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flexible's avatar
flexible
Channel Surfer
6 years ago
Solved

Why is my image aspect ratio suddenly the wrong size?

Last night for the first time when I switched to the Roku, the picture aspect ratio had suddenly changed so that the picture did not fit the full screen as it had previously. The image size went from 27 ½” w x 15” h to 20 1/2”w x15” h. The change affects all Roku screens and all Roku channels and their videos.

In contrast, when I watch my regular tv channels which don’t use the Roku, the images fit the screen properly. I have done:

  • Soft and hard device resets
  • Manually setting display to 1080p and 720p
  • Updating software (I checked, already up to date)
  • Powering the Samsung TV, cable box, and Roku off and on 

However, the problem remains. The Roku 1 options do not provide the ability to directly change the picture size. Everything else seems to work fine on the Roku – for example, I can stream, change channels, etc. I would appreciate any suggestions to fix this.

app playback
aspect ratio
Roku 1
  • flexible's avatar
    flexible
    6 years ago

    Tanner,

    Thanks for your additional response. I was finally able to get the Roku working properly. It turns out the cable box was using an HDMI port. I switched the connections and attached the Roku to the cable box port and the cable box to the Roku port, rebooted both and both are now working properly. Do you have any idea what happened here? Thanks again so much.

    Flexible

32 Replies

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  • Nyeshaaaa's avatar
    Nyeshaaaa
    Newbie
    3 years ago

    I had this problem just now. I fixed it. Went to tv picture settings, click hdmi, changed hdmi picture setting to “normal” then scrolled down a little and clicked “apply to alll”. Helped mine straighten out. Even though I do not use HDMI, it still fixed mine! 

  • BBig's avatar
    BBig
    Newbie
    5 years ago

    I unplugged mine and then plugged it back in. Fixed it. I do have to do this every time. I am also wondering if the actual size of the TV makes a difference, my 55 inch changes but not the 43 inch.

    • MCRodgers's avatar
      MCRodgers
      Reel Rookie
      4 years ago

      I am also having the same issue. However, even though it seemingly resolves when the Roku device is rebooted, when the tv is turned off and back on the next day, the screen aspect ratio is screwed up again. 

  • motonick24's avatar
    motonick24
    Newbie
    6 years ago

    Just throwing this out there in case any of these solutions aren't solving your problem. 

    I've got a Roku attached to a Vizio TV in my office. Couldn't find any settings on either the Roku or TV menu's that made a difference. My wife stumbled upon a button on the remote that actually controlled the screens zoom level (Wide, Narrow, Zoom, etc...) and that ultimately was the fix. It also made sense as to why the problem popped up in the first place because the kids were probably pushing buttons. Frustrating that there is a physical button on the remote that controls a setting, but we couldn't find the same setting in the menu... 

    Hope this helps somebody.

    • JL2022's avatar
      JL2022
      Newbie
      4 years ago

      Look for an "Aspect" button on your TV remote.  We had the same sudden enlargement problem.  Someone must have bumped this button and it had switched to "cinema" setting.  We put it back to a normal setting and all is well!

       

    • AHW's avatar
      AHW
      Reel Rookie
      6 years ago

      Similar solution.  After flailing unsuccessfully with Roku settings for an hour, plugging and unplugging, I found that the same problem persisted with an Apple TV box, meaning the problem was the TV, not the Roku. On our remote, there's a button called "Format".  Toggling it changes the display ratio on the screen -- within seconds, the image was displaying correctly.  

      • carljong2003's avatar
        carljong2003
        Newbie
        5 years ago

        Just wanted to add there was a setting on the TV that extended the picture from a small aspect ratio.

    • kuRo_Joe's avatar
      kuRo_Joe
      Newbie
      6 years ago

      I did all the troubleshooting to no avail. It was indeed the picture size button on the TV remote. Thanks for this response! It is curious that was nothing in the TV menu for the same fix and that the aspect ratios were different on the Roku and the regular TV channels. This was driving me CRAZY! The simplest fix took the longest time after so much headache.

  • RokuTannerD's avatar
    RokuTannerD
    Retired Moderator
    6 years ago

    flexible  Thanks for the note here. I took a look and no updates have been pushed out to your model of Roku device during the time period you described. A couple things to try that should help clear up the issue: 

    1. Remove the HDMI cable from your Roku device and your TV. Swap the ends of the cable and reconnect it to your TV. 

    2. Replace the HDMI cable that connects your device to your TV. 

    3. Connect the Roku device to a different HDMI port on the TV. 

    4. When the Roku device is connected, try adjusting picture options on your TV. Look for any options to adjust the picture mode, aspect ratio, or other settings. I would also recommend contacting your TV manufacturer to inquire further and see if they have any recommendations or troubleshooting to provide. 

    5. As a last resort troubleshooting step, you might try performing a factory reset on the device from Settings>System>Advanced system setting>Factory reset. This will clear all data, channels, and login information from the device, and allow you to set it up again from scratch. 

    Give these steps a try and let us know what you discover! 

     

    Thanks,

    Tanner

    • flexible's avatar
      flexible
      Channel Surfer
      6 years ago

      Thanks so much for your reply. Suggestions Nos. 1 and 2 didn't work. Regarding No. 3, the TV only has one HDMI port. Regarding No. 4, the picture is fine when I watch tv through my cable tv provider, just not  the roku which has no screen size settings. I don't want to change the screen size using the tv controls because that will mess up the picture for my regular cable tv viewing which, as indicated, is fine. No. 5, the factory reset, didn't work.  Any other suggestions? Thanks.

      • RokuTannerD's avatar
        RokuTannerD
        Retired Moderator
        6 years ago

        flexible Is your cable box also connected to the TV via HDMI? If not, it could be the HDMI port on the TV experiencing an issue. I would recommend trying to see what other display settings you can adjust on the TV. If that still isn't resolving the issue, I would recommend connecting the Roku to a different TV to test it, and see if it displays normally. If it does, this may also point to an issue with the TV itself. 

        Keep us posted from there! 

         

        Thanks,

        Tanner