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Aspect Ratio
In addition to resolution and interlacing, a television picture is also defined by its aspect ratio—referring
to the shape of the screen as defined by the ratio of the screen’s width to its height.
For analog TV, the aspect ratio is 4 units wide by 3 units high (4:3). This is the familiar shape of conven-
tional TVs—slightly wider than they are tall. SDTV and EDTV can be either 4:3 or 16:9. For HDTV
broadcasts, the aspect ratio is 16:9—nearly twice as wide as it is tall. This is, not coincidentally, more like
the shape of movies shown in theaters, which makes HD an ideal format for viewing movies on TV. You
will be able to see much of what is captured on film, but lost on an SDTV display.
Screen Formats
What if you’re watching a nearly square-shaped 4:3 broadcast on a 16:9 TV, or vice versa? The DIRECTV
HD DVR PRO lets you choose from a variety of screen formats to deal with those scenarios. You can set
up your preferences for format during Guided Setup and change them at any time.
See the next pages for your options.
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