16:9 Ratios And Video Walls
16:9 Ratios and Video Walls
16:9 Ratio Defined
A 16:9 ratio (pronounced “16 9”, “16 to 9” , or “16 by 9” and sometimes written as “16×9”) is an aspect ratio, where for every 16 units of width, there are 9 corresponding units of height. Examples of 16:9 ratios are 16 inches wide by 9 inches high, 32 widgets wide by 18 widgets high, and 1920 pixels wide by 1080 pixels high. An image has a 16:9 ratio if its width-to-height ratio is equal to 16/9, or 1.78. A 16:9 ratio can also be represented as 1.78:1.
16:9 is significant because it is today’s standard ratio for film and display. The 16:9 ratio replaced the old 4:3 ratio in the early 2,000s. You may have heard terms such as 1080p HD, 720p HD, and 4K UHD. These terms all refer to 16×9 ratios. For example, a 1080p HD display refers to a screen resolution of 1920x1080p (1920/1080 = 1.78).
16:9 Ratio Examples
Common 16:9 Rations
1024×576
1152×648
1280×720 (HD)
1366×768
1600×900
1920×1080 (full HD)
2560×1440
3840×2160 (4K UHD)
7,680 x 4,320 (8K UHD)
List of All True 16:9 Ratios
Since a 16:9 ratio can be scaled to infinite sizes, the list of ratios is also infinite.
Calculating 16:9 Aspect Ratios
FORMULA
W/H = 1.778
If the width divided by the height equals 1.778, then the aspect ratio is 16:9 (1.78:1).
If you know the width of an object but not the height, then you can find the 16:9 height by dividing width by 1.778.
Example
Bob has a video wall that is 64 panels wide. How many panels high does he need to build for a 16:9 display?
W/H = 1.778
64/H=1.778
64/1.778 = 36
Bob needs his video wall to be 36 panels tall.
If you know the height of your object but not the width, then you can find the 16:9 width by multiplying the height by 1.778.
Example
Lily needs to design an image into a 16:9 ratio for a social post. Her height is 720 pixels. How wide does her image need to be?
W/H = 1.778
W/720=1.778
720*1.778= 1,280
Lily needs here image to be 1,280 pixels wide.
How to Measure Aspect Ratio
Aspect ratio can be easily measured or calculated in a few different ways. To begin, it can be measured in any unit (pixels, inches, feet) and will require the width of the screen to be divided by the height of the screen. In practical applications, this could be done with a number of physical measurement tools, but also on computers can be measured with a Chrome tool called page ruler!
Aspect ratio, once measured, can be calculated by simplifying the division, or by using an aspect ratio calculator!
Aspect Ratio on TV
Nearly all channels in European, American, African, Asian, and other countries have their default TV resolution at 16:9. It is by far the standard screen size when viewing and distributing Television broadcasts. Wikipedia has a great resource displaying all countries along with the default aspect ratio that their Television distributions use.
Conclusion
16:9 ratios are an aspect ratio containing 16 units of width for every 9 units of height. They can be calculated by ensuring that width divided by height equals 1.78.
16:9 ratios are important to understand when selecting a video wall size or designing content for video walls.
