Entertainment Center: TVs, Stereos, VCRs and DVDs - A little confused as to which screen size prevents burned-in images on LCD TV

I have a Samsung 22" LCD HDTV. It is model# LN22A450. The user manual says the TV should be viewed in 16:9 screen size as much as possivle to avoid burned-in ghost imaging. But there is also a warranty flyer saying that wide screen TV's should be viewed in 16:9, or expanded to fill the screen.

So the user manual and warranty card seem to slightly contradict each other

Now when I watch DVD movies in 16:9, there are dark top and bottom letterbox bars on the screen. But when I switch the screen to wide mode, there are usually no letterbox bars and the whole screen is filled.

I also notice depending on the DVD movie, sometimes you can't completely get rid of the dark bars no matter what picture size you select.

So I am a little confused. When watching TV or DVD movies, do I just stick with 16:9, or should I use the wide option which usually eliminates letterbox bars?

Which option is best for preventing burned in images....I am thinking wide option?

Thanks,
Dave

Dave,

You are over thinking everything.

Screen burn in's typically happen when something is constantly being shown in the same position, like a gaming system or a computer screen. Your screen will not get "burnt" watching normal tv or movies.

They are warning you if you constantly watch TV in the mode where the border has the black bars, the black bars can get burned into the screen. If you watch everything in full screen or stretch mode (no bars on the borders) you will be fine. It is simply a liability warning.

It's not something you really need to worry about on LCD screens unless you watch tv in the same format for 12+ hours every day for several years. Unless you live in a sports bar, watch it in whatever format you prefer.

Thanks very much for your responses. I experimented with the TV screen in wide mode. This size would eliminate all the dark bars. But on some DVD movies no picture size will get rid of all the dark letterbox bars. I think wide mode is the way to go.

DVD formats vary, depending on the original film's width-to-height ratio. Standard video 16:9 widescreen would be from the film ratio of 1.85:1. This would fill your LCD in widescreen mode. The other commonly used film ratio is 1.66:1, which translates to roughly 16:10. Since a 16:10 image won't fit on a 16:9 screen, the picture has to be scaled down slightly so you see the entire image. That's why you wind up with black bars.

Remember, though, that DVDs are not Hi-Definition. Only Blu-Ray discs are HD.