In this guide I explain what the most common screen resolutions are and other aspects that you should know about them.
In this guide I am going to explain to you What is screen resolution and what are the most common ones that exist?. In addition to showing you how many pixels each resolution has in each case, I also show you the name that is usually given in the market. As you read this guide, you will come across acronyms that are very common among manufacturers. Knowing what I show you here will help you, among other things, to know what the screen resolution of your mobile or the one you should choose if you are going to buy a television. Do not miss it!
What is screen resolution?
Screen resolution is a term frequently used in the world of technology. Make reference to the number of pixels a screen can display in its entirety. You should know that pixels are the smallest unit of light on a panel. They all combine to form visual images, so the more pixels on a screen, the greater its ability to display details and content clearly.
Screen resolution is a value subject to other important concepts. One of them is the form factor, which indicates the ratio between the width and height of a screen. There are different form factors, such as 16:9 or 4:3, which influence the aspect ratio of the displayed image. A wider form factor, such as 16:9, is commonly used in televisions and monitors, while a squarer form factor, such as 4:3, was common in older tube displays. Later we will see that this detail is relevant and that it has a lot to do with the screen resolution.
Finally, another concept related to screen resolution is Pixel Per Inch (PPP or DPI), which indicates the pixel density on a screen. The higher the DPI, the sharper the image. This value is calculated taking into account the resolution of the panel and its dimensions. It is a specification that has become relevant especially on mobile devices, where brands strive to offer an optimal visual experience.
How is screen resolution calculated?
To calculate screen resolution, you must multiply the number of pixels in the width by the number of pixels in the height of the screen. For example, on a 1920×1080 pixel screen, the width is 1920 and the height is 1080. If we multiply these values, we obtain a resolution of 2,073,600 pixels in total. This figure is commonly expressed as Full HD and is used in many televisions and monitors. It is also known as 1080pin reference to the number of pixels high that the panel is.
These are the most common screen resolutions
Before continuing, it is important to emphasize that screen resolutions do not have to be based on a defined standard. Before we talked about that Full HD resolution is one that is 1920 pixels wide and 1080 high. But a manufacturer can modify those values as you wishwith a resolution of 2000 x 1080 pixels. The possibilities are endless.
However, although each brand can create panels with custom resolutions, The usual thing is to stick to the values that the market has largely accepted. Generally, we have HD resolutions, which usually have an aspect ratio of 16:9. On the other hand, there are also VGA resolutions, with a typical aspect ratio of 4:3.
The most popular HD resolutions are these:
| Tradename | Pixels | More information |
| HD, 720p or HD Ready | 1280×720 | Used in low-end televisions and projectors. It is the one that was included in the first panoramic flat screen televisions. Suitable for basic content and games on older game consoles. |
| HD+ | 1600×900 | An intermediate variant between 720p and 1080p resolutions. Found on some mid-range laptops and monitors. Offers improved visual quality compared to HD Ready. |
| Full HD, FHD or 1080p | 1920×1080 | Widely used in televisions, monitors, and mobile devices. Ideal for multimedia content, games and everyday use. It is a resolution that provides panoramic images. |
| QHD, 2K or 1440p | 2560×1440 | It is a resolution higher than Full HD that provides greater clarity. It is not very common in televisions, since these devices have gone from Full HD to 4K. However, it is easy to find PC monitors with this resolution, as well as laptops that use it in their panels. |
| Ultra HD, UHD or 4K | 3840×2160 | Increasingly common in televisions, monitors, and cameras. Provides exceptional image quality for HD and 4K content. Soon, 4K will become the standard, to the detriment of Full HD. |
| UHD+ or 5K | 5120×2880 | It is a very rare resolution found mainly in high-end projectors and monitors. |
| 8K UltraHD | 7680×4320 | Available on latest generation televisions. This resolution is proposed as the standard of the future, although there is still little content that allows it to be taken advantage of. |
For their part, the best-known VGA resolutions are these:
| Tradename | Pixels | More information |
| QVGA | 320×240 | Old screen resolution that was used in monitors and mobile phones in the past. Nowadays, it is difficult, if not impossible, for you to find a device with this resolution. |
| VGA | 640×480 | An old resolution that was often used in tube monitors and projectors. Suitable for basic content and retro games. As in the case of QVGA, it is very rare to find a device with this resolution. |
| SVGA or Super VGA | 800×600 | Used on older monitors and projectors. Offers an improvement in image quality compared to VGA. It can be considered the precursor of HD. |
| XGA, Extended VGA or Extended VGA | 1024×768 | It is still found in some projectors and monitors. Provides sufficient resolution for office content and web browsing. |
| SXGA or Super XGA | 1280×1024 | Present in some monitors and industrial equipment. Offers higher resolution for specific applications. It is not that uncommon to find it on office monitors that still maintain the 4:3 aspect ratio. |
| UXGA or UltraXGA | 1600×1200 | Used in high-end monitors and professional equipment. Suitable for graphic design and image editing. It is normal to find it on monitors of 15 inches or more. |
| QXGA or Quad XGA | 2048×1536 | It was common in high-end devices and workstations. Ideal for tasks that require a large amount of screen real estate and sharper details. |
| WUXGA | 1920×1200 | In this case, it is a resolution similar to Full HD, but with a 16:10 aspect ratio. Thus, it does not exactly conform to the ratio of HD resolutions and achieves an even more panoramic appearance. |
In addition to these screen resolutions, there are others that manufacturers have implemented moving away from the limits imposed by the standards. For example, some of Apple’s MacBooks have a resolution of 2880 × 1800 pixels which they called Retina. As you can see, each brand plays a little with the names to make them attractive to the public. I recommend you take a look at the guide on how change the screen resolution of your mobile to see the options you have in this regard.
