Home cinema projector

rharris118

rharris118

rharris118

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Joined
9 Sep 2014
Posts
72
Location
Doncaster, UK
Hi, I'm looking at getting a projector again after my last one died again. That was an inFocus model that was only SD. I've spent some time having a look round and have decided that this one needs to be capable of 3D (mainly from my PC) and HD obviously.

I've just come across the Optoma S313 that seems way too cheap for what it is to me, but I can't find any reviews for it. Just wondering what your thoughts are on it?
 
Up to £400 at the moment. Obviously cheaper if it still does what I need (can be 720p, ideally 1080p) and 3D. I'm happy to get a 2nd hand but there's so many models, a lot of which are rather old. And a lot of models that I'm finding just don't have any reviews on them.
 
The S313 isn't what you're looking for. If you want a true HD resolution projector then the number of physical pixels on the display panel is important. The panel needs to have a native resolution of 1920 x 1080 (2+ megapixel). The S313 doesn't have that. The S313 panel has a native resolution of just 800 x 600 (0.24 megapixel).

For one, it's the wrong shape for widescreen. The panel on the S313 is 4:3 like old TVs used to be. Second, when displaying 16:9 the physical number of pixels used is even less than the projector's native resolution. A full 16:9 image will appear as a letterbox image 800 pixels wide x 450 high (0.17 megapixel).

The S313 is okay for classroom and meeting room use. It will interpolate (compress and rescale) higher resolution images but at the end of the day that's not the same as displaying them in their full resolution. If you want a cheap home cinema projector with 1080p native res and 3D support then the Benq W1070 (£499) is pretty much at the bottom of the price range to look at. There's a different projector at almost every £50 increment up to £900, so there's plenty of choice. Very few if any will include 3D glasses though. So you'll need to budget extra for those.

It's worth bearing in mind that there's more to making a decent home cinema projector than just resolution though. If sat down and watched the same scene on the W1070 vs the Epson 6100 vs the Optoma HD50 you'd get three very different presentations of the image, and not just because of brightness. Things such as video processing, chip drivers and the quality of the optical components play a big part in the way the picture looks on screen.
 
It might also be worth checking out second hand projectors from somewhere like AV Forums. You may be able to find a half decent budget to mid-range projector from last season within your price range. Plus I like to think that projectors from a dedicated AV forum's classifieds might be better than what you'd get off eBay.
 
Highly recommend AV Forums for picking up a second hand projector. Got a great deal from there myself.

Lucid also gives some good advice but another place to look is The Wire Cutter (http://thewirecutter.com/leaderboard/projectors/) they have recommendations for most price points.

My two cents is that wanting 3D at that price point is going to sacrifice too much on the basic image quality. Either forgo the 3D or save up for something a little higher end.

Saying that, last time I really looked at projectors was about a year ago so this may well have changed and you're welcome to ignore me :)
 
Spend the extra and buy the benq w1070 for 500, it's widely renowned as having nothing that beats it until nearly the 2 grand bracket.
 
Cheap does not equal good value with a projector. Sure, the image projected from a cheap unit will be massive, but they can look seriously crummy even if used on a proper screen. Resolution wise the Optoma that you suggest will for widescreen be the same pixel count as my old Panasonic PTAE200, which despite being a fine machine is over 10 years old now! For home use, don't get anything but a 16:9 projector as there will be light overspill above and below and the optics won't work as well... You'll either have to zoom massively or put up with a smaller overall image. Don't forget bulb changes in addition. At your price point, replacing the bulb is likely to cost about 50% of the initial outlay so do bear this in mind. Don't let that fact put you off, and certainly don't let it put you off a second hand unit which is where my £400 would go if I had to buy a projector.
 
db2431 said:
Spend the extra and buy the benq w1070 for 500, it's widely renowned as having nothing that beats it until nearly the 2 grand bracket.
Click to expand...
Sorry, but that's complete bollix. The video processing and the lens quality are quite easily surpassed by other projectors well under £1000.
 
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