When watching regular TV on a widescreen set---does the picture appear with black borders all the time?

Question

What does the "picture shape 1 -4" mean on a widescreen TV?

Answer 1

Yes, those black borders on the side will alawys be there as long as you set the TV to display regular TV programs in its normal aspect ration (4:3).

Not sure what "picture shape 1-4" means. Must be unique to your TV. Many widescreens allow you to change the display to eliminate the black side bands. You could stretch the image, making objects seem wider. Or magnify, which means the image is trimmed on all sides. Or live w/ the black side bands and know that the picture hasn't been trimmed or stretched like a funhouse image.

Answer 2

This film has been modified
from its original version.
It has been formatted to fit your screen.

Ever wonder about that little message means when you see it just before a Hollywood movie on your television?

You usually see that message because the movie was shot in a wider picture for the movie theater. When the studio released the home version they had to cut the sides off the images so that it would fit your TV screen. Our televisions use a different aspect ratio than widescreen movies. The aspect ratio of your old TV is 4 :3, which means it's a little wider than it is taller. For every 4 units of width our television screen stetches out 3 units of height. For example, if the width of the screen is 20 inches, its height is about 15 inches (20:15, or 4:3).