What is Aspect Ratio?

Across our website, particularly in the projector and projector screen categories, you will see us referencing the aspect ratio.

 

To start at the basics, aspect ratios simply denote the width to height ratio of an image. It's very important that the aspect ratio of the screen matches the projector, or vice-versa. 

This is easier to explain when using an example such as the 4:3 aspect ratio. The 4 expresses the width of the image, and the 3 indicates the height. The measurements of 4 and 3 are not set, merely the ratio is. Therefore a screen 8m wide and 6m high would still be in the same 4:3 ratio as one that is 4m wide and 3m high.

There are four types of aspect ratio that are normally available in our screen range.

• 1:1 Square Format - OHP/35mm slides	• 4:3 Video Format - Old school TV & PC
• 16:9 Widescreen/1080/HD	• 16:10 Business Widescreen Format WXGA/WUXGA

How does this work?

To get a perfectly matched projector screen for your projector, you first need to determine what is the native resolution your projector. This can normally be found on the manufacturer's specification.

The Native Resolution is the total number of individual pixels that make up an image. This is normally expressed Width x Height e.g. 1280 x 800 = WXGA

This also gives you the aspect ratio of the projected image, and therefore the best screen to pair with the projector.

Resolution	Pixels width x height	Best Screen Aspect Ratio
SVGA	800x600px	4:3 Video format
XGA	1024x768px	4:3 Video format
WXGA	1280x800px	16:10 WXGA Widescreen
High Definition (HD)	1920x1080px	16:9 Widescreen
WUXGA	1920x1200px	16:10 WXGA Widescreen

What Format Do I Need?

Our advice is to always choose a screen with the same format/ native resolution as your projector.

	Square Format (1:1) : Mainly for overhead projector, or 35mm slide projector use.
	Video Format (4:3) : Mainly for office and education use when projecting from a Laptop or PC
	WXGA (16:10) : Mainly for entry-level business projectors from a Laptop or PC and can also be used for home cinema in 16:9 mode
	Widescreen Format (16:9) : Also know as Full HD, 1080p. Mainly used for home cinema, as this is the standard format of modern TV sets. Perfect for SKY, BluRay, Gaming etc

Some projectors have the ability to switch between 16:9 and 4:3 so go for the format that best suits what you’re mostly going to be watching.

When buying a projection screen for your projector you will want to match it to the right screen format.

You can use a home cinema projector with a 4:3 screen but the end result is approximately 25% of the screen will be unused and will look something similar to the below image..

Contact Us

If you are still confused about aspect ratio and resolution, and want to speak to an advisor, please CONTACT US

0161 850 9696

sales@gmav.co.uk

Or complete the form below. Please provide details of your requirement and a member of our team will be in touch soon.