Using a DLP Projector for Gaming - Things to be aware of?

Rroff said:
True with projectors >6 years ago but these days very little bulb maintenance - most modern projectors have some type of "turbo" cooling system that lets you power them down in seconds rather than having to let the projector cooldown itself before turning it off, they handle motion a lot better/fine and some do really well even in fairly bright daylit rooms.

Bulbs can be a bit of hassle/cost in the long run and/or if you get unfortunate and one dies prematurely - I've been using mine fairly regularly since 2007 and only just starting to see signs the bulb might be coming towards the end of its life (takes a little longer to hit full brightness, not quite as bright as it used to be).
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Exactly I'm on 2700 hours on my HD80, it's lasted me for the last 4 years, always run on eco.
 
Pretty much the same on mine - a little over 2700 hours over the last 5 years always run on eco unless the room is daylit as its bright enough as it is let alone normal mode when its dark :D
 
Rroff said:
True with projectors >6 years ago but these days very little bulb maintenance - most modern projectors have some type of "turbo" cooling system that lets you power them down in seconds rather than having to let the projector cooldown itself before turning it off, they handle motion a lot better/fine and some do really well even in fairly bright daylit rooms.

Bulbs can be a bit of hassle/cost in the long run and/or if you get unfortunate and one dies prematurely - I've been using mine fairly regularly since 2007 and only just starting to see signs the bulb might be coming towards the end of its life (takes a little longer to hit full brightness, not quite as bright as it used to be).
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I know they have improved a lot mate but I still prefer Plasmas as they last longer & give a better overall PQ plus not sensitive to ambient room light at all mine for instance looks just as good in bright sunlight as a darkened room due to clever onboard circuitry via the built in bulb dimmer they have so many onboard circuits now to handle various PQ settings like auto 24/60 switching, motion compensation, motion blur etc etc IMO they have put a lot of effort into Plasmas recently.

With projectors you IMO always need a very high end screen to get the full brightness & a really decent one can cost a lot of money I once spent £1400 on an 80" silver reflective screen back in 1992 when that was a LOT of money to spend on something like that trust me ;)
Horses for courses I know I just prefer Plasmas now as they are also super slim & take up so little wallspace depth wise :eek:
 
So, we are saying no input lag, and no ghosting worries, that for me is a WIN.

I begrudge spending £500+ on a TV with so many caveats.

AWPC, I understand where your coming from.

I am surprised that regardless of how "mature" this TV tech should be, it is still very much up in the air regarding what you get for your money.

Very frustrating from a consumers point of view.
 
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Gimpymoo said:
So, we are saying no input lag, and no ghosting worries, that for me is a WIN.

I begrudge spending £500+ on a TV with so many caveats.

AWPC, I understand where your coming from.

I am surprised that regardless of how "mature" this TV tech should be, it is still very much up in the air regarding what you get for your money.

Very frustrating from a consumers point of view.
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No noticeable input lag on that LG 50" if you turn off Gaming mode. Not noticed any Ghosting myself either @ 1080P (1920x1080) its still sharp enough to browse the internet as well. RBE is slightly evident if you quickly turn your head away from the screen or at a funny angle but that & the not quite 100% true black are the only downsides its still a great amount of tech for the money ;)

For £449 from amazon its a bargin & worth every penny trust me I have both the 42" & 60" models LG are crazy for selling so cheap when they are such awesome sets for the price :eek: it even has a built in HD movie viewer just plug in either a USB flashdrive or USB Hard Drive with x264/MPEG4 content it works using the built-in player very well in HD @ 1080P/24 or 60 ;) you can even network the HDTV to browse media from your PC ;) (check before buying though as the 60" has this feature not sure all models do).

The glass screen is also a great feature it does not reflect in bright sunlight & also acts as a strong barrier incase something hits the screen.

Look here for more info from people who bought the 50 or 60" set.
http://www.avforums.com/forums/lg-f...-lg-pa650t-plasma-tv-thread.html#post17519251

Personally I would be amazed if anyone who bought one of these sets was not more than happy with the feature set for the price & amazing PQ :D
 
If it sweetens the deal, I can get the LG 50PA650T for £400 if that is the one your refering to.

I was looking at the Smart/3D upgrade, the LG 50PM670T, but quiet frankly, it is pap.

I can only conclude that the different panel they use is inferior if the PA650T is as good you say. Maybe the 3D support messes it up.

I really wanted the Smart capability to stream files from the computer, directly to the TV.
 
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Life isn't complete unless you've tried gaming on a huge screen. I personally prefer to play FPS type games at my desk on my 24" screen, it feels a bit strange playing those type of games where the gun and hands are too far away from where you're sitting if you know what i mean, but all other joypad enabled optional FPS type games such as mirrors edge, splinter cell, or driving games especially are magnificent on my 92" screen in the living room.
 
