http://www.audioholics.com/reviews/projectors/rss.xml Front projection is currently the least expensive way to truly have a big screen experience in the home. Come to this area often as we review the industry's class-leading products and separate the wheat from the chaff. hourly 12 2006-12-01T00:00 http://www.audioholics.com/static/logo.jpg http://www.audioholics.com/ http://www.audioholics.com/reviews/projectors/epson-home-cinema-720-lcd I got an email the other day from a friend I hadn't heard from in a long time. We caught up with each other about a few things, and then he asked me: What's the best projector out there for under $1500? Wow, that's a good question, isn't it? A couple of years ago the level of quality you'd be able to expect from that price was much different. Today, it's almost amazing what consumers are getting for their money. I told him I was reviewing the Epson Home Cinema 720 LCD projector and that if it even remotely resembled its "bigger brother" the 1080 or 1080UB it would be high on my list. As I launched into the review process I found that some consumers might just do very well to eschew 1080p - especially if they are using smaller screens or sitting back more than 2x the screen width. clint 2008-06-11T08:13:38+00:00 Pro Review http://www.audioholics.com/reviews/projectors/panasonic-pt-f200u-lcd We reviewed the PT-F100U projector last year and were very impressed by the level of quality available for general viewing. When selecting a projector it's important to know your requirements and set performance goals. In the case of the PT-F200U, the projector is targeting users with a need for high lumen output and analogue video sources. This means that you will not get as much performance in low light situations, nor can you expect to connect the latest HDMI devices. With that said, this projector is going to be a massive "win" for business presentations or even houses of worship. clint 2008-06-06T14:18:58+00:00 Pro Review http://www.audioholics.com/reviews/projectors/epson-pro-cinema-1080ub When we got our first glimpse of Epson's Pro Cinema 1080UB at the 9th Annual Audioholics State of the CE Union Event in Clearwater Beach, Florida, we knew we were in for a treat. We had already reviewed the excellent Pro Cinema 1080, and the UB - short for Ultra Black - only took a good projector and made it even better. This review is more of a comparison and evaluation of the new features than a full descriptive overview of everything about the 1080UB. If you want the full blow-by-blow, take a look at our review of the Pro Cinema 1080 and you'll find everything you need to help you evaluate the full complement of this projector's features. clint 2008-05-08T23:22:20+00:00 Pro Review http://www.audioholics.com/reviews/projectors/projector-screens/focupix-hdvio-electric-rf We were more than skeptical when we first heard of the Focupix electric screens. Their retail price hovered around $799 for a 104-inch screen, however the typical street price was just $329.99. With a retail drop-off that steep we wondered how on earth anyone could pack enough equipment into the box to make this screen actually function. It turns out these electric screens must be easier to make than I thought. The overall quality and performance of the Focupix HDVio screen had us rethinking what an electric screen should truly cost the average consumer. clint 2008-05-05T08:10:56+00:00 Pro Review http://www.audioholics.com/reviews/projectors/marantz-vp-15s1-dlp-1 Passion is what drove me to become a videoholic. I love good quality video - be it HDTV or high definition DVD. It doesn't matter if the subject matter is retarded African pigmy elephants, a great picture will glue me to the screen. With that said, this review of the Marantz VP-15S1 DLP projector started off as any other except that after a while I began to become obsessed with how well this projector integrated into my room. I found that I more quickly became drawn into the story lines of films and my ability to forget I was sitting in my theater room instead of being a part of the on-screen content became greatly diminished. In short, this projector made me covet... clint 2008-02-19T09:27:53+00:00 Pro Review http://www.audioholics.com/reviews/projectors/projector-screens/carada-masquerade-masking-system Carada unveiled, for the first time, its new Masquerade automated masking system at the Audioholics 2007 State of the CE Union Event. To say that this is an