HDMI Converter Recommendations

[Outland]

Does anyone use an HDMI source with their old TV?

I use a DVD player, but playing DVD-Rs is annoying because some sources are only available online these days etc. The old DVD player is also starting to skip.

The problem I see is that the aspect ratio is incorrect with the cheap converters. The ones I see on Amazon fill the screen with the signal, so 720p 16:9 becomes 480i 4:3.

Is there a converter out there that will let a PC output a proper 4:3 signal through HDMI so 16:9 content becomes letterboxed and 4:3 content fills the screen? My laptop will output a 4:3 signal to a monitor just fine but it appears that wouldn't work with an HDMI converter.