Not sure I can link to the projector as it’s a competitor website. If you shop around you can get a Optoma UHD550X projector which is 4k, HDR for £2000 or less if you get lucky with an offer.
£2k for a 1080p projector 2 years ago sounds like a massive amount, it must have had some fancy features. I paid £549 for 1080p projector 3 years ago are you sure it wasn't more then 2 years ago?
I did get Demos of various projectors in various price ranges before buying my Sony HW40ES, including some Optoma projectors (my last PJ before the Sony was a Optoma). But, I found the picture on the Sony, especially with fast paced stuff like the F1 demo, just blew everything else away, well, until you started considerably upping the budget again. My budget was originally £1k for the projector (but was willing to look at the £500-600 range in case they were good enough), but did stretch it after spending time in the demo room with them, and do not regret it one bit. Even now, 2 years later, I'm still gobsmacked by the picture quality.
Based on that, I would hazard you actually need to spend £4k minimum just now (just had a quick look around) for an actually have decent quality 4k HDR projector, rather than an entry level 4k HDR projector you are mentioning.
That said, without actually reviewing it myself, I could be wrong.
BUT, I did actually manage to find a review for that Optoma, and it really doesn't look great (please note, it is translated from a French review):
All this shows a poor quality optical block, unlike the
BenQ W11000 /
X12000 and
Acer V9800 which are equipped with a glass optics suitable for the reproduction of UHD and 4K images. Optoma has equipped its models with a 1080p optical block that impairs image accuracy, uniformity and accuracy. To compensate, it will be necessary to play with the increase of the sharpness thanks to the video processing
"super details ".
#
More importantly, to reduce costs the optics implemented in the 5 new models is not suitable for the return of a 4K image, resulting in inconsistencies and low contrast. In these conditions and despite this attempt to allow access to a 4K or UHD image to the greatest number, we can only recommend that you wait for more efficient models where the quality of optical blocks will not be neglected in order to benefit the full precision of a 4K image
Another negative point to emphasize that also applies to the equivalent models of ACER: it is sad to note that HDR compatibility is not accompanied by an extended gamut close to DCI-P3 or REC2020; the
ACER H7850 / V7850 ,
OPTOMA UHD550X/
UHD60 and
UHD65 only slightly exceed the Rec709. Under these conditions, as well stay on HDTV signals since part of the advantage of an Ultra High Definition signal can never be displayed by these models.
In short, rather than the rush to get out of 4K models, we consumers would prefer to have more advanced devices, able to display all the features and benefits of an HDR image. Fans of sustainability and longevity, go your way, you will not be satisfied with this
Optoma UHD550X.
As I thought, £2k isn't really enough to get a decent UHD projector. But then I guess it depends on what your looking for. I wouldn't want to jump on 4k with a budget 65" TV for £500 either, as I do watch a lot of content on my displays so appreciate image quality, as well as the displays ability to deal with fast-paced action sequences (or sport and such). But for others, that may not be the case.
So I agree with above really. £1200 on a good 55" 4k TV, and then try to work the best PJ you can into the remaining budget. Try to demo the projectors if you can, and TV's too, preferably in a demo room and not on a shop floor. I found big enough differences between projectors costing £500, £1000 & £2000 to push my budget to the better one. That said, you may not notice so much of a difference yourself, certainly between a £500 and £1000 model. Certainly it was only with certain types of content I was truly blown away in the demo room, but as that content type was important to me, and everything else was noticeably better, maybe just not quite game changing better anyway, I made the choice to go to town.
