36" or larger — can display a widescreen image that is satisfyingly big.
If you want a TV that will excel as part of a home theater, primarily displaying DVD movies, and maybe HDTV, then go with a 16:9 set. Widescreen is definitely the future of TV viewing, but the future continues to arrive a piece at a time.
