Viewsonic PJD5533w Projector - Physical Tour

Viewsonic PJD5533w Appearance

Unlike many multimedia projectors that come in a basic white case, the Viewsonic PJD5533w has a sharp-looking gloss black case.  The PJD5533w has its lens offset to the right side of the projector when facing it.  The lens is recessed in the case, which offers it some protection as there is no lens cap.  To the left of the lens is an IR receiving eye and a hot air exhaust port.  There is a single height adjustable foot in the center front of the projector.

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On top of the projector, right behind the lens, are adjustment rings for Zoom and Focus.  To the left of that is the lamp cover.  The cover is secured by screws on the top edges of the projector.  This allows for easy removal/replacement of the lamp even if the projector is ceiling-mounted.   Behind that, in the rear left corner, is a control panel including indicators for power, lamp status and temperature (if overheating).  There are buttons for Power, Keystone correction (which also serve as menu navigation Up/Down buttons), Menu, Mode/Enter and Auto (to match picture timing to source).  The Left/Right menu navigation buttons also function as Blank and Panel Key lock respectively.

On the left side (facing the front of the projector), is a built-in speaker followed by an air intake vent toward the rear.  There is another vent on the right side of the projector.

Moving to the rear panel, there is a limited array of inputs, but an HDMI input is included.  Starting at the top left, there is an RS232 control port, a USB Type B jack (for remote mouse functions), an HDMI input, two VGA computer inputs and a VGA monitor output.  These are followed by S-video and composite video inputs, one 1/8” audio input jacks and one 1/8” audio output jack.  Along the bottom of the rear panel is the power cord jack and a Kensington lock.

Viewsonic PJD5533w Setup and Menus

The PJD5533w is somewhat limited in its setup flexibility as it only has a center adjustable foot in front (the rear feet are not adjustable) and its limited zoom range does not allow for much variation in the distance the projector is placed from the screen.  There is the usual digital keystone adjustment capability to help square the image when the projector is sitting on an uneven surface.  This makes it a good candidate for use on a movable cart, where the screen height is set to match and the cart only needs to be moved to the proper distance from the screen, thus resulting in a quick setup.

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Once it’s positioned, bringing up the menu, the user can select the desired display mode.  Depending on the input type, there are either five or six display modes available.  With a computer source, PC and Dynamic PC modes are available, while with a video source, the PC mode is replaced by a Gaming mode and there is no Dynamic PC mode.  There are also three projection surface colors to choose from with a PC source, whiteboard, blackboard and greenboard.  There are two User modes where the usual adjustments (contrast, brightness, color and tint) can be made to the picture.  There is also a choice of four different color temperatures, but no user adjustable color temperature (ie: no grayscale calibration adjustments).  However, rare among low cost projectors, the PJD5533w does offer full color management control.  This means that each of the primary (red, green, blue) and secondary (cyan, magenta, yellow) colors can be adjusted for accuracy.  While this is not something that most users will be able to use properly (as it requires special calibration tools), these controls may come in handy to tone down the excessive green or blue that appear in whites when using the brightest mode, as well as make skin tones more accurate in video presentations.

There are a few picture modes that are tailored to specific uses.  ViewMatch switches between high brightness performance and accurate color performance based on the source information.  Dynamic PC and Dynamic Movie start with the standard PC and Movie modes, but make adjustments in image quality as determined by the source material.  The bottom line is that the PJD5533w gives the user plenty of options to optimize the display to each particular type of presentation.

Viewsonic PJD5533w Remote Control

The PJD5533w’s remote control is a small, black remote with mostly black buttons and white lettering.  The Power, Menu and Dynamic Eco buttons are colored red, blue and blue respectively to make them stand out.  All of the buttons are appropriately grouped and cover all the important functions without accessing them through the menu.

In addition to the usual menu and navigation buttons, there are buttons to directly access the VGA computer or video inputs, mouse functions, image auto-sync, blank and freeze, AV mute, timer, lock, digital zoom and keystone correction.

There is also a customized button labeled “My Button” which can be set to any one of a number of functions that best fits the presenter’s needs.  There are also buttons to mute and control the volume of the projector’s 2-watt built-in speaker.

The buttons are not backlit or even glow-in-the-dark, but that is standard for multimedia projectors, where backlighting can often be distracting.

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