sneskid
join:2008-01-10
Arlington, VA
| said by jerry k :
My thanks again to sneskid and GeekGirl 1
Wish I read the note which came with the TV,
"You need validate these settings only if you are connecting your new Sharp 19" TV to a HD Verizon STB"
May I please ask one last question concerning the View mode
The TV came in "stretch mode" which I didn't like. I tried 4:3, and the picture was shortened. I tried zoom at 2.35.5 but lost top and bottom of the picture. Stretch at 1.78.1 seems to work best. Is this the best choice?
My thanks again
Jerry K
Tewksbury MA
That depends on who you ask. Me, I personally prefer to watch everything in its original aspect ratio. The bars that result from this don't bother me one bit. What DOES bother me is an image that is either cropped, distorted, or otherwise modified in some way. So to answer your question, when you are watching something on FIOS, I would say that the "correct" way is to leave your TV on 4:3, since that is the only aspect ratio that your box outputs.
There is an exception, however. Let's say that for example you are watching a movie on Turner Classic Movies, and it is in letterbox format (which occurs a lot, since TCM usually is pretty good about film preservation). Sometimes this means that you can use the zoom mode without cutting anything off the top and bottom. I say SOMETIMES of course, because different movies are shot in all different aspect ratios.
That said, it is understandable that people want to "fill the screen" on their TVs. However again, if filling the screen means that the image is cropped or distorted in some way, I object to this completely.
To quote someone in the alt.tv.tech.hdtv usenet discussion group:
"Just say NO to Stretch-O-Vision."
Now since you don't have an HD box, there is a work around to this if you want to at least be able to watch SOME HD programming. Your TV does have a QAM tuner, which means that for some channels, you can bypass the set top box and use the tuner in your TV instead. When you reprogram the TV's tuner, it should pick up some of the HD channels that Verizon offers.
Also, if your TV has a cable card slot, your other option is to call Verizon and tell them that instead of the cable box, you want a cable card instead. The drawback is that you will not have the on screen guide that the box offers, and you won't have Video On Demand either. |
sneskid
join:2008-01-10
Arlington, VA
| said by jerry k :
Outstanding response; more and much better that I had hoped
I am now a more "enlightened" viewer, although I may disappoint you with that view.
I like full screen; am willing to suffer with minor distortion., but (at least) am making a decision based on both knowledge and mypersonal preference
Mrs K and I thank you
Jerry K
Tewksbury MA
Have you checked out what the TV can get without the box? |