industry-changing product (at least in terms of price to market) would be an understatement. Sold for the price of some competitors' fixed wall screen systems (just $2499 for a 110" diagonal) the Masquerade offers full horizontal masking up to 2.70:1, meaning that all of your widescreen movies can now be watched without those often annoying black bars. clint 2007-11-15T11:21:21+00:00 Pro Review http://www.audioholics.com/reviews/projectors/panasonic-pt-f100u Houses of worship are faced with many challenges when considering projectors. Ambient light conditions, placement, input requirements, and resolution are just some of the things that grace the top of the list. It was with surprise that I began a journey with the PT-F100U, discovering that many of the features I associated with and loved about home theater projectors were present on this commercially-targeted product. As multimedia needs advance in both the corporate and house of worship venues, technology seems to be ready to oblige our needs in the form of products willing to cross over and provide features previously thought to be distinct. clint 2007-11-08T16:21:55+00:00 Pro Review http://www.audioholics.com/reviews/projectors/panasonic-pt-ax200u-lcd The budget-priced 720p PT-AX200U projector has several new features of Panasonic's incremental but impressive projector update – not the least of which involved a tantalizing gaming-centric mode which decreases lag and speeds up gameplay. clint 2007-11-05T12:52:17+00:00 Pro Review http://www.audioholics.com/reviews/projectors/optoma-ep749-dlp I was thrilled to get my hands on this projector for my first review for the good folks at Audioholics. Understanding that this projector is intended to be a data projector more than a home theater projector, I wasn’t expecting great performance from it in that particular use. Wow, was I in for a surprise once I got started. At under $1000, this little projector is a real gem for either work or play. If you’re in the market for a powerful yet small and transportable projector under the $1000 mark… seriously consider this one. Scott Ceretti 2007-09-27T15:31:45+00:00 Pro Review http://www.audioholics.com/reviews/projectors/optoma-hd80-dlp The Optoma HD80 is a leaner, trimmer, HD81, without the outboard processing, but with plenty of performance and inputs to make a home cinema enthusiast ecstatic to nab a 1080p DLP for under $3000. clint 2007-09-13T13:15:04+00:00 Pro Review http://www.audioholics.com/reviews/projectors/mitsubishi-hc1500-dlp We absolutely jumped at the chance to get a very close look at the new Mitsubishi HC1500 DLP projector since we missed the boat on checking out the HD1000U which preceded it. The attraction is a clean system that handles up to 720p for less than $1000. This projector is worth a serious look. clint 2007-08-31T13:01:46+00:00 Pro Review http://www.audioholics.com/reviews/projectors/projector-screens/elite-screens-f80nwh The perfect screen to complement a portable or dual-use projection system would be durable, portable and equally easy to pull out and set up. Elite Screens ez-Cinema systems match that description perfectly. clint 2007-07-16T16:58:41+00:00 Pro Review http://www.audioholics.com/reviews/projectors/optoma-movietime-dv11 For those who can't permanently convert their living area to a theater, Optoma's DV11 combines ease of use with some nifty features that allow "movie nights" without breaking the bank and tearing up the house. clint 2007-07-12T17:14:35+00:00 Pro Review http://www.audioholics.com/reviews/projectors/mitsubishi-hc5000-projector In a sea of new 1080p projectors being released this year, Mitsubishi has a distinctive product that sets it apart as a leader. The C2Fine technology renders an incredible picture and does indeed produce some excellent black levels. If you're shopping for a 1080p model you owe it to yourself to check it out. clint 2007-06-27T09:19:53+00:00 Pro Review http://www.audioholics.com/reviews/projectors/epson-home-cinema-1080 The Epson PowerLite Home Cinema 1080 is virtually identical to the Pro Cinema 1080. If you are a consumer, BUY this projector as it has nearly all of the performance advantages and features of the Pro model with a lot of cost savings. clint 2007-05-01T03:23:20+00:00 Pro Review http://www.audioholics.com/reviews/projectors/infocus-in78-projector-review The IN78 is an incremental update to a very popular projector line that includes the IN72, IN74 and IN76. Incremental