1080p Projectors - Physical Tour
Here we provide brief information regarding how the 1080p projectors are physically laid out, placement flexibility, and more.
March 2009 - Art Feierman
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Projector Physical Appearance
I'll tackle two areas in the Physical Appearance section, first, general layout. We can assume, unless otherwise noted, that all these projectors have adjustable feet (at least one pair), control panels on the top, and inputs on the rear. The lenses are typically mounted offset to one side or the other, so I will only mention it if it is a centered lens (easier for installation). Some have motorized zoom and focus, some have lens shift (manual or motorized), etc. All this is documented in each review, so in this section, a short paragraph, and a link to the appropriate page in the original review.
The projectors in this report vary a great deal in styling, anywhere from ugly box to highly stylish. Most of us don't care what a projector physically looks like with the lights on, but some do. Then there's the "wife factor" - "that thing's too big and ugly to go in my room". I'm not a judge of esthetic beauty, so I'll just make a brief comment or two about each projector:
1080p Projectors under $2100
Sanyo PLV-Z700 projector: It's white, has rounded corners, and is fairly small. A motorized door covers the lens when power is off. Not bad looking for a box!
Mitsubishi HC5500 projector: Medium sized, it is styled with a dark finish, a protruding lens with hood far to one side. Some say it looks really cool, but doesn't do that much for me.
Optoma HD806 projector: A smaller projector with an off white finish, sloping front, chrome looking protruding lens. I guess you could say it has a Euro-look (no offense to you folks in the EU). An interesting look. Not bad!
Epson Home Cinema 6100 projector: The older Home Cinema 1080 that the 6100 replaces had a rather impressive sculpted look. Sadly Epson has replaced it with a box. The've added a touch of interesting trim, but it's still a fairly small white box with some silver/gray.
InFocus X10 projector: All the InFocus projectors have the same look, and it is a classy one. All slow curves giving an oval look. Nothing jumps out at you, the lens is recessed, set back in a flat surfaced front with extended trim all the way around. To make it prettier, they could remove the large white InFocus on the top. The X10 does not have adjustable feet, but instead comes with an attachable stand. If possible it looks even better on the stand. The X10 lacks a control panel, relying on its remote instead.
$2100 - $3500 1080p Home Theater Projectors
BenQ W5000 projector: It's big, white with lots of sliver and gray trim and a visible front grill. It's probably the widest projector in the whole report. The large lens hood protects the recessed and centered lens. The projector slopes back a little to the sides, so it definitely has some style to it. Ceiling mounted, the large center area starting by the lens and housing the control panel, makes this projector stand out. I may be biased, having owned two BenQ projectors that looked similar, but for a big box, it looks pretty good. Not an award winner, but an attention getter.
Epson Home and Pro Cinema 6500UB, 7500UB projectors: Two more Epsons all in the same box as described above. A box with a bit of trim attempting to dress it up. The good news is that the Pro version come finished in a shiny piano black, and definitely have more class than the home version. Guys, that's your angle with the wife, if you want the Pro for whatever reason. The lens is not recessed.
Epson Pro Cinema 7100 projector: See the comments immediately above.
Panasonic PT-AE3000 projector: Sorry Panasonic, from a styling standpoint, the only award this projector could earn is "most industrial looking box". It is a medium-large projector finished in a dark gray. Of note, the Panasonic has a centered lens, and its control panel hides behind a door on the right side (if looking from the front). Hey, considering the PT-AE3000 is the best selling 1080p projector, what does that say about our taste?
Optoma HD8200 projector: Finally Optoma has a new design for their projectors (a couple of 720p's are in biz projector boxes). This Optoma looks good! A nice medium sized projector, longer than wider. The lens is centered and not quite recessed. The cable connection area in the back is deeply recessed. The HD8200 lacks a control panel, there's just a power switch on one side. For the rest, grab the remote.
