Nonletterboxed

Nonletterboxed refers to the display of video content on a screen that fills the entire screen area without any black bars. This is in contrast to letterboxing, which adds black bars to the top and bottom of the image to maintain a specific aspect ratio, or pillarboxing, which adds black bars to the sides. When video is presented nonletterboxed, it means the aspect ratio of the content perfectly matches the aspect ratio of the display.

This can occur in several scenarios. For instance, if a video is originally produced in a 16:9 aspect ratio and is displayed on a 16:9 screen, it will appear nonletterboxed. Similarly, if a video is formatted to be displayed on a screen with a different aspect ratio, but the content has been specifically cropped or stretched to fill that screen, it can also be considered nonletterboxed. However, stretching can distort the image, which is often undesirable.

The concept is closely tied to aspect ratio compatibility between the source material and the display device. Modern displays, especially televisions and computer monitors, often default to filling the screen. Users may choose to play content nonletterboxed to maximize the visible image area, though this can sometimes lead to parts of the image being cut off if the original aspect ratio was significantly different. The term is commonly used in discussions about video playback and display settings.