IMAX IMAX large-format cinema system

What IMAX is

IMAX is a cinema system sold by IMAX Corporation, not a single technology. An auditorium earns the name by installing IMAX's projection hardware, sound system and screen geometry, and by playing content that IMAX has processed through its own remastering or camera programs. IMAX's results release for the quarter ended June 30, 2026 reports 1,876 IMAX systems in 91 countries and territories: 1,809 commercial multiplexes, 10 commercial destinations and 57 institutional locations. The company installed 38 systems in that quarter and carried a backlog of 421 systems.

That total hides a wide range of rooms. A system can be a 15/70mm film projector filling a screen about 18 m (59 ft) tall and 24 m (79 ft) wide, or a single laser projector in a multiplex auditorium with a screen near 60 ft wide. Enthusiasts therefore treat the logo as three or four formats under one brand, and use the slang term "LieMAX" for the smallest rooms (see IMAX laser vs xenon). Disney's Infinity Vision label and the home IMAX Enhanced program are separate things; this entry covers the theatrical system.

The projection tiers

The top tier is 15/70mm film: 65mm negative, 70mm prints, 15 perforations per frame, run horizontally through the projector. IMAX's 2025 annual report lists 52 film locations at December 31, 2025, up from 44 a year earlier. It calls the IMAX 70mm Film System a "sought-after" viewing experience and says it was used for re-releases of Interstellar and Sinners and for The Odyssey.

The second tier is the dual-projector laser system, marketed as IMAX with Laser and often called GT Laser. Engadget's 2016 hands-on describes two 4K DLP laser projectors with six DMD chips in total, built for screens up to 100 × 80 ft, and able to show an aspect ratio up to 1.43:1. SlashGear gives the AMC Metreon GT Laser screen as about 100 × 70 ft. The third tier is the single-projector laser, announced in April 2018 for 1.90:1 screens; SlashGear cites a typical size of about 60 × 32 ft. IMAX's annual report says only that it sells or leases "two different configurations" of its laser systems, so the dual/single split comes from press coverage, not a spec table.

The fourth, legacy tier is IMAX Digital with xenon lamps, introduced in 2008. IMAX no longer offers it for new signings. At the end of 2025 the network held 757 laser systems (607 a year earlier), 1,089 xenon systems (1,178 a year earlier) and 52 film systems.

Sound

IMAX's laser rollout added a 12-channel sound design with side and overhead channels; the April 2018 IMAX release for AMC describes it as "12-channel sound technology that incorporates new side and overhead channels." Wikipedia puts the standard IMAX layout at six channels, which makes the laser system a doubling. Engadget framed the 12 channels as a response to Dolby Atmos that avoids "40 individual channels." None of the pages I loaded state whether the IMAX 12-channel mix is object-based, so treat it as a channel layout until IMAX publishes otherwise.

Screen size and aspect ratio

IMAX's pitch is picture area. Its annual report says the 1.43:1 frame gives up to 67% more image than a standard screen, and the 1.90:1 frame up to 26% more. Wikipedia lists the standard 15/70 screen at 18 × 24 m, the largest operating screen (Leonberg, Germany, as of 2021) at 38 × 22 m, and digital multiplex screens at no more than 21.3 m (70 ft) wide. SlashGear lists a standard non-IMAX multiplex screen at about 40 × 16 ft. The full explanation of the ratios is in IMAX expanded aspect ratio, and the camera program behind the content is Filmed For IMAX.

Where the network is growing

Between June 30, 2025 and June 30, 2026 the network went from 1,821 to 1,876 systems, a gain of 55, and commercial multiplexes rose from 1,750 to 1,809. In the second quarter of 2026 IMAX installed 38 systems (18 under sales arrangements and 20 under traditional JRSA deals), signed 36 more, and ended with the 421-system backlog. The laser rollout is the engine. Wikipedia dates the first dual-4K installation to December 2014 at the Cineplex Scotiabank Theatre in Toronto, and IMAX's April 2018 AMC release covered 87 AMC locations and said agreements had been signed for more than 150 laser systems worldwide. By the end of 2025 the filing counted 757 laser systems in the network and a further 216 new and 131 upgrade laser systems in the backlog, so the laser total looks set to overtake the xenon total of 1,089 as the backlog installs (my reading of the filing's table).

IMAX vs Dolby Cinema and Infinity Vision

Dolby Cinema pairs a dual-4K Dolby Vision laser projector with Dolby Atmos, and Engadget notes it cannot match IMAX's 1.43:1 frame. Infinity Vision is a Disney certification for premium large-format rooms, so it sets minimum standards instead of supplying equipment. The three-way comparison for 2026 is in Infinity Vision vs IMAX vs Dolby Cinema, and the home-theater take on the brand is in We Have IMAX at Home.

How to tell which IMAX you are booking

The label "IMAX 70mm" settles it: that is film. "IMAX with Laser" is less specific, because it covers both the dual-projector and single-projector systems. The screen shape is the quickest clue, since a 1.43:1 screen is taller and squarer than a 1.90:1 one. Some theaters have both film and digital projectors, and IMAX's theater finder does not list projector details for every showing, so confirm with the theater before you pay for a seat.