Home Theater Projectors
Jul 28, 2010 12:00 PM,
By Bennett Liles
Brighter pictures, quiet cooling, and high-tech color tweaks pack the silver screen to go home.
BenQ W600
The movement toward home-centered entertainment has produced some personal theater systems that until recently might have appeared suited only to the ultrawealthy, but imaging technology, longer-lasting lamps, and more sophisticated picture tweaks are bringing big-screen performance to the masses. It was only natural for home projection to make the same leap that affordably priced surround-sound systems had already accomplished, and the marriage of the two was a sure thing. Newer is smaller and quieter, but the same color adjustment presets, lens features, image sharpness, and light intensity that first made their way into the big venue and corporate projector lines have tapped the home cinema market with more user-friendly interfaces and automatic adjustments. The models covered here are typical of the march of new projection technology from the movie theater to the living room.
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For those who like to travel light or need a home theater projector that is economical and simple to set up, the X1261 from Acer is a good candidate offering DLP imaging at a native 1024×768 resolution and going up to 1680×1050. At 3000 ANSI lumens with a contrast ratio of 3700:1 and a 4000 hour lamp life, the X1261 presents either a 4:3 or 16:9 aspect ratio with auto and manual ±40-degree vertical keystone correction and wall color compensation. The unit has an internal 2W loudspeaker, and the fan noise level is rated at 26dB. There is also a computer sound input on a stereo mini jack. Video signal inputs include analog RGB on a 15-pin D-Sub, composite on RCA, and S-Video on mini DIN. It is Nvidia 3D Vision-ready with 3x color wheel rotation speed, closed captioning, auto-ceiling-mount correction, Acer ColorBoost II+ technology to improve optical color performance, and automatic safety shutdown.
Targeted specifically at the home theater market, the BenQW600 DLP projector offers just the features needed for an easy installation and setup with 2600 ANSI lumens of brightness and a 3000:1 contrast ratio. The unit can produce a diagonal image size from 26in. to 300in. in a native 720p resolution and 16:9 aspect ratio with 3:4 selectable. Its 230W lamp is designed to last 2500 hours in normal mode and up to 4000 hours in economic mode. For this display, the W600 can input video signals in analog RGB, composite, component, S-Video, and HDMI 1.3. It also offers RS-232 remote control, uses 290W (1W in standby), and weighs only 6lbs.
Casio Green Slim XJ-A245
The CasioGreen Slim XJ-A245 combines a blue laser, green light converted from the blue laser, and red light from an LED through a DLP chip to produce 2500 ANSI lumens with consistent brightness and color over 2000 hours of use. All of Casio’s Green Slim line of projectors can operate in four user-selectable color modes to suit content and projection conditions for a WXGA image on a diagonal screen size from 18in. to 300in. Video inputs are RGB, HDMI, composite, and component. RS-232 control is possible with the addition of an optional serial conversion cable.
Home Theater Projectors
Jul 28, 2010 12:00 PM,
By Bennett Liles
Brighter pictures, quiet cooling, and high-tech color tweaks pack the silver screen to go home.
Digital Projection M-Vision Cine LED series
Introduced at CEDIA Expo 2009, the M-Vision Cine LED series from Digital Projection is a 3-chip DLP platform with an estimated 60,000-hour lifespan and 1920×1080 image resolution in a 16:9 aspect ratio format. Inputs include one VGA, two HDMI 1.3, component, composite, and S-Video. Capable of remote operation through both infrared and RS-232, the projector produces less than 30dB fan noise and uses 350W power. It will fit a number of different lenses suited for specific applications, and it can be mounted front/rear on a table top or front/rear ceiling with adjustable front and rear feet. It weighs in at 33lbs.
Epson PowerLite Home Cinema 750HD
Adding a home theater solution to Epson’s large stable of projectors, the PowerLite Home Cinema 705HD uses 3LCD technology to produce 2500 lumens of white and color light output with an energy-efficient 200W E-TORL lamp that lasts up to 5000 hours in Eco mode. The unit’s native resolution is 1280×800 with a contrast ratio up to 3000:1 in a 16:10 aspect ratio. Among the signals it can input are component, S-Video, composite, and HDMI, along with a USB port. The 244W power consumption dives to 3W in standby mode, and the 34dB fan noise decreases to 29dB in Eco mode. With manual zoom and focus, the lens provides an optical zoom ratio of 1.0 to 1.2.
