Aspect Ratio

Traditional TV sets come in a 4:3 ratio format. That means 4 inches wide for every 3 inches height.

However movies and films made for theaterical release usually come in a 16:9 ratio. That's where widescreen TV set comes in. Their aspect ratio is also 16:9 ratio which fits easily on to the screen.

An 16: 9 film feature on conventional 4:3 TV would result in black lines at the top and bottom of your set. Hey ! There's is nothing wrong with your TV set. This is called letterbox. If you want to fill the entire TV screen with the image, then left and right portion would be cut. The picture may look bigger but actually you are seeing less of the film.

Likewise, a movie formated in 4:3 aspect ratio shown on a widescren TV would feature black bars on the left and right side of the image which is known as windowboxing.