Stretchy Squashy Pet Peeve - Home Entertainment Technology

bsnalex · 08-11-2009, 21:35

Does anyone else find it extremely annoying how some people don't have the correct display on their TV when watching something ie stretching a 4:3 or watching a 16:9 on a 16:9 screen [i]with[i] letterbox.

Worst was last year I was at someones house the day of the FA Cup final and he was watching it in the background...he had a 4:3 tv and was watching the widescreen setting on Virgin, so there were no letterbox lines--so he squashed the wide picture in the square screen. I mentioned it briefly to him and he just said "Eh I don't really notice it".

I wanted to punch him and tell him to take a better look at the screen.

StoppingService · 10-11-2009, 12:33

http://www.digitalspy.co.uk/forums/s....php?t=1019197

Mandarintje · 10-11-2009, 14:58

Yes I hate this too. I try not to stay around the technically inept for too long, for fear I might not be able to curb my homicidal tendencies.

It's usually the other way round that I see it.... 4:3 stretched horribly wide into a full-width 16:9, making awful soap operas even more hideous than they already are.

jenzie · 10-11-2009, 17:29

when i had the portable connected up to my skybox, i had it set to 16x9 and it didn't bothered me, and at least you could see all the picture!

now people who have a widescreen tv and set their picture to 4x3 ..... they need SHOOTING!!!!

as for stretched picturing ..... when i had my first widescreen tv, i had it set to CINEMA (where the 4x3 picture was set to stretch more on the outsides of the frame, to fill the screen area) and it worked really well for me

zaeon · 12-11-2009, 23:52

Broadcasters don't help either. Sky have the annoying habit of doing things wrong. Sci Fi (Ch129) is fine when they are not broadcasting the same programme in HD at the same time, when they do the picture from a non + box gets confused ratio info and results in an anamorphicaly stretched image (Long and thin) going back to a proper 16:9 ratio pic during the adverts. The signal for SciFi+1 (CH205) never fluctuates and is a perfect 16:9 regardless. But the oddest thing is when they do no simultanaeous HD/SD broadcast the adverts get stretced?????BUT not on Sci Fi+1. The BBC and ITV have similar issues with football programmes prefering to bradcast the signal in14:9 rato which can lead to a black border around the picture on some sets. Why can't they agree to a fixed standard? As for the response from Sky when we pointed this out... would you like to upgrade to HD+?.... My reply to that is unprintable here, and that was from their "Technical" department, after being patched through three different phone numbers and back and forth between customer services and Technical support!! It would be funny if wasn't so ludicrous!

r_mitchell85 · 13-11-2009, 00:19

theres nothing MORE annoying than when watching a programme (sometimes BBC3 do this with Family Guy) and having 2 black lines down the left and right hand sides!

I'd much rather it filled the whole screen.... (ok I know it isnt technically the correct aspect ratio blah-de-blah) but but I've paid for a 42" tv, and I don't want to just watch 2 thirds of it!

bobcar · 13-11-2009, 02:06

Quote:

Originally Posted by r_mitchell85

theres nothing MORE annoying than when watching a programme (sometimes BBC3 do this with Family Guy) and having 2 black lines down the left and right hand sides!

I'd much rather it filled the whole screen.... (ok I know it isnt technically the correct aspect ratio blah-de-blah) but but I've paid for a 42" tv, and I don't want to just watch 2 thirds of it!

I know we've been through this argument many times before but that logic baffles me, "illogical Captain". I paid for my TV as well and I certainly didn't pay for one that distorts the picture.

Spot · 13-11-2009, 06:21

Quote:

Originally Posted by r_mitchell85

theres nothing MORE annoying than when watching a programme (sometimes BBC3 do this with Family Guy) and having 2 black lines down the left and right hand sides!

I'd much rather it filled the whole screen.... (ok I know it isnt technically the correct aspect ratio blah-de-blah) but but I've paid for a 42" tv, and I don't want to just watch 2 thirds of it!