Sanyo PLV-Z3000 projector: This Sanyo is the same smaller box as the lower cost Z700, with the key difference being a dark gray finish. Again, the lens has a motorized cover when the projector is not in use. A decent looking projector for a box!
Sony VPL-HW10 projector: The Sony looks good. It's similar looking to the Optoma HD8200, being moderately large, narrow and deep. The front has angles moving back to the sides, with the center area dropping back. The centered lens isn't recessed per se, but is recessed to the parts of the front that come out the most. The black piano finish and light sculpting of lines gives it some style. The HW10 has a very small control panel on one side, and the inputs on the other. You'll either like or hate the inputs on the side, depending on which side is visible to the people in your room.
Mitsubishi HC6500, HC7000 projectors: This is a new look for Mitsubishi, and it looks good. An almost black "metallic" finish and a some nice sculpting, both of these models "look fast". The lens hood is large and sticks out quite a bit.
Viewsonic Pro8100 projector: The Viewsonic is a classy looking projector, mostly black piano finish with a tasteful amount of gray trim around the center mounted, recessed lens, and on the top behind the lens. It is a medium-large projector, but a bit less bulky, than say the Sony.
$3500 - $10,000 Home Theater Projectors
BenQ W20000 projector: The W20000 looks just like its less expensive sibling - white and silver, large and wide, and intentionally visible grillwork. That large lens hood protects the center mounted lens. Like the W5000, it is less pretty, than impressive looking.
InFocus IN82 and IN83 projectors: I'll just copy what I said about the X10, it's just shinier: It has a classy look. Fairly large, it is all slow curves. Nothing jumps out at you, the lens is recessed, set back in a flat surfaced front with extended trim all the way around. To make it prettier, they could remove the large white InFocus on the top. The IN82 and IN83 do not have adjustable feet, but instead come with an attachable stand. If possible the projector looks even better on the stand. The IN82 and IN83 lack a control panel, relying on the remote instead.
JVC DLA-RS10, RS20 projectors: Medium large, moderately narrow and long, with just a little gold trim and a bit of sculpting, make it clean and good looking. The center mounted lens is not only recessed, but a door slides to protect it when powered off. Both these models feature the cable connections on the right side (looking from the front). I should note that the RS10 and RS20 are JVC Pro products. Essentially indentical projectors are sold by their consumer division. Sadly for those that opt for the HD350 and HD750, the great gold trim is replaced by silver. Tsk, tsk, I have an RS!
Optoma HD8000-LV projector: Same as the HD806: A smaller projector with an off white finish, sloping front, chrome looking protruding lens. I guess you could say it has a Euro-look. An interesting look. Not bad!
Planar 8150 projector: Definitely the most unusual projector in the whole group. The projector is basically round! It's a bit wider around the top than the bottom so the sides slope inward. The black piano finish looks good. If it weren't for the slightly protruding centered lens, and the cables, you might not figure out it's a projector. For me the verdict is still out on the styling.
Sharp XV-Z20000 projector: Another pretty good looking projector with black piano finish. The centered lens sticks out a bit, and the front slopes back to the sides, more so than the Sony. It's a moderately large box, wide and deep. The look says "serious projector".
Sony VPL-VW70 projector: Should be indentical to the HW10: The Sony looks good. It's similar looking to the Optoma HD8200, being moderately large, narrow and deep. The front has angles moving back to the sides, with the center area dropping back. The centered lens isn't recessed per se, but is recessed to the parts of the front that come out the most. The black piano finish and light sculpting of lines gives it some style. The VW70 has a very small control panel on one side, and the inputs on the other. You'll either like or hate the inputs on the side, depending on which side is visible to the people in your room.
OK, the beauty pagent is over, time to get back to some important aspects of these projectors.
Projector Control Panels
No point into going into the control panels here. They are well documented in the individual reviews. The only key point to mention here, is that the InFocus projectors, as well as the Optoma HD8200, lack control panels. Instead, they are dependent on their remote (so don't lose the remote and keep a spare set of batteries around). Amost all projectors have their control panels on the top. There are exceptions, including the Sony projectors and the Panasonic PT-AE3000, which put them on the side.
