Overscan crops a few per cent from the edges of the image and scales what remains to fill the screen. It softens every pixel and it exists for a reason that no longer applies.
Why it exists at all
Analogue broadcast could not guarantee a clean edge, so displays hid the outer few per cent. Digital sources have no such problem, and the habit survives as a default on some equipment.
What it costs
Sharpness, everywhere. The image is resampled rather than displayed one pixel to one pixel, and the result is a picture that looks slightly soft with no identifiable cause — which is what makes it hard to spot.
What to look for in the menu
“Just scan”, “1:1 pixel mapping”, “screen fit”, “full pixel” or “native”. The name varies by manufacturer and the setting is often per input, so it may need turning off more than once.
The test
Display something with fine text near the edge of the frame — a menu, a subtitle, a channel logo. If the edges are cut off, or if the text sharpens visibly when you change the setting, it was on.
This does not replace the manufacturer's own instructions. Every brightness figure, contrast ratio, power rating and load capacity on this page is reported from the manufacturer's own documentation, with its unit written as published, and named as such — none of it is measured here. A brightness figure that is not expressed in ANSI or ISO lumens is reported as the manufacturer expressed it and is never converted, because no conversion exists.
Questions people actually ask
How do I know if it is on?
A picture that looks slightly soft with no obvious cause, or on-screen text from a source that runs off the edges. Some displays name the fix "just scan", "1:1 pixel mapping", "screen fit" or "full pixel", which is why it is easy to miss in a menu.
Does it affect projectors too?
Yes, and the same setting exists under similar names. On any digital source it is worth turning off; there is no modern content for which cropping the edges is an improvement.
Last reviewed 4 September 2026