upgrades are nice in that they update hardware and make sure that a product line is kept up to date, but they rarely astound or dazzle with new revolutionary performance or hardware. Such is the fate of the IN78, a fact made even more difficult due to its retail pricing of $3,499 which seems a tad high given the recent introduction of lower cost 1080p displays into the market. Still, the IN78 positions itself as a capable projector that performs high-level video processing and requires no color calibration out of the box. We'll see if it lives up to that promise. clint 2007-04-23T00:00:00+00:00 Pro Review http://www.audioholics.com/reviews/projectors/epson-pro-cinema-1080 1080p is here with a vengeance and Epson is leading the way with its new 1080p professional model with ISFccc and other installer-friendly functions. See how well this professional projector compares to other products available on the market. clint 2007-04-05T13:54:04+00:00 Pro Review http://www.audioholics.com/reviews/projectors/epson-powerlite-pro-cinema-810-hqv-projector-review I like nice cars. Epson projectors remind me of a corvette - and that's a nice car. In addition to their good looks, Epson home theater projectors have several traits that are a cut above many competitors - like their ample zoom lenses, which don't appear to negatively affect image quality or picture sharpness. This combo, of course has some professional-grade video processing included which takes it far beyond the integrated video processing found in an entry-level projectors - though, of course, you pay a premium for the advantage. clint 2007-03-28T12:21:18+00:00 Pro Review http://www.audioholics.com/reviews/projectors/planar-pd7150-dlp-projector-review Planar is a company whose products everyone has likely encountered - they just may not realize it. Responsible for many of the displays found in gas station pumps, shopping centers, ATMs and image-sensitive hospital applications, Planar decided to enter the home theater market in 2006 and the results thus far are more than promising. They are targeting a wide range of home theater users, but are decidedly positioning themselves to compete in the higher end market. clint 2007-03-07T13:37:56+00:00 Pro Review http://www.audioholics.com/reviews/projectors/sanyo-plv-z5 The Sanyo PLV-Z5 makes a few improvements on the Z4 platform and keeps itself at the top of a very hot list of 720p projectors that are guaranteed to make any home theater enthusiast almost certain to become a gravitational force on Friday night movie nights... clint 2007-01-27T17:45:52+00:00 Pro Review http://www.audioholics.com/reviews/projectors/optoma-ep7150-dlp-front-projector-review This is one of our first projector reviews that falls into the “ultra-portable” category. Weighing in at just under 3 pounds and measuring less than 9-inches in width, the EP7150 is in a class all by itself. This is the type of unit you’ll want if you are traveling place to place or want a projector to easily set up and take down in an office or teaching environment. It’s the “Mighty Mouse” of projectors in a sense and the 2000 lumens are “real” – we’ve seen a lot of overstated specs, but this isn’t one of them. Let’s attempt to dress down this superhero and see if he can stand up under the scrutiny. clint 2007-01-03T00:00:00+00:00 Pro Review http://www.audioholics.com/reviews/projectors/maxx-products-lcos-1400 Having been a fan of LCOS technology for some time, we were excited to receive a sample LCOS 1400 projector from MAXX Products. Running it through its paces allowed us to compare this technology up close to LCD and DLP projectors we had utilized to date. The sample we received was a heavily-used model lacking in some of the features MAXX says is present in its newest revision of this machine (such as DVI with HDCP). As the LCOS 1400 is pretty much a re-badged JVC D-ILA projector (the DLA-SX21U/E) we believe MAXX Products when they tell us that currently-shipping models include DVI w/HDCP. clint 2006-12-17T14:33:25+00:00 Pro Review http://www.audioholics.com/reviews/projectors/hd81-projector-review-conclusions The HD81 is not just a projector. It combines an excellent optical display system with an advanced external video processor that handles, among other things a host of inputs from composite all the way up to HDMI and RGBHV/component. clint 2006-11-22T00:00:00+00:00 Pro Review http://www.audioholics.com/reviews/projectors/optoma-hd70 When I found out that