The player or television may be stretching a picture to fill a differently shaped screen. Stretching changes proportions, while zooming enlarges and crops. Restore an original, normal or aspect-preserving fit mode before judging whether the source itself has incorrect geometry.
Use simple shapes to diagnose
A circular studio logo, a football or a close-up face can reveal distortion quickly. If the interface is correctly shaped but one video looks wrong, inspect that player’s aspect setting. If everything on an HDMI input is distorted, check the television’s input sizing and the box’s display configuration.
Distinguish filling from fitting
Fit preserves the whole image and may leave bars. Fill can crop the image to cover the screen. Stretch changes width and height independently. Menu names vary, so judge the result rather than trusting a label alone. A setting called wide may be appropriate for one source but incorrect for another.
Avoid permanent compensation
Do not leave a distorted setting active to correct one badly flagged programme, because the next channel may then look wrong. If a source repeatedly needs manual aspect correction, note its name and the working setting for support. Return to an aspect-preserving default for ordinary viewing and compare another known source.