Hitachi CP-X3010
With polysilicon active-matrix imaging, the HitachiCP-X3010 has instant on and off and a 2000:1 contrast ratio (using Active Iris) with the 210W UHP lamp producing 3000 ANSI lumens brightness. The projector has two RGB inputs and one RGB output, along with component, composite, and S-Video inputs. The RGB resolution is 1024×768 with a native 4:3 aspect ratio, and the unit is 16:9-compatible. It also features an audio pass-through with two 8W loudspeakers and weighs 7.9lbs.
InFocus SP8602
The InFocusSP8602 produces an image up to 300in. diagonal in 16:9 with a native resolution of 1920×1080 and brightness of 1300 lumens. The six-segment color wheel and 10-bit video processing provide vibrant color from HDMI, component, composite, and S-Video sources. Using the Director 2 software application, the RS-232 port provides remote control. There is also a sleep timer, and the LiteTouch Touchsense keypad allows for local control. The unit uses 260W power and weighs about 16.5lbs.
Home Theater Projectors
Jul 28, 2010 12:00 PM,
By Bennett Liles
Brighter pictures, quiet cooling, and high-tech color tweaks pack the silver screen to go home.
JVC DLA-RS35
A top performer among D-ILA home theater projectors, the DLA-RS35 from JVC produces a native contrast ratio of 70,000:1 and has a motorized 2X zoom lens with 16-step aperture and an HQV Reon-VX video processor. The unit can be tweaked using screen adjustment mode and its color management features, and it includes 120Hz Clear Motion Drive. The unit is very quiet at only 19dB, and it offers a motorized lens cover. Native resolution is 1920×1080, and the video inputs include two HDMI, component, S-Video, and composite.
LG Electronics CF3D
The new CF3D projector from LG Electronics offers a brightness rating of 2500 ANSI lumens with a contrast ratio of 7000:1. For smooth motion, it provides a total TruMotion refresh rate of 120Hz. Dual Engine and 3D Auto Picture Calibration further enhance images, while onscreen color banding is reduced with HDMI upscaling. The unit includes two HDMI 1.3 inputs and a USB port, and images are displayed in full HD 1080p (1920×1080) resolution. Availability is expected in August.
Marantz VP-15S1
Building on the die-cast aluminum chassis of the VP-121 series, Marantz has added fully sealed, all-glass optics from Konica Minolta and new filters in the 9000 RPM color wheel to produce crisp, sharp pictures on the VP-15S1 1-chip DLP projector. Other features include two lens options, a mechanical lens shift to allow above-screen mounting, and remote-controlled operation on RS-232. Input capability includes component, composite, S-Video, RGB, and two HDMI 1.3 connections, and power consumption is below 350W. The VP-15S1 can project a 1080p image from 70in. to 250in. measured diagonally.
Mitsubishi HC6800
The 1500-maximum-lumen MitsubishiHC6800 LCD projector provides a typical contrast ratio of 30,000:1 with auto iris operation. The projector has a screen resolution of 1920×1080 and an image up to 300in. diagonal using a 1.6:1 powered zoom. It employs a Reon-VX chip with 10-bit calculation to upconvert DVD and other signals to the unit’s native resolution. Video signals can include PC video on a 15-pin D-sub, HDMI 1.3, composite, component, and S-Video. There is ±15-step vertical keystone correction and a 9-pin D-sub RS-232 connector for connecting the projector to control systems. The 250W power consumption drops to 7W in standby mode, and the whole unit weighs 16.5lbs. The 2:3 pulldown and 24p direct output ensure smooth Blu-ray films with accurate reproduction, and a motorized horizontal and vertical lens shift allows the HC6800 to custom fit a wide array of home theater designs.
Home Theater Projectors
Jul 28, 2010 12:00 PM,
By Bennett Liles
Brighter pictures, quiet cooling, and high-tech color tweaks pack the silver screen to go home.
