Digital Home Thoughts: Philips Agrees That Wider Is Better

"Dubbed the Cinema 21:9, this TV's screen measures 56 inches diagonally with a native resolution of 2560x1080. An auto-formatting function can resize 16:9 material to fill the screen, or—thankfully—this function can be disabled to display everything in its native aspect ratio, sort of like an anamorphic lens being moved into and out of position on a front projector. "

I've always preferred widescreen to formats that have been modified to fit my television. Aside from the fact that most movies are filmed with an eye to widescreen, it provides a much more compelling experience. Yes, I even watched widescreen format movies on a 13" kitchen TV. Philips seems to be taking this to the extreme by releasing a TV that has an aspect ratio of 2.33:1, just kissing the widest ratio you will ever need. The rest of the specifications look typical with it capable of 1080p resolution and 56 inches of LCD goodness. But why, oh why would you want Ambilight? I've never understood manufacturers that are infatuated with extra lights on their products. I have a desktop computer case that has blue LEDs that rivals the Luxor Hotel spotlight! Especially for a TV where all I would want to see is the movie itself, not the poorly painted wall its mounted on. Does anyone buy into mood lighting?