Looking for the best < £550 Projector + 100" Screen (2.5m-3m throw)

Domje

Domje

Domje

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Location
Teesside, UK
Hi,

Apologies in advance as I guess that there will have been hundreds of threads like this already. I've wanted a projector/home cinema room for a while now and I've just moved house and I'm going to take the plunge.

I'm looking for a projector which will project to a (ideally) 100" screen from around 2.5-3m away (3m at an absolute push) which is under £550?

I'm looking for:

  • 1080p - I watch Bluray/1080p movies & TV.
  • I'm Not bothered about 3D (It would be nice but isn't a huge selling point to me).
  • Throw distance ideally would be around 2.5m but the length of the room is around 3m
  • No speaker needed - I have my own speakers for this.
  • Occasionally used for gaming... mainly PC.


Possible Options I've found:

Epson EH TW5100 @ £459 (Amazon)
Epson EH TW5200 @ £590 (Amazon) - Is there much difference to the TW5100? Also out of budget.
Optoma HD141X @ £449 (Amazon)
Optoma GT1070X @ £570 (Amazon) - Also over budget but 1m throw sounds good?
BenQ W1070+ @ £599 (Amazon) - Pretty much out of budget I think..
BenQ TH681+ @ £459 (Amazon) - Is 144Hz an advantage (it is when using for FPS gaming on Monitors but won't be playing FPS on this...)

I'm also looking at screens, I would like an electric screen but don't want to break the bank a huge amount - this would be a cost on top of the projector costs above, am I being unrealistic wanting to spend under £100?

I've found these:

Homegear 100" for £75 (Amazon)
Ebay #1 for £65 (Ebay)
Ebay #2 for £75 (Ebay)
Ebay #3 for < £50! (Ebay)

That said - screen wise I've barely looked in to them at all so any other recommendations which are low cost would be ace!

Thanks a lot for taking the time to read this and I'll welcome any recommendations!
 
I have a 77" Sapphire screen from Richer Sounds, it's pull down a lock, great quality. I sit 3 metres away and I wouldn't want a bigger screen at that distance.
 
A few suggestions:
  • Try looking for the BenQ W1070 (no plus). This is the previous model. It may still be sold some places, and will probably be a bit cheaper, as the retailer will be looking to shift the old stock.
  • The Epson TW5200 has reduced in price since your OP. Don't know how good it is, but it's within budget now at least.
  • Forget an electric screen. You don't have the budget, and it's unnecessary anyhow.
  • Try just projecting onto a white wall to begin with. If you're happy with that, no need to splash out on a screen, at least, not straight away.
 
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meade16 said:
I have a 77" Sapphire screen from Richer Sounds, it's pull down a lock, great quality. I sit 3 metres away and I wouldn't want a bigger screen at that distance.
Click to expand...

Thanks for the input - I do however really want the larger screen, this way I can move it in to a larger room if I need to too.
 
nightwish said:
A few suggestions:
  • Try looking for the BenQ W1070 (no plus). This is the previous model. It may still be sold some places, and will probably be a bit cheaper, as the retailer will be looking to shift the old stock.
  • The Epson TW5200 has reduced in price since your OP. Don't know how good it is, but it's within budget now at least.
  • Forget an electric screen. You don't have the budget, and it's unnecessary anyhow.
  • Try just projecting onto a white wall to begin with. If you're happy with that, no need to splash out on a screen, at least, not straight away.
Click to expand...

I've found the W1070 for £469 on Richer Sounds

Why would you recommend this projector, Also the TW5200 is now £509 yeah.

If I have to raise the budget a little more for an eleccy screen i'd rather do that, I can't imagine the price being that much different between manual and electric?
 
I have the Benq w1070, done about 900 hours on the bulb. Very good for the price, picture quality is excellent on a good screen, not short throw though. I had mine in a table to begin with but moved to a ceiling mount. The fan is noticeable but my sound system takes care of that, no neighbours for 1km here so I can turn it up :)
 
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Benq is very good for the money. Option might be to pick up a second hand one for 325 or so and spend more on the screen.
 
Domje said:
Why would you recommend this projector, Also the TW5200 is now £509 yeah.
Click to expand...

