2560x1600 resolution
2560 × 1600
WQXGA · 8:5 · 4,096,000 pixels · 4.10 megapixels · Laptop
What 2560x1600 is
The 16:10 counterpart to 1440p, common on larger laptops and on monitors aimed at design work.
The numbers
| Width | 2,560 px |
| Height | 1,600 px |
| Aspect ratio | 8:5 |
| Total pixels | 4,096,000 |
| Megapixels | 4.10 MP |
| Compared with 1080p | 1.98× the pixels |
| Compared with 4K UHD | 0.49× the pixels |
What 2560x1600 costs to move and to store
A frame is width × height × three bytes of colour, before any compression touches it. At 2560 × 1600 that is 12.29 MB per frame, and video is frames per second:
| Frame rate | Uncompressed | An hour of it |
|---|---|---|
| 24 fps | 295 MB/s | 1.06 TB |
| 30 fps | 369 MB/s | 1.33 TB |
| 60 fps | 737 MB/s | 2.65 TB |
| 120 fps | 1.47 GB/s | 5.31 TB |
Nobody ships that. It is the number codecs exist to get away from — a streamed 2560x1600 feed runs at a few tens of megabits, which is a compression ratio of several hundred to one, and it is why a still frame from a stream looks worse than a photograph of the same scene.
How close you have to sit for 2560x1600 to be worth it
The eye resolves about one arcminute of detail. Past a certain distance the pixels merge whatever the panel does, and a higher resolution stops being visible rather than stopping being better. That distance is the pixel pitch divided by the tangent of one arcminute:
| Screen | Pixels merge beyond |
|---|---|
| 13.3 in monitor or laptop | 0.38 m (1.3 ft) |
| 15.6 in monitor or laptop | 0.45 m (1.5 ft) |
| 24 in monitor or laptop | 0.69 m (2.3 ft) |
| 27 in monitor or laptop | 0.78 m (2.6 ft) |
| 32 in monitor or laptop | 0.93 m (3 ft) |
| 43 in television | 1.24 m (4.1 ft) |
| 55 in television | 1.59 m (5.2 ft) |
| 65 in television | 1.88 m (6.2 ft) |
| 75 in television | 2.17 m (7.1 ft) |
Sitting further back than the figure for your screen, 2560x1600 and the next resolution down look the same. That is the whole argument about 4K televisions in ordinary living rooms: the resolution is real and the seating position usually is not close enough to show it.
Pixel density at common screen sizes
A resolution on its own says nothing about sharpness — the same 2560x1600 panel is dense on a laptop and coarse on a television. Density is the diagonal in pixels divided by the diagonal in inches.
| Diagonal | Pixel density | |
|---|---|---|
| 13.3 in | 227 PPI | High density — the OS will scale the interface |
| 15.6 in | 194 PPI | Sharp |
| 24 in | 126 PPI | Comfortable at native size |
| 27 in | 112 PPI | Comfortable at native size |
| 32 in | 94 PPI | Coarse — individual pixels are visible at desk distance |
Other laptop resolutions
| Resolution | Name | Ratio | Megapixels |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1280×800 | WXGA | 8:5 | 1.02 MP |
| 1366×768 | HD (laptop) | 16:9 | 1.05 MP |
| 1440×900 | WXGA+ | 8:5 | 1.30 MP |
| 1600×900 | HD+ | 16:9 | 1.44 MP |
| 1920×1200 | WUXGA | 8:5 | 2.30 MP |
| 2880×1800 | Retina 15-inch | 8:5 | 5.18 MP |
| 3200×1800 | QHD+ | 16:9 | 5.76 MP |
| 3024×1964 | Laptop 14-inch HiDPI | 3:2 | 5.94 MP |
Closest in total pixels
- 3840×1080 — DFHD
- 2360×1640 — Tablet 10.9-inch
- 2560×1440 — QHD (1440p)
- 1440×3200 — QHD+ phone
- 1284×2778 — Phone large 19.5:9
- 3440×1440 — UWQHD
- 2048×1536 — Tablet 4:3
- 2880×1800 — Retina 15-inch
Frequently asked questions
What is the aspect ratio of 2560x1600?
8:5.
How many pixels is 2560x1600?
4,096,000 pixels, or 4.10 megapixels.
Is 2560x1600 higher resolution than 1080p?
2560x1600 has 1.98× as many pixels as a 1920×1080 frame.
What size screen suits 2560x1600?
Pixel density is what decides that. 227 PPI at 13.3 in, 194 PPI at 15.6 in, 126 PPI at 24 in, 112 PPI at 27 in, 94 PPI at 32 in. Below roughly 110 PPI text starts to look coarse; above about 200 the operating system will usually scale the interface rather than render it at native size.