Optoma was taking over the entry level projector market – excuse me, I mean introducing a 720p DLP projector for under $1000 – I quickly lined up a unit for review. You heard correctly, this is a 720p-native DLP projector that is debuting for $999 (street price). To suggest that this projector might be a popular item going into the holiday season and throughout 2007 would be like saying that Reality television might be getting a bit stale. I’ll just say it now – this should be the top-selling projector of the coming year, and for good reasons that I will outline in this review. clint 2006-10-19T00:00:00+00:00 Pro Review http://www.audioholics.com/reviews/projectors/hitachi-pj-tx100-projector-review LCD projectors have been a favorite recommendation of mine for some time. While I love the deeper black associated with most DLP models, the lens shift functionality and lack of rainbows make LCD recommendations easy. Hitachi is not a manufacturer I have reviewed frequently on Audioholics and we’d like to remedy that in the future (after all, we want to give ALL companies’ products a chance to influence our readers, not just the usual suspects). This first pass with the PJ-TX100 projector left us wondering where we’ve been all this time. While it didn’t start out this cheap, at a $999 street price (at the time of this review) this is one projector that should be on everyone’s short list. clint 2006-10-13T00:00:00+00:00 Pro Review http://www.audioholics.com/reviews/projectors/panasonic-pt-ax100u The PT-AX100U offers some updates to what was quite possibly the best-selling product of 2006. With smooth screen technology and a powerful lens shift, form meets function in this low cost high-performance projector. clint 2006-10-02T00:00:00+00:00 Pro Review http://www.audioholics.com/reviews/projectors/optoma-ep1690 Up until now I have found that most “dual use” projectors are more designed for the office or school and not so much for the home theater. In the case of the Optoma EP1690, we may have found the first unit capable of actually performing well in both situations. We can place the thanks for this partly on Optoma and partly on the advancement of DLP front projection technology which allows for greater contrast, better output levels and performance options not found a couple years ago. I’ll outline the strengths and weaknesses of the EP1690 below, but I have to say that I am impressed overall and I could see a lot of office managers and teachers wanting to take this unit home from the classroom each night “for safe keeping”. clint 2006-09-18T00:00:00+00:00 Pro Review http://www.audioholics.com/reviews/projectors/sanyo-plc-xt16 We had a limited amount of time to play with the Sanyo PLC-XT16 projector, but I wanted to give it a brief run-through in a context that comes up a lot on our forums and in discussions with custom installers. We took a look at this bright, flexible Sanyo projector from the perspective of installing it in a house of worship (that’s a church to us Southerners). The Sanyo seems well-suited to the task and indeed my church already uses two older PLC-series projectors with much success. clint 2006-06-13T00:00:00+00:00 Pro Review http://www.audioholics.com/reviews/projectors/optoma-hd7100 We were very eager to get our hands on the new Optoma HD7100 home theater projector, considering the very high performance we achieved with the recently reviewed Optoma HD72 . The New HD7100 boasts 5000:1 contrast ratio, incorporates the new 0.80-inch DarkChip3 technology and includes horizontal and vertical lens shift. ray 2006-06-13T00:00:00+00:00 Pro Review http://www.audioholics.com/reviews/projectors/mitsubishi-hd4000 Mitsubishi has built a solid reputation over the last decade manufacturing high quality, high performance display devices and is an industry leader in the implementation of DLP technology. Front projection systems are becoming popular in many typical home theaters, and it’s no surprise that Mitsubishi has several front projectors to choose from including the recently introduced HD4000. The HD4000 is the second 1280x768 dark chip 2 projector we have reviewed thus far. We were very impressed with the previous 1280x768 projector, the Optoma HD-72. Naturally one would assume that because the projectors share the same DMD technology that they would be similar in performance characteristics. We were very surprised to find out that that was NOT the case. ray 2006-04-17T00:00:00+00:00 Pro Review