Optoma HD20
Introduced last fall by Optoma, the HD20 fits an economy slot with impressive performance. The single 0.65in. 1080p DMD DLP imaging, using a Texas Instruments chipset and BrilliantColor technology, produces 1700 ANSI lumens with a contrast ratio of 4000:1. The 230W P-VIP lamp is rated to go up to 4000 hours in standard mode. The manual 1.2X zoom shows an image size from 37.6in. to 301in. diagonal in a native aspect ratio of 16:9, with 4:3 and LBX compatibility. Security is provided through a Kensington lock port, security bar, and keypad lock. In bright mode, the fan noise level is 34dB, but it drops to 32dB in standard mode. The unit has ±5-degree vertical keystone adjustment and 116 percent offset capability. Video inputs include two HDMI, a VGA, component, and composite with a projection distance up to 32.8ft. A real featherweight at 6.4lbs., the HD20 may be table- or ceiling-mounted and includes a backlit remote control.
projectiondesign avielo radiance
Designed to suit larger home theater screens at a reasonable cost, the avielo radiance from projectiondesign is based on the same chassis as the spectra in the avielo line, but this DLP model uses a brighter lamp and is capable of projecting an image size up to 133in. diagonal with a resolution of 1920×1080 pixels. White point and grayscale setup is quick and simple using RealColor, projectiondesign’s color management system. Long life is built into the unit by using sealed optics to prevent dust and smoke from contacting the optical components. All of the company’s high-brightness projectors feature DuArch dual-architecture illumination with a failsafe system that allows replacement of a lamp while the projector is running on the other lamp.
Sanyo PLC-WM5500
The 5500-lumen SanyoPLC-WM5500 includes a standard LNS-S20 lens but is available with five lens options to suit a wide range of installation scenarios. With a native resolution of 1280×800 in 16:10 aspect ratio, the 3-LCD unit has a contrast ratio of 800:1 and projects an image size from 40in. to 400in. It is fully networkable, has closed captioning, and incorporates the Active Maintenance Filter system, which automatically senses reduction in air flow due to clogging and advances the segmented filter to a clean area. The filter cartridge has 10 separate filter slides to allow much more time between manual filter cleaning. Video inputs include HDMI, 15-pin D-sub RGB, RGBHV on BNC connections, S-Video, composite, and component. Weighing 21.3lbs., the projector includes a 7W loudspeaker output and uses 490W power in normal mode, 406W in Eco mode.
Home Theater Projectors
Jul 28, 2010 12:00 PM,
By Bennett Liles
Brighter pictures, quiet cooling, and high-tech color tweaks pack the silver screen to go home.
Sharp XV-Z15000
The XV-Z15000 from Sharp is a 1080p high-definition projector with 30,000:1 contrast ratio in high-contrast mode. It produces 1600 ANSI lumens using a six-segment, five-speed color wheel. OSD menu and remote control can be used with the automatic iris switchover function to change multiple brightness and contrast settings to suit ambient lighting conditions. The DLP unit has two HDMI video inputs, one DVI-I/HDCP, component, composite, and S-Video. Remote operation is possible through the serial port with RS-232. Fan noise gets down to as low as 23dB, and the projector weighs 12.8lbs.
Sony VPL-VW200
Referred to as the flagship of Sony’s home theater lineup, the Bravia SXRD 1080p home theater projector, model VPL-VW200 , uses a high-output 400W Xenon cinematic lamp to produce images of 800 lumens with a contrast ratio of 35,000:1 with Advanced Iris Auto on. Projection picture size up to 300in. diagonal are possible from video inputs including composite, component, S-Video, HDMI, and PC video, and remote control capability includes RS-232. Gamma adjustment using ImageDirector2 software may be done through a LAN port.
Vivitek H9080FD
Another entry in the DLP area, the VivitekH9080FD uses DMD technology making pictures with a native resolution of 1920×1080 in 16:9, and it includes zoom, focus, and lens shift controls. There is also an optional varying optics package available for short-throw applications. The projector will accommodate two HDMI 1.3 signals and supports high-bandwidth HDCP. For a range of control options, the unit can accept either infrared or serial RS-232 remote control. In standby mode, the H9080FD uses only 1W of power and it has instant hot start, requiring no cooldown period before restarting.