You sound like the sort of person who wouldn't watch a black and white programme just because you've got a colour TV.

r_mitchell85 · 13-11-2009, 14:48

Quote:

Originally Posted by Spot

You sound like the sort of person who wouldn't watch a black and white programme just because you've got a colour TV.

I wouldn't go that far! lol

08-11-2009, 21:35	#1
bsnalex Forum Member Join Date: Apr 2008 Location: Brum Services: V-TV XL, BB10Mb, XLPhone, DAB, 3 Mob Posts: 89	Stretchy Squashy Pet Peeve Does anyone else find it extremely annoying how some people don't have the correct display on their TV when watching something ie stretching a 4:3 or watching a 16:9 on a 16:9 screen [i]with[i] letterbox. Worst was last year I was at someones house the day of the FA Cup final and he was watching it in the background...he had a 4:3 tv and was watching the widescreen setting on Virgin, so there were no letterbox lines--so he squashed the wide picture in the square screen. I mentioned it briefly to him and he just said "Eh I don't really notice it". I wanted to punch him and tell him to take a better look at the screen.

10-11-2009, 12:33	#2
StoppingService Forum Member Join Date: Feb 2008 Location: West Anglia (Sandy Heath TX) Services: Sony 4:3 CRT TV, Panasonic VCR, Pace DTR735 OnDigital STB, Digihome PVR80 Posts: 987	http://www.digitalspy.co.uk/forums/s....php?t=1019197

10-11-2009, 14:58	#3
Mandarintje Forum Member Join Date: Jul 2008 Location: Antwerp Belgium Services: Freesat + SKY Posts: 84	Yes I hate this too. I try not to stay around the technically inept for too long, for fear I might not be able to curb my homicidal tendencies. It's usually the other way round that I see it.... 4:3 stretched horribly wide into a full-width 16:9, making awful soap operas even more hideous than they already are.

10-11-2009, 17:29	#4
jenzie Forum Member Join Date: Nov 2001 Location: one very messy room :0 Services: VM M-Broadband - sky digital 2mix Posts: 7,773	when i had the portable connected up to my skybox, i had it set to 16x9 and it didn't bothered me, and at least you could see all the picture! now people who have a widescreen tv and set their picture to 4x3 ..... they need SHOOTING!!!! as for stretched picturing ..... when i had my first widescreen tv, i had it set to CINEMA (where the 4x3 picture was set to stretch more on the outsides of the frame, to fill the screen area) and it worked really well for me

12-11-2009, 23:52	#5
zaeon Forum Member Join Date: Jul 2008 Location: County Durham Posts: 204	Broadcasters don't help either. Sky have the annoying habit of doing things wrong. Sci Fi (Ch129) is fine when they are not broadcasting the same programme in HD at the same time, when they do the picture from a non + box gets confused ratio info and results in an anamorphicaly stretched image (Long and thin) going back to a proper 16:9 ratio pic during the adverts. The signal for SciFi+1 (CH205) never fluctuates and is a perfect 16:9 regardless. But the oddest thing is when they do no simultanaeous HD/SD broadcast the adverts get stretced?????BUT not on Sci Fi+1. The BBC and ITV have similar issues with football programmes prefering to bradcast the signal in14:9 rato which can lead to a black border around the picture on some sets. Why can't they agree to a fixed standard? As for the response from Sky when we pointed this out... would you like to upgrade to HD+?.... My reply to that is unprintable here, and that was from their "Technical" department, after being patched through three different phone numbers and back and forth between customer services and Technical support!! It would be funny if wasn't so ludicrous!

13-11-2009, 00:19	#6
r_mitchell85 Forum Member Join Date: Mar 2003 Posts: 2,783	theres nothing MORE annoying than when watching a programme (sometimes BBC3 do this with Family Guy) and having 2 black lines down the left and right hand sides! I'd much rather it filled the whole screen.... (ok I know it isnt technically the correct aspect ratio blah-de-blah) but but I've paid for a 42" tv, and I don't want to just watch 2 thirds of it!