anybody know of a 16:9-4:3 formula? (1 Viewer)

[eddieZEN]

I'm trying to figure out if the screen image of a letterbox DVD played on a 26" widescreen TV (16:9) is equivalent in size to one played on a 32" normal TV (4:3) or if I'd have to go to a 30" widescreen TV in order to match that.

Surely there must be a website somewhere with an equivalency chart or converter calculator?

It's been way too long since high school algebra, I can't figure out any sort of simple formula to compare the two!

 

[John S]

Something like this your looking for???

http://reviews.cnet.com/4520-7608_7-...tml#calculator

 

[John S]

PS: I think the 32" 4:3 beats it by a couple of inches for sure.

 

[Jeremy Stockwell]

Link Removed calculator provides some additional information that you may find useful.

JKS

 

[eddieZEN]

John S,

thanks a million, that was EXACTLY what I was looking for!

Shiza, now I have to look around for a 30" widescreen. I was hoping to get away with the $600 Toshiba 26df84 widescreen, I think the 30" version will be an extra $200-300 plus weigh a ton more.

 

[eddieZEN]

Jeremy,

thanks, that is useful but I'll have to think about all those different modes...which letterbox mode would you say is probably the most common on DVDs?

 

[John S]

I ended up going with a 60" 4:3 display with a native widescreen mode as I was upgrading from a 48" SD RPTV, and I'll be darned if I wasn't going to see large screen size gains on all my material.

 

[eddieZEN]

Well. 95% of my 10-12 hours a week of TV watching is DVDs and if it weren't for the preponderance of letterbox formatting I'd be content with my current humble 20" TV.

So I feel a little foolish forking out all that dough for something that I don't use very much in the first place, LOL.

 

[MikeHerbst]

Obviously depends on what you watch (TV Shows on DVD, old B&W Movies, current "indie" stuff, or the "epic" films).

I find that the vast majority of the modern movies in our collection are either 2.35:1 or 16:9 (1.78:1), with the occasional 1.85:1 title.

TV shows and old movies are usually 4:3 (or "Academy Ratio").

 

[John S]

Then again, Disney keeps reporting 1.66:1 on their stuff....

I find they are all over the place these days. I would truly have to count, or maybe have my database figure it out, as to which one if any was more prevelent over the others.

 

[Arnie G]

does anyone know the advantages/disadvantages between a 30" 16x9 vs 32" 4:3 tube, both HDTV?

 

[matt-f]

John,

Nice link!! I was wondering about that too but I didn't bother since I calculated by hand to find out the ratio using a calculator to get an approximate! =)

 

[MikeHerbst]

Arnie, looking at Jeremy Stockwell's link (which is what I've always used), its pretty clear:

For widescreen formats, the 30" 16x9 offers a SLIGHT advantage (3.8% to 4.2% bigger image).

However for 4:3 programs, the 32" screen would be a whopping 70.6% larger image.

Seems to me, if you watch any significant amount of 4:3 programming, a slightly larger 4:3 TV is still the way to go.

BTW, the same holds true for the "next size up". A 34" widescreen TV versus a 36" 4:3 TV has similar advantages/disadvantages.

 

[eddieZEN]

OK. With the WAF accounted for it looks like I'll be settling for a 27" flat screen, right now the only question is whether to get one with standard TV, EDTV, or HDTV.

Standard 27" flat screen Toshiba goes for $350 around here, a 27" flat screen Samsung EDTV for $300 on sale, and 27" HDTV is a whopping $500-700.

Which would you recommend? Remember, about the only thing I ever watch are DVDs, and I have zero interest in ever going to cable or satellite or local TV.

I'm especially confused by EDTV...never heard of it before!

 

[DaveF]

The Link Removed website is great. I used that in my shopping.

I also suggest buying some posterboard and drawing the sizes of the screens and placing it on your current TV. It gives you a more realistic sense of the screen sizes than at the store. Looking at 36" next to 60" monsters in cavernous showroom makes things seem smaller than they are.