What to Look For in a Laser Projector
Designed for classrooms, conference rooms and boardrooms, this projector offers 20,000 hours of maintenance-free operation with no need for filters or light bulbs. This makes it easy to get started, reduce cost and maintain consistent brightness.
The Epson Pro Cinema LS12000 performs well on the opening scene of Guardians of the Galaxy 2. This is a great way to test contrast and internal tone mapping.
Brightness
Brightness is one of the most important characteristics to consider when buying a projector. It lcd 14300 lumen projector dictates how well the device can be used in different environments, as well as the screen size it can accommodate. A projector with higher brightness can be used in larger spaces and can deliver high-quality images on screens up to 100″+ without having to worry about ambient light interference.
The ANSI lumen spec only measures the total white light that the projector can create, but it does not take color brightness or accuracy into account. This means that a projector that is rated at 3000 lumens may actually be producing much less than that amount of color light, which would render the image looking dull and unappealing.
On the other hand, if you look at a color light output (CLO) spec, the meter reads the separate red, green and blue luminosity values that make up a full color picture. The resulting total is then multiplied by the ANSI lumen value to give you the CLO rating. However, this method also ignores things like color bias and digital noise, which can cause a projector to produce much less than its rated lumen value. As such, the CLO spec is flawed in the same way as the ANSI lumen spec. This is why it is often a good idea to calibrate your projector before using it.
Contrast
When comparing projectors, it’s important to understand that Contrast ratio is measured differently than brightness. The contrast metric that most manufacturers use is Full On/Off contrast. This spec measures the blackest black that the projector can create and then compares it to the brightest white. But since most content isn’t all black or all white, the results are artificially inflated. This is why many projectors that have incredible Full On/Off contrast ratings actually don’t have very high ANSI contrast numbers.
To get a more accurate contrast number, the native or normal contrast of a projector should be used. This measurement takes into account things like the light engine’s internal reflections and external light leakage. It also accounts for different picture modes and the impact on contrast due to lowering peak brightness or increasing the black floor through special paints, parts and techniques.
The problem with this metric is that most consumers don’t know about it or care, and it’s not as simple as saying higher is better. A projector’s native contrast is also affected by ambient and reflected light in the room, so it can be misleading to quote large contrast numbers for this reason. When this happens, it’s usually a manufacturer’s subtle way of showing off how well their product performs in real world conditions. To make up for this, some projectors have features that automatically alter the lumen output on the fly to optimize the image and maximize contrast.
Image Accuracy
Color is never the only issue in a projector’s image quality but it can play an important role. A projector’s ANSI lumen rating takes white light only into account; it doesn’t give any indication of how well it will perform with full color images. A projector rated at 3000 ANSI lumens could deliver bright but unattractive colors with an objectionable tint or lack of saturation.
This shot of a city at night reveals that the DLP projector has a latent advantage in contrast and black level over its LCD counterpart. The LCD is able to deliver a much brighter picture in its maximum brightness mode, but it does so at the expense of image accuracy. Its grays look bluish and dull while its colors are overly green with less than ideal saturation. This problem can be corrected through calibration but only at the cost of some image brightness.
The DLP projector in its normal, movie mode delivers a more successful picture with a neutral color tone and better saturation of the colored pencils. Its black level is better as well, although it could be improved slightly at the cost of shadow detail in some scenes. In these tests the DLP also outperformed its LCD counterpart in terms of digital noise and color uniformity. All in all, this is a great projector for home theater use.
Noise
The PA1004UL is an ultra-silent laser projector that provides superior image delivery for a great audience experience. It features an enhanced sealed optical engine that is IP5X rated against dust ingress and keeps the projector’s optics clean for long-term picture stability and brilliant colour brightness. It also has a filter-free design that is dust-proof for a low maintenance cost of ownership.
A good lumen count for a projector is Portable Projector 4000-4999 ANSI lumens. This is enough to deliver high-quality images in a space with ambient light and a large screen size. This range is ideal for mid-sized meeting rooms, classrooms, and more. However, if you want a higher brightness level, then a 5000+ ANSI lumen projector would be better for your needs.
For a demonstration of the projector’s quality, I watched the opening scene from Guardians of the Galaxy 2. The colors are vibrant and the blacks are impressive. I then watched a star field scene from Star Wars to test the contrast of the projector. This scene really shows off the projector’s tone mapping and HDR capabilities.