VPL-HS51A Features & Favorites

Sony made a splash with its VPL-HS51 Cineza LCD projector at last year's CEDIA. It had a 6000:1 contrast ratio that, for possibly the first time, rivaled DLP, thanks in no small part to a dynamic iris system. While we wanted to get our hands on a review sample, our schedule pushed it off until we now got our hands on the newly improved VPL-HS51A. The 'A' denotes a slightly revised model that now boasts a 10,000:1 stated contrast ratio. With its price point coming in right at the sweet spot of those wanting to get into decent quality 720p projectors - we were anxious to run the Sony through our barrage of tests.

Features and Favorites

In evaluating the Sony Cineza VPL-HS51A (or any other projector for that matter) there are always some features that are important to point out. After all, each manufacturer is attempting to find an angle or advantage that puts its products on top of the competition. For Sony, those features include:

• High Contrast Ratio
  This is quite clearly the pride and joy of this Sony product. We've heard of some high contrast ratios in projectors, but with its claim of 10,000:1, the Sony VPL-HS51A has got to be the author of most profound announcement for an LCD projector this year (and possibly next year as well). Positioned to directly assault the black levels associated with DLP projectors, Sony's newest Cineza projector puts up some impressive specifications.
• Horizontal and Vertical Lens Shift
  Keystoning isn't to be used except for office presentations... For home theater you either need to install the projector flawlessly so that it lines up exactly with the screen (using an easily adjustable mount helps), or you'll want to get a model with horizontal and vertical lens shift. The Sony VPL-HS51A allows 100% vertical and 50% horizontal adjustment (or think of it as 1x screen width and 2x screen height). That's a whole lot of adjustment. While you want to try to minimize the use of lens shift as much as possible to maximize picture quality, it is a great feature to have.
• Backlit Remote Control
  All projectors should have fully backlit remote controls - and this Sony Cineza gets it 85% right. With the exception of the Power, Light and Input buttons (not sure why they were skipped), the full remote lights up for easy reading of the projector controls in a darkened room. Additionally, the light button actually toggles the backlighting - another plus.
• Advanced Dynamic Iris
  Taking its cue from the input signal, the Dynamic Iris system adjusts the iris, gamma and lamp output to make dark scenes deeper and bright scenes brighter - enhancing the perceived range of contrast
  
• 0% Overscan for Digital Inputs w/o Mask or Scan Conversion
  Whereas the VPL-HS51 had a 5% fixed overscan w/o mask and with scan conversion, the revised VPL-HS51A finally gives users 100% of the picture when using the digital HDMI inputs. This is a huge improvement as overscan can now be manually controlled by the user as a function of placing the desired image borders into the projector screen frame.

Some of these items will receive additional attention later, but let's just say that for a projector that has an estimated street price of less than $3,000, Sony's VPL-HS51A is positioning itself as a strong contender in the realm of competent yet inexpensive home theater front projection systems.