The Benq gets consistantly good reviews at this price point. eg. http://thewirecutter.com/reviews/the-best-1000-projector/ (The W1070 is sold in the US as the HT1075). I have it's bigger brother, the W1400, and , though I'm no expert, it seems fine to me. Only issue is that the fan is a touch loud, but I think that's par for the course with entry-level projectors, and soon drowned out once the movie is going.

Domje said:
If I have to raise the budget a little more for an eleccy screen i'd rather do that, I can't imagine the price being that much different between manual and electric?
Click to expand...

Up to you, but as far as I'm concerned, electric screens are heavier, more difficult to install as they'll need wiring in, and more expensive. I wouldn't bother personally.
 
nightwish said:
Up to you, but as far as I'm concerned, electric screens are heavier, more difficult to install as they'll need wiring in, and more expensive. I wouldn't bother personally.
Click to expand...

I got my 100" electric tab tensioned screen for £100, installed it all by myself with some clever ingenuity (two chairs and the original packaging box to prop one end up with whilst attaching it with proper wall screw fittings) and only had to plug it in to a power point...

Totally worth it in my books! ;)

Here's my first test with it...
https://youtu.be/iejcfPlfLVM
 
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nightwish said:
Up to you, but as far as I'm concerned, electric screens are heavier, more difficult to install as they'll need wiring in, and more expensive. I wouldn't bother personally.
Click to expand...

Dont agree...i love my electric screen, all it needs is a mains power connection. I am not sure what you find difficult about installing it? I'm also not sure what the weight has to do with anything, my 120" electric is easily picked up on your own....
 
Jez said:
Dont agree....
Click to expand...

It's just money spent on a feature that doesn't improve the experience, of y'know, watching films.

If you can already afford to buy a decent screen, then sure, add a bit on top for electric. But at < £100, put the money towards a higher quality screen IMO. Each to their own though.

How much did your screen cost Jez?
 
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Domje said:
Really though, How much of a noticeable difference is there between something like the Homegear one I've been looking at and something like This Eyeline one?
Click to expand...

I couldn't tell you, but isn't your argument rather like saying why spend £1000 on a PC when you can get one for £200 that has more lights on it? The answer is because you're an enthusiast who appreciates the difference. Most people wouldn't, and that's OK, they don't need to spend the money.

To the OP, I'd get the projector first, and then if you can, try just projecting onto a flat, white wall. You may find you don't even need a screen. And if you want an electric one, get an electric one. I wouldn't at this price point, but it would be boring if everybody thought the same! :)

Edit: 666 posts. I may never post again! :D
 
I honestly have no idea how much my screen cost...i bought it when Barco CRT's were the projectors to have :p
 
nightwish said:
I couldn't tell you, but isn't your argument rather like saying why spend £1000 on a PC when you can get one for £200 that has more lights on it?
Click to expand...

Congrats on the 666, but no. You will see a very noticeable difference between a PC worth £200 and one worth £1000...

nightwish said:
The answer is because you're an enthusiast who appreciates the difference. Most people wouldn't, and that's OK, they don't need to spend the money.
Click to expand...

I understand the enthusiast side of things, always getting the best of the best, etc, everything looking perfectly and running nicely however how good can a projector screen get? If a movie looks great on a £100 screen how much better can it look on a £1750 one?

I'm great with computers and anything tech, however when it comes to projector screens I really can't differentiate between what is £100 and what is £1750 and this is where I'm stuck.

I guess the smoothness and noisiness of the electric motor comes in to it, one might be quick and silent, one might take 30 seconds and sound grunty but I won't care about that as saving £1000 is more important to me than waiting 30 seconds to watch a movie at home, do you get what I'm saying?

I'll be unable to project on to a wall as the projector screen will be coming down in front of my current screens when being used for home cinema.

Y4xwu33.jpg


Otherwise I'd possibly be looking at something along the lines of a screen which mounts to the wall.
 
I bought a screen from eBay when I got my projector last year, it went right back, screen quality makes a difference. I'm borrowing a new W3000 this weekend so I'll see if it's better than my w1070.
 
meade16 said:
I bought a screen from eBay when I got my projector last year, it went right back, screen quality makes a difference. I'm borrowing a new W3000 this weekend so I'll see if it's better than my w1070.
Click to expand...

Yeah I totally understand this but I just mean if I'm starting out why not buy a cheaper one? Are there any screens which you would recommend?
 
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