Vista - 1080p hdmi > tv out shows black bars

I got a Sharp TV, 32" LC32GP3U-B (1080p full). I connected an hdmi cable from my laptop (1080p certified) to the TV.

BLACK BAR TV OUTPUT PROBLEM

I do not get the full screen output on my TV when connected via HDMI. The TV itself works fine in full screen (1080p). I DO get full screen output on any Linux o/s I test it with, via hdmi such as Ubuntu. However, I prefer to use Vista instead in order to use MCE and the plug-ins I have (Netflix, Joost, etc plus MCE remote). I duplicated this before and after upgrading to Vista SP1. I've duplicated this with many WHQL certified NVidia drivers as well. Literally about 10 different driver versions for my 8400M GT card. I cannot figure out why it is not showing full screen output, but I can confirm this happens in Vista only, not Linux (did not and will not test in XP). My index score in Vista is 5.3.

Nvidia panel shows proper 1920x1080 resolution.

Some drivers I've tried and duplicated the same problem:

174.93
175.12
167.43
163.75

Also, my TV settings are certainly proper since I do get full screen output in Linux and general TV viewing. I did try several new HDMI cables too, but thats irrelevant since it works fine in Linux.

Summary of settings / methods to fix the problem:
- 1920x1080p resolution (59 and 60Hz, same black bar problem)
- various Nvidia drivers
- Nvidia nTune overclocked (but keeps resetting back to factory on reboot)
- disabled aero interface in Vista

Hardware / Software:
Sharp TV 32" LC32GP3U-B (1080p) supposedly called a "gamer tv" by Sharp themselves
Nvidia 8400M GT (1080p)
Vista x64 Ultimate with SP1
Vista Codec Pack + 64bit components
DirectX10

Firmware:
http://www.sharpusa.com/products/Typ...86,127,00.html

AQUOS D64U Series Version S0801101 Firmware

My model is not D64U. I tried it anyway, tv did not recognize the file.

Called Sharp, asked me to call back Monday for an update on this issue. Go figure.

Hey, Chad, have you obtained the official drivers for your laptop video card *from your laptop manufacturer*? Some laptop manufacturers have limited their machines to only use their own drivers....

I found a not so great solution to get proper full screen. The *only* way I can get full screen is by setting the TV's refresh rate to 23Hz within the Nvidia control panel. Setting it to 59 or 60Hz will result in black bars. Setting it to 23Hz however results in not so great quality, even on DVD.

Any ideas from here?

PS: Sony does not provide 64bit support/drivers at all. I get the drivers from laptopvideo2go.com

Right now I'm using drivers 174.82