Don't Choose the Wrong Laptop Display // Aspect Ratios Explained!

There are tons of laptops to choose from and depending on what laptop you buy it might not have the right aspect ratio you need. Make sure to pick the right type of display for your workflow! Hopefully this video helps you make a better decision on picking the best laptop. Aspect Ratio explained.

LG Gram 17 2021:

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[lockhandel]

Really like that you are more focused towards consumers instead of mindlessly reviewing products.

[austincodes]

As a web developer I prefer 16:10 over 3:2. While 3:2 is really good for text editors (coding) it is not wide enough for most web dev tools.

[AirrowRocket]

I like the educational videos that a couple of the reviewers are doing.

[vahabkhademi]

16:10 is close to the Golden Ratio (1.61), personally, it feels more natural to me. 3:2 is the same aspect ratio of 35mm film. I think these numbers are chosen very thoughtfully by manufacturers.

[MuffinMcFluffin]

I think I would prefer 16:10, however I snap windows left-right all the time. That is where 16:9 really comes in handy. I wonder if there is a big difference between the feel of 8:9 versus 4:5 in that regard.

[AashilPatel]

These type of videos are really helpful!
Thanks Matthew ! ✌🏻🙌🏻

[SteeperMouse]

Damn I recently bought a 16:9 aspect laptop, and I don't watch movies and play games on it rather do college work and coding a few times. What a bummer! Wish there was a scheme outta nowhere that I could exchange this system to a larger and at least 16:10 aspect ratio.

Informative vid for new buyers (Y)

[JCTY]

To determine aspect ratio

The resolution of the laptop will determine the aspect ratio.
Just take the resolution and divide them and use the handy guide below:
Laptop resolution 1920 x 1080 just take 1920 divide by 1080 = 1.77 From table below 1.77 is 16:9
Laptop resolution 3840x2160 just take 3840 divide by 2160 = 1.77. ==> 16:9
LG Gram 16" and 17" is 2560x1600. Just take 2560 divide 1600 = 1.6 ==> 16:10
LG Gram 14" (2021) is 1920x1200. Just take 1920 divide by 1200 = 1.6 ==> 16:10
Surface Book 3 15" is 3240 x 2160. Just take 3240 divide 2160 = 1.5 ==> 3:2
FYI Macs are 16:10, and iPads are 4:3.
Hope it helps.

Aspect Ratio Guide
4:3 = 1.33 : 1
3:2 = 1.5 : 1
16:10 = 1.6 : 1
16:9 = 1.77 : 1
21:9 = 2.35 : 1

[JCTY]

Depends on what you are using it for. As I do work primarily, 14 inch 16:10 looks almost as big as a 15 inch 16:9 because of the additional vertical space. I feel that the LG Gram 16 inch is the perfect compromise. I am using my Surface Book 2 which is 3:2 and I love it. I will never ever go back to buying 16:9 anymore.
FYI, the iPads are 4:3 and the Macs are all 16:10. One way to compare is like this:

4:3 = 1.33 : 1
3:2 = 1.5 : 1
16:10 = 1.6 : 1
16:9 = 1.77 : 1
21:9 = 2.35 : 1

So as you can see, the larger the number the wider the screen. The wider the screen the less vertical space you will have....even word, excel and powerpoint with the Ribbon and Tabs take up a fair amount of vertical real estate and looks especially bad on 16:9 or wider display because it gives you very little document space to work with. And in the end you have to zoom out which makes everything look small.

Everything except watching videos and movies, you should always go for a taller vertical space. FYI I am only referring to laptops only.

As 4K (3840x2160) is still 16:9 aspect, i.e., 1.77:1. Only go for that for work if you are going to buy a large 27 to 32 inch monitors. It is ideal for work because even if it is split screen, the documents on both sides will look large enough and wide enough.

[RADERFPV]

One thing that often gets overlooked as that the aspect ratio can have an impact on the keyboard layout you'll get. With 16:9, you usually get a Num pad because the deck is wider. With 16:10, for the same size screen otherwise, you often loose the Num pad because the deck becomes just not wide enough, especially on systems with less than 17" displays, of which most of us use. With 3:2, you most often lose the Num Pad altogether. As a software engineer, the Num pad isn't an option, it is a necessity. There's always a trade-off for everything.

[v.m.p]

Never thought that the Aspect Ratio would make such a difference. Thanks for the info bro. Keep enlightening us.

[charleschaimkohl]

Agree with you! I can't wait for more laptops to have 16 : 10 displays

[podge]

Well I'm happy to know that the laptop I'm planning to buy (lenovo legion 5 pro) has the recommended aspect ratio of 16/10. Plus it's 1440p @ 165Hz and has a peek brightness of 500 nits

[nicky]

Timing of this video couldn't be more precise. Just yesterday I searched '16:10 vs 16:9 aspect ratio' Thanks for making this video so now that I can buy the upcoming Lenovo Legion 5 pro without having doubts about its aspect ratio.

[ineedyoutostop]

I will never switch from 3:2. It's better for nearly everything, and for the few amount of movies/videos I watch on my laptop it's still really good. I don't game on my laptop much either but when I do it's usually older games or emulators, where the taller screen is actually BETTER because it's closer to 4:3.

[luuketaylor]

I'm a huge fan of 3:2 but I get what you're saying here! I prefer the depth for web content and because I feel 16:9 is too wide, despite matching the majority of video content.

[TiagoMorbusSa]

All of my screens, as well as all my laptops have been 16:9, but I always feel that laptops feel very cramped when compared to desktop monitors with the same ratio.
I have an easy time believing that a 16:10 ratio on laptops feels a lot better.

[rssrpcan]

Good video for beginners. But you gotta be careful with these comparisons. It's not only about aspect ratio. Resolution/Pixel density matters a lot to what you can show on the display. I believe the Surface Book has a higher resolution thus it can show almost double the rows in excel. It's not only because of the 3:2 display.

Since this video aims towards people who are not very familiar with this stuff, it's important to show them the hole story. I.e. I am pretty sure that a notebook with 16:9 but QHD screen can display more stuff than a 16:10 FHD - both horizontally and vertically. So the showed examples can be a little misleading especially for beginners.

But still - great video as always. Very thoughtful and different than the usual ones!

[RJTamm]

My preference will greatly depend on screen size too. For ultrabooks, give me the squarest screen possible. It's easy enough to watch movies on a small screen but the compromise that 16:9 presents for productivity and readability at 13.3" is way too severe in my experience in fact, the closer to a square the more very real sq inches you get at a given diagonal measurement. At 15.6"+ I don't mind 16:9 and in many cases prefer it.

[ifurbadiamurdad]

Just change taskbar placement to left to convert your 16:9 laptop to 5:3