Input/Output
All the projectors in this review have a number of things in common. All, but those mentioned in the first section, have their control panels in the back (the ones with the input section - cable connections - on the side, are the Sonys, and the JVCs).
All of these projectors have at least two HDMI inputs. All the HDMI inputs are HDMI 1.3 (support for Deep Color) except the BenQ W5000, and I believe, the Sharp XV-Z20000.
All have at least one component video input. Today we all tend to use HDMI, but for those replacing older projectors who only have component cable run, it's good to know they are still able to use their cabling.
All the projectors but one, have an analog computer input. That exception is the JVC RS10. Why it lacks it, is beyond my grasp. Perhaps it's just to differentiate it from the RS20, but omitting it is a silly thing to do. There are work arounds, but, why make us suffer. Those of us with Mac's all have HDMI, as do many PC's and PC laptops these days. Those without, will have to use a work-around if they want to hook up their PC.
Screen Triggers: Most projectors have one, some have two (two lets you raise/lower a motorized screen with one, and control an anamorphic lens sled or screen masking system with the other). Today, however, screens and sleds and masking systems can be controlled with IR or RF remotes in most cases, so screen triggers aren't critical.
RS232 (service port) All the projectors have one. This allows your projector to interface to a room control system or PC for control. In some cases, the port can be used to download firmware upgrades. Sorry, I haven't followed which can/can't do downloads, but very few manufacturers ever offer firmware downloads.
Menus
Please see the individual reviews for details and screen shots of various menu pages. Some projectors have great menu layouts, some have type small enough to be a problem for some to read, but, the bottom line is that you almost certainly wouldn't change your mind about which projector you will by, based on the menu system! For that reason, while it's a very minor factor in deciding award winners, we won't take your time up comparing the menus.
Remote Controls
Remote controls have several attributes worthy of discussion. Basically: The layout and ergonomic considerations (large small, one handed use, or two), and especially, effective range.
Each remote is discussed in the individual reviews. While you may or may not like a projector's remote, I seriously doubt anyone will change their purchase decision because of a remote's abilities. Hey, if you love your projector, but hate your remote, it's just one more excuse to go out and buy a nice universal, programmable remote to control all your equipment! For example, I love the layout of my new JVC projector's remote control, but its range is a real problem. No problem for me, as I'm just now deciding on which universal remote to buy, and hope to have it up and running in a couple of weeks.
Lens Throw and Lens Shift
Some projectors have a lot of placement range, while others are severely limited. With few exceptions, 3LCD projectors and LCoS projectors are extremely flexible, with zoom lenses with plenty of zoom, and all of these two groups of projectors have lens shift. By comparison, the DLP projectors consistently have very little zoom range. Some of the DLP projectors have lens shift others do not. Even when they do have lens shift, they don't have as much as the other types.
Let's discuss the issues, then get into the individual projector's abilities.
Lens shift is a requirement if you want to shelf mount a projector in the rear of your room. It allows the projector to maintain a proper, rectangular image on the screen from different heights, and for a projector placed higher than the mid-point on the screen, without lens shift, the projector must be inverted, so, essentially ceiling mounted.
The other thing you need to shelf mount, is a projector that can be placed far enough back to sit on a rear shelf. Of course your room length and screen size come into play. Let's say that those projectors without lens shift normally also have lenses with very little zoom range, so their throw distance range is normally kept fairly short, figuring that ceiling mounting is easier, closer to the screen.
Here's a chart organized by our three Classes. For each projector, it provides placement information in terms of distance and height, for a 100 inch 16:9 screen. Using these numbers, you can determine the ranges for any sized screen just with a simple calculation.
