Short, Dumpy People on my TV!!

[littlesally]

My OH has been on about getting a wide screen, flat TV for ages. Personally I'm not bothered what TV we have.
I have noticed that quite a few people that have them (and even some shops) have them so there are short, dumpy people on the screen. I know there is a switch to make them normal, but this means that the sides of the screen are black.
To me this is the correct way. The wide screen bit is for things filmed in wide screen, not to stretch normal progrmmes.

Anyway, OH has just bought one and insists that we have the picture stretched - but it bugs the hell out of me! I would rather watch the normal TV in the bedroom than have everyone stretched out.

So what does every one else do? How do you programme yours? Normal or dumpy?
(Yes this is yet another petty argument )

Sally xx

[Celestine]

Re: Short, Dumpy People on my TV!!

I've found my eyes have kind of got used to the wider screen and I now believe everyone is 4' tall.

Watching Tom Cruise is a bit odd though.....he looks about 2'6 on my tv!


How's the housework argument going?


I had to referee a serious argument about tv watching habits between my 88yr old grand parents yesterday. They've been married 67 years...so obviously........it never gets any better.......................:cry:

[littlesally]

Re: Short, Dumpy People on my TV!!

Sink full of dishes Cel!!!

He is asleep in front of short, dumpy people and I'm watchin Shameless in the bedroom.
I refuse to have all that money spent on a decent TV and watch it programmed the way it is!
Sally xx

[enaid]

Re: Short, Dumpy People on my TV!!

Sorry Sal PMSL

[Nattie]

Re: Short, Dumpy People on my TV!!

I almost expected the oompah loompahs to come dashing out of this thread. Where is willie wonka?

[Guest]

Re: Short, Dumpy People on my TV!!

Sally, your OH has not set up the TV properly. There is no reason that the image should be distorted at all. A "normal" TV has an aspect ration of 4:3 and a widescreen TV has an aspect ratio of 16:9. (Although, just to make things even more complicated, there are 14:9 images too.)

If you stretch a 4:3 image so it fills the screen then the result will be the "fat people" effect you describe. This is because the video source aspect ratio does not match the TV aspect ratio.

Your OH should set the output on your DVD, Sky box, video player etc to be 16:9 or "widescreen" and then also make sure that the TV itself is set to 16:9 or widescreen too.

This is not the way to use a widescreen set. People should not appear to be better-fed than they would normally do.

[littlesally]

Re: Short, Dumpy People on my TV!!

People should not appear to be better-fed than they would normally do.

PMSL - you do make me smile!!
As for the rest of it, when I understand all of thot I will see what I can do.
At the moment I clicked it so the picture is normal, with black sides.

Sally xxx

[littlesally]

Re: Short, Dumpy People on my TV!!

Messed about with it while OH was out and got a perfect picture.
Black lines at the sides but not too wide so he doesn't mind - and no short, dumpy people (unless they are that shape in reality).
Sally xx