Small auditorium system. Plan to specify an Epson model 1985 4800 lumen projector (actually 2 projectors for side by side screen mirroring).

This proj is 16x10 (1920 x 1200 native). 98% of the time, the source will be some sort of laptop, for dissertations to the group. Obviously I have no idea what the resolution of the laptop will be, but if it can't do 1920 x 1200, is surely can do 1080i over hdmi. Most likely, the laptop will depend on who is doing the dissertation and it will be a mix over time.

The real question: should I spec a 16:10 screen? or a 16:9 screen? I'm leaning towards 16:10.

I'd like to hear everyone's thoughts that have maybe done both.

I'd go with a 16:10 screen but would add a scaler in the mix so you never have to worry about what resolutions the laptops are putting out.

I'm dealing with this right now, except the client has a 16:9 screen and I'm wondering if there's anything to be gained, no pun intended, by supplying a 16:10 proiector. My instinct is to fill the screen with all the pixels, meaning 16:10 images will have to be scaled.

16:10 laptops are just about gone. Only Apple has them and its time for a major redesign. I would wager 16:9 touchscreens are in their future.

Well, yeah, Mac, but you've gotta remember they're Apple and they think different.

In this case they are actually "fighting" for the real computer users. You lose apx 1" of screen height on a 15" laptop. This works out great for people who use their laptop for entertainment because it eliminates black bars top and bottom for most content. It sucks for those of us who usually have at least 2 programs open at once.

They sell enough to get manufacturers to build anything they want but i think eventually they will be forced to go with 16:9.

Mac,
I don't get your issue with height vis-a-vis two programs open at once. When I open two programs I usually want them side by side, not at the top and bottom of the screen. What would be an example of what you're talking about?

If you do some math you'll find that with a 15" screen,
16: 9 measures 7.35" x 13.07" and
16:10 measures 7.95" x 12.7"

The 16:10 is 0.6" higher and 0.37" narrower.

Maybe the 16:10 screens are actually much higher because the product you're looking at might be a 15" 16:9 versus, say, a 16" 16:10. I haven't looked at a single screen to check this out, but 5/8" is not a lot of added screen height!

Or maybe you're talking about how many pixels of height there are?

What i am saying is that when you have apps open side by side on my laptop vs a 16:9 i can see more of the document/blueprint/whatever.


"15" laptops" never have a 15" screen. It's usually 15.4 or 15.6 diagonal. I measured 7 laptops today. All are slightly different height width diagonal. Height changes between half inch and 3/4 inch. This may not be a lot of added screen height but the issue is that it has been subtracted...not added! And for no good reason. The missing physical space increased as you go up in screen size. Even apple switched from 30" to 27" monitors a few years ago.


Pixels is a whole other conversation. Most non apple 15" laptop users aren't even running 1920X1080.