InFocus Play Big IN78 Projector Review

InFocus, after their incredible success with the 4805 and other cheap projectors has shown itself to be incredibly lackluster and behind the curve for 2007. At CEDIA they were far less impressive than what I would call their biggest direct competitor: Optoma.

While everyone and their brother has put out 1080p models, they are busy upgrading their 720p lineup without a single 1080p model on the market. They continue to completely ignore the reality that many people are putting these projectors in their basement with 8 foot ceilings - often dropped to 7 feet due to ventilation or other unavoidable issues. So, while the image often reflects excellent quality, how much better, than… oh, the Optoma HD70, is this model?

With the Panasonic 1080p available for around $3K… how does this stack up?

I'm shocked that InFocus, which marvelled the world with their SP777 model seems to have forgotten what it means to be a step ahead of the competition and has simply fallen WELL behind the competition while completely ignoring the market and consumer expectations with this model.

Yes, their IN72 for under $800 is a great starting point projector… But then their stuff just seems to completely miss the target.

The lens offset is a HUGE item IMO that they tried to rationalize with me at CEDIA and just don't get. It simply doesn't matter if it is HARD to engineer a lens that can be placed at/near the top of the screen, it is something that just must be done.

The last item that bugs me, which I talked to them about was that the lens offset seems to indicate a tabletop setup preference, but their zoom range doesn't allow for close enough placement in a typical room with appropriate screen size. Grrrr… don't they have engineers who think of basic practical application???

Both LCD and LCoS are delivering incredible lens shift and zoom range, while DLP is delivering rainbows and high prices… For that type of money I would save for an extra few months to get the JVC DLA-RS1U which delivers 1080p, higher contrast, more zoom range, lens shift, and real world calibrated lumens. Otherwise, the Optoma HD70 seems to be about as good as this pprojector for a couple grand less!