{"id":870,"date":"2013-01-24T19:52:00","date_gmt":"2013-01-24T11:52:00","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/vm-officeblogs.cloudapp.net\/2013\/01\/24\/powerpoint-2013-widescreen-presentations\/"},"modified":"2024-09-13T12:31:48","modified_gmt":"2024-09-13T19:31:48","slug":"powerpoint-2013-widescreen-presentations","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.microsoft.com\/en-us\/microsoft-365\/blog\/2013\/01\/24\/powerpoint-2013-widescreen-presentations\/","title":{"rendered":"PowerPoint 2013: Widescreen Presentations"},"content":{"rendered":"
The rise of high definition (HD) brings the widescreen aspect ratio of 16:9 to televisions, computer screens, and projectors in homes and workplaces all around the globe.\u00a0 And yet, there are bazillions of PowerPoint slides crafted in the relatively square, 4:3 shape. There is some logic to this: Many devices are still square shaped, such as classic projectors and monitors, certain touch computers \u2013 I\u2019m sure there\u2019s even an old phone somewhere out there. Widescreen, however, is skyrocketing<\/a>. It\u2019s finding its way onto most laptops and desktops, many modern projectors, nearly every TV on the planet, and, most recently, our own beautiful Surface<\/a> device. Now, it\u2019s taking over PowerPoint, too:<\/p>\n <\/a><\/p>\n Widescreen, also known as 16:9, HDTV, 720p, 1080p, 13.333\u201dx7.5\u201d, among other names, is the new default aspect ratio in the new PowerPoint. To make your experience with the new dimensions pleasant, we\u2019ve built a brand new set of themes specifically targeting this aspect ratio, and we\u2019ve improved our conversion code so that you can easily make the switch to widescreen from other aspect ratios.<\/p>\n PowerPoint and widescreen were made for each other. Let\u2019s take a quick look at the old standard (4:3) aspect ratio compared to the new widescreen (16:9) aspect ratio:<\/p>\n <\/a><\/p>\n In the widescreen shape, there\u2019s lots of horizontal space. The moment you start building a presentation<\/a> in widescreen, you\u2019ll start to notice some very cool things about the format. In widescreen there\u2019s space for all kinds of content, pictures, and even design elements \u2013 content that flows naturally across the slides:<\/p>\n <\/a><\/p>\n <\/a><\/p>\n It\u2019s perfectly fine to have a presentation in the 4:3 format. If you present on a widescreen TV or projector, PowerPoint fills in the extra space with black bars on the left and right of the screen, so the projection space appears smaller:<\/p>\n <\/a><\/p>\n If you want to make use of the extra space, switching between aspect ratios works better than ever in the new PowerPoint. Simply go to the Design tab and click the Slide Size<\/strong> drop down:<\/p>\n <\/a><\/p>\n On the dropdown menu, select Widescreen<\/strong>, and you\u2019re on your way. All new PowerPoint themes<\/a> have designs that are specifically crafted for both 4:3 and 16:9 which are automatically applied when you change slide size. This lets you switch between aspect ratios without stretching the background and design elements, and it prevents you from running into annoying layout issues:<\/p>\n <\/a><\/p>\n When it comes to scaling your content from 4:3 to 16:9, each object\u2019s dimensions stay proportional, and related items stay together so that your message retains as much of its original meaning and beauty as possible:<\/p>\n <\/a><\/p>\n <\/a><\/p>\n If you\u2019re working with a widescreen presentation and you encounter a 4:3 projector, you have a couple of options. One option is to simply start your slideshow<\/a>, and PowerPoint will letterbox your presentation \u2013 that is, PowerPoint will add black bars to the top and bottom of your slides.\u00a0 With letterboxing, you end up with something like this:<\/p>\n <\/a><\/p>\n You might think, \u201cIt\u2019s not really using all the space.\u201d You might even try converting from widescreen to standard, which is your second option, and if you are using a PowerPoint 2013 or higher theme, you\u2019ll get a premium experience. However, we on the PowerPoint team have found the widescreen format so much better in terms of layout that we find it hard to switch to 4:3. Just look at how well the content is balanced in the 16:9 slide below. It naturally forms regions of interest right around the areas where it makes sense to place content:<\/p>\nWidescreen is amazing for presentations<\/h3>\n
What should I do with all my old presentations?<\/h3>\n
Working with classic (4:3) projectors<\/h3>\n