All of these projectors can be ceiling mounted. The ones in Italic can be shelf mounted:
Closest |
Furthest |
Adj. |
Shift max |
|
in feet |
in feet |
Lens shift |
Ht. (inches) |
|
| Under $2100 | ||||
| Epson HC6100 | 9.8 | 20.9 | Y |
22.7 |
| InFocus X10 | 13.5 | 16.1 | N |
17.5 |
| Mitsubishi HC5500 | 10.5 | 12.8 | Y |
0 |
| Optoma HD806 | 13.5 | 16.1 | N |
17 |
| Sanyo PLV-Z700 | 9.8 | 20 | Y |
24.5 |
| $2100-$3500 | ||||
| BenQ W5000 | 13.4 | 16.1 | Y |
0 |
| Epson HC6500UB | 9.8 | 20.9 | Y |
22.7 |
| Epson HC7500UB | 9.8 | 20.9 | Y |
22.7 |
| Epson HC7100 | 9.8 | 20.9 | Y |
22.7 |
| Mitsubishi HC6500 | 10.2 | 16.4 | Y |
12.3 |
| Mitsubishi HC7000 | 10.2 | 16.4 | Y |
12.3 |
| Optoma HD8200** | 10.9 | 16.6 | Y |
17 |
| Panasonic PT-AE3000 | 9.9 | 19.8 | Y |
24.5 |
| Sanyo PLV-Z3000 | 9.8 | 20 | Y |
24.5 |
| Sony VPL-HW10 | 10.1 | 16.3 | Y |
7.5 |
| Viewsonic Pro8100 | 10.3 | 16.6 | Y |
24 |
| $3500 - $10,000 | ||||
| BenQ W20000 | 13.4 | 16.1 | Y |
0 |
| InFocus IN82 | 13.5 | 16.1 | N |
17.5 |
| InFocus IN83 | 13.5 | 16.1 | N |
17.5 |
| JVC DLA-RS10 | 9.9 | 20.1 | Y |
15 |
| JVC DLA-RS20 | 9.9 | 20.1 | Y |
15 |
| Optoma HD8000-LV | 13.5 | 16.1 | N |
17 |
| Planar PD8150* | 13.4 | 17.4 | Y |
29 |
| Sharp XV-Z20000 | 13.3 | 18.3 | Y |
0 |
| Sony VPL-VW70 | 10.1 | 16.3 | Y |
7.5 |
* Planar PD8150 - is interesting in that the lens shift is unequal. It can be placed higher above the screen top, than it can be lower, below the bottom.
** The Optoma HD8200 lens shift is unequal. The projector's lens can only be slightly above the bottom of the screen surface, with the projector upright. That means that you cannot shelf mount it near the top of the screen. Bottom line - the HD8200 is not practical for rear shelf mounting (unless mounted low - which no one wants to do), despite having adjustable lens shift.
Note: All numbers above are approximate. Throw distances should be accurate within about one inch. In terms of Maximum shift, and especially the amount of shift (offset) on projectors without adjustable lens shift, we have found that manufacturers often make errors!
We recommend you double check the numbers with the manufacturer's tech support, for accurate lens shift numbers. (At least two of these manufacturers have different information in their brochures, than in their manuals on occaision).
For your convenience, below, the home theater projectors are organized first by price class, then by amount of placement flexibility. The four categories are:
Greatest Placement Flexibility (excellent zoom range, lens shift)
Good Placement Flexibility (moderately good zoom range, lens shift)
Fair Placement Flexibility (typically limited zoom range, lens shift, there are exceptions)
Poor Placement Flexibility (limited zoom range, no lens shift)
None of the projectors listed as Poor can be shelf mounted. Those rated Fair can be shelf mounted, but have very limited range and may not work out in most rooms.
Keep in mind that if you plan to ceiling mount, there isn't that much difference between the four groups, unless ceiling height is an issue, in which case Poor Placement Flexibility projectors may still be a problem as they lack any lens shift.
The key benefit of ceiling mounting is that you can place the projector closer to the screen which often means a brighter image.