I've got a acer h5360 in my living room thats used as a daily tv and gaming is great fun and when you play 4 player split screen having a 42" screen each is really nice. As it is used everyday I replace the bulb every year but at around £100 a year I don't mind, a dark room really does help the picture so that's worth thinking about. The h5360 can do 120 fps so that's not an issue and can be had for around £400 I think, only problem really is its 720p that's the only thing making me think about upgrading. I've had it for 2 years now and never regretted going down the projector route.
 
Gimpymoo said:
If it sweetens the deal, I can get the LG 50PA650T for £400 if that is the one your refering to.

I was looking at the Smart/3D upgrade, the LG 50PM670T, but quiet frankly, it is pap.

I can only conclude that the different panel they use is inferior if the PA650T is as good you say. Maybe the 3D support messes it up.

I really wanted the Smart capability to stream files from the computer, directly to the TV.
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Yep this is the one its a great set & lacks 3D but to me that is a good thing!
http://www.lg.com/uk/tvs/lg-50PA650T-plasma-tv
 
Thank you very much for all the information guys.

The Optoma HD230X should be here on Tuesday :)

I will post pics.

I think overall, I will get more fun from it than the Plasma which I know I need to spend a lot more money on to get the performance I want.

I went into Richer Sounds and the guy said the colours on low end pojectors are washed out. I had a demo of one and it seemed fine. Maybe I am not a video snob but if the HD230X is on par, I will be happy.
 
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Gimpymoo said:
I really wanted the Smart capability to stream files from the computer, directly to the TV.
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Don't bother using this function on smart TVs. I bought a top end Panasonic with a dual core processor and it couldn't stream in decent quality to save it's life. Thankfully the picture is fantastic. I even bought a gigabit router and installed CAT6 cable.

1.) Not all files are compatible
2.) It's never going to look as good as playing on a PC
3.) Compared to buying a long HDMI cable it's a complete waste of money

You're much better off focusing on the manufacturing and picture quality.
 
i think on hotukdeals they had a andriod media player box for 12quid, something like that or a cheap tablet with hdmi and usb host support if you want, or wireless hdmi
 
Gimpymoo said:
Thank you very much for all the information guys.

The Optoma HD230X should be here on Tuesday :)

I will post pics.

I think overall, I will get more fun from it than the Plasma which I know I need to spend a lot more money on to get the performance I want.

I went into Richer Sounds and the guy said the colours on low end pojectors are washed out. I had a demo of one and it seemed fine. Maybe I am not a video snob but if the HD230X is on par, I will be happy.
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You lucky dog! You will never regret it.

As others have said - a screen and dark room = win :D

Add in a good 5.1 / 7.1 setup and win win win :D

Though i didnt bother with a screen - just painted the wall grey-ish steel colour (see avforums for recommended wall colour for projector)

Replacement bulbs can be had on ebay around £99 ish (quick check saw at least 12 around that price)
 
Gimpymoo said:
Thank you very much for all the information guys.

The Optoma HD230X should be here on Tuesday :)
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Good choice, I just looked into the HD230X - it seems like the new incarnation of the HD200X that I had, newer processing chip etc.

I would imagine you will be very happy with it, the image quality on the 200X was very good for the price - look forward to the pics.
 
Well, I am blown away.

Watching in ambient light is no problem at all, even on normal lamp power.

Also, the biggest surprise for me is how readable text is, Football Manager is more than playable but at 6ft x 3.3ft, it is just too big - lol

Native 1080p content is mind blowing but even the none HD content I have played so far is very very good.

Another surprise is that lower resolution content scales very very well. For example, I was watching the Sky Sports 1 web stream through Virgin Media of the Bradford Vs Villa match (Hope no Villa fans here) and it was more than easy on the eye.

I tried Race 07 and OH MY WORD. it has to be said, it is very immersive.

My only request would be for a 120hz projector, but I will happily wait :)

At the moment, I am simply projecting onto a magnolia wall.

I am more than happy with the purchase and it is a LOT of fun.

Pictures will be posted later this evening.
 
I personally wouldn't have gone Optoma, the IT Tech before me ordered a bunch of Optoma projectors for the school I work at. Their life span has been pretty shoddy. Power Supplies burning out completely or a problem with white dots, creating a kind of solar system star effect. Which gets worse and worse over time.

Hitachi and NEC have been great.
 
Optoma seem pretty well regarded.

For their price point, for a domestic projector, their only real competitor is BenQ even then, they are evenly matched.
 
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I really wanted the Smart capability to stream files from the computer, directly to the TV.[/QUOTE]

If you want to just do that,look into the LG cinema 3d range they have an ethernet connection,so you are able to connect it to your router,and link it to your home network.I bought the 32" for a gaming monitor,and was suprised when i read the manual that it isn't one of there selling points.
 
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