Widescreen Notebooks To Become Standard By 2008

[Tech_Dude_5000]

Notebook PCs are rapidly moving toward a future filled with more pixels and more screen real estate, thanks to the unexpectedly rapid proliferation of widescreen displays.

Once fairly rare beasts, widescreen notebooks?notebooks with screens that have an aspect ratio of 16:9 or 16:10, as opposed to the 4:3 of standard screens, and are thus wider and able to display more information?have rapidly been increasing in numbers of late.

Now, having begun out-shipping notebooks with standard screens for the first time in the first half of 2006, widescreen portables are set to take over nearly 100 percent of the market by 2008, said a new forecast by market researcher IDC, based in Framingham, Mass.

The shift, originally expected to be more gradual and less complete, has been accelerating in recent months, due in large part to efforts by screen manufacturers. Widescreen panels are more efficient to produce, and manufacturers are making quick reductions in pricing.

Subsequent adoption by notebook makers has driven the crossover in unit shipments and is powering the overall trend, according to IDC. Although the transition comes more from the manufacturing side, some customers have begun asking for the wider screens as well, because of their greater screen real estate.

Read the rest of the story over at eWeek

[crimsonhead]

(Y) Watching movies

(N) Watching Tv

[Brodel]

I would have guessed they were almost already as standard, I was hunting around to buy a laptop a few months back and almost every one I looked at was widescreen.

[TokyoKiller]

There are non-widescreen notebooks out there still?

[primexx]

There are non-widescreen notebooks out there still?

my point exactly. Preferably I would have gotten a non-wide screen notebook because well, it's a notebook, I want the height not the width. But I couldent find any normal screens so I had to settle with a widescreen too...This whole widescreen craze is just too overblown. Like seriously, they're just taking the top off and adding it to the side...whats the use of that.

[Zxian]

Like seriously, they're just taking the top off and adding it to the side...whats the use of that.

More screen space. WXGA is larger than XGA. You can't comfortably fit two documents side by side on a standard aspect ratio screen.

[dagamer34]

While widescreen may be standard in 2008, I think OEMs really need to increase the resolutions that they put in laptops, particularly the most common size, 15.4".

Widescreen in a quick fix to the screen space problem. The real solution would be increasing the native resolutions on most widescreens from 1280x800 to something like 1440x900. Only reason why the don't do it is because Windows XP isn't resolution independent at all. People would be squinting too much.

[Quillz]

I believe the standard resolution on my E1405 (widescreen) is 1440?900.

[noroom]

Only reason why the don't do it is because Windows XP isn't resolution independent at all. People would be squinting too much.

BULL. That's what the DPI setting is for.

[+Warwagon MVC]

(Y) Watching movies

(N) Watching Tv

I take it you've never watched a downloaded Xvid of a TV show before on a widescreen monitor :yes:

[crimsonhead]

I take it you've never watched a downloaded Xvid of a TV show before on a widescreen monitor :yes:

Either way 4:3 is better on 4:3 monitors and 16:9 is better on 16:9 monitors. A lot of shows are swtiching to 16:9 which is nice. :yes:

[MrA]

BULL. That's what the DPI setting is for.

Ever used the DPI setting? It's not too bad, but a lot of programs look out of proportion. Don't believe me? Jack up the DPI to 150% and open media player. The only thing that's resized is the text. And it's like this on a number of programs, not just WMP. But hey, it's not as bad as OSX. OSX resizes everything in proportion, but only quartz apps look decent (safari looks pretty good). Quickdraw apps look like complete crap (everything is pixelated). But I digress.

Either way 4:3 is better on 4:3 monitors and 16:9 is better on 16:9 monitors. A lot of shows are swtiching to 16:9 which is nice. :yes:

What I've wondered for a while is why are there so few 4:3 and no 16:9 LCD montors? Most are either 5:4 or 16:10.

[Elliot B.]

Wider screens = better laptop keyboards (Y)

[.Neo]

Standard for Apple in 2006. :laugh:

[iconoclast]

Standard for 08 just like HDTV was standard in 06? HA!

[JMoney]

I hope this widescreen trend doesnt take off with tablets also. Having the extra height is critical for a tablet, I can see how it not neccesary for a notebook, but writing on a widescreen tablet lacking the extra width of the page(when in portrait mode) makes the transition from paper to screen difficult.

[Meshuggah]

Jmoney: 90 Horizontal flip will fix that on XP :) Then your widescreen should be perfect for viewing pages.

16:10

[gertin]

What I've wondered for a while is why are there so few 4:3 and no 16:9 LCD montors? Most are either 5:4 or 16:10.

Now there's a real question. What's the point of so many different aspect ratio's? There's 4:3, 5:4, 16:9, 16:10, 1.85:1, 2.35:1 and so on.

[Xabora]

http://www.thedigitalbits.com/articles/ana...creenorama.html

This should give you an idea.

[Tech_Dude_5000]

Wider screens = better laptop keyboards (Y)

including number pads... :D

[SnowRanger13]

I don't really care weather my laptop is wide screen or not. Dose make some sense when you think about it because you can see more with your eyes horizontal then you can vertical, at least I can anyways.

[Quillz]

Wider screens = better laptop keyboards (Y)

:)

[jasondefaoite]

What I've wondered for a while is why are there so few 4:3 and no 16:9 LCD montors? Most are either 5:4 or 16:10.

16:10 was chosen, I believe, to give a bit more vertical height for general computer usage, vs the 16:9

[brianhanson37]

Honestley, having two windows open at once doesen't appeal to me that much. I hate widescreens. I did so much hunting til I found a normal one.

[Echilon]

You mean they still make laptops with 4:3 screens? :p