Key benefits of shelf mounting include usually easier to get power to the projector (installation time and cost), less audible noise, easier access, generally simpler to install and align.
Entry Level 1080p Projectors - Under $2100
Greatest Placement Flexibility: Epson Home Cinema 6100, Sanyo PLV-Z3000 - Both have at least 2:1 zoom lenses and extensive lens shift
Fair Placement Flexibility: Mitsubishi HC5500 (limited zoom 1.2:1, moderate lens shift)
Poor Placement Flexibility: InFocus X10, Optoma HD806 (limited zoom 1.2:1, no lens shift)
Mid-Priced 1080p Projectors - $2100 - $3500
Greatest Placement Flexibility: All Epson projectors, Panasonic PT-AE3000, Sanyo PLV-Z3000 (all with at least 2:1 zoom, lens shift)
Good Placement Flexibility: Mitsubishi HC6500, HC7000, Optoma HD8200, Sony VPL-HW10, Viewsonic Pro8100
Fair Placement Flexibility: BenQ W5000 (lens shift, 1.2:1 zoom), can be shelf mounted if distances work out. Optoma HD8200 (lens shift, 1.5:1 zoom, but not practical for shelf mounting)
Premium Priced 1080p Projectors - $3500 - $10,000
Greatest Placement Flexibility: JVC DLA-RS10, DLA-RS20
Good Placement Flexibility: Planar PD8150, Sharp XV-Z20000, Sony VPL-HW10
Fair Placement Flexibility: BenQ W20000
Poor Placement Flexibility: InFocus IN82, IN83, Optoma HD8000-LV
Ceiling Height Issues: These projectors will likely not work in your home theater if your ceiling height is low, or if ceiling height is average, but screen size is rather large. This is due to a lack of lens shift, combined with a signficant amount of lens offset, that requires them to be mounted well above the top of your screen:
InFocus: X10, IN82, IN83
Optoma: HD806, HD8000-LV
All five lack lens shift, and must be mounted approximately 17 inches above the top of your screen's surface. That 17 inches is the difference between the top of the screen's surface, and the center of the lens. Remember, that even mounting as close as flush to the ceiling as possible, the center of the lens is likely going to be at least 7 inches below the ceiling (and that's tight).
Below is a chart which gives several examples. It tells you how far off the floor the bottom of the screen surface (not the frame) would have to be, for four common screen sizes, and four different ceiling heights. Obviously, you can't have your screen starting just a few inches off the floor, especially if some folks sit behind others. To come up with these numbers we assume a projector without adjustable lens shift, fixed lens offset of 17 inches, and the center of the lens, 7 inches below the ceiling (about as high as you can mount it, with a typical ceiling mount). Many mounts may require an even larger distance between ceiling and center of the lens:
| Screen | Size | |||
| 100 | 110 | 118 | 128 | |
| Ceiling Ht. | ||||
| 7 feet | 10.5 | 5.55 | 1.59 | -3.36 |
| 8 feet | 22.5 | 17.55 | 13.59 | 8.64 |
| 9 feet | 34.5 | 29.55 | 25.59 | 20.64 |
| 10 feet | 46.5 | 41.55 | 37.59 | 32.64 |
Screen size (above) is diagonal screen size, measured in inches.
Measurements provided are distance from floor to bottom of screen surface (not screen frame).
As you can see from the chart above, if you have one of these projectors, an 8 foot ceiling, and a 110 inch diagonal screen, the bottom of your screen surface is about 18 inches from the floor. That's certainly about as low as anyone would want. With the same 8 foot ceiling, and a 128" screen (like mine), you'd have to dig a hole, as the bottom of the screen would be below the floor level!
If your setup is going to be tight, you may want to start by figuring out how close to the ceiling, you can mount the projector. Then add the distance to the center of the lens which will vary depending on how far (vertically) from the top of the projector to the center of the lens.
Distance from ceiling to top (inverted) of the projector + Distance from top of projector to center of lens = Total distance from ceiling to lens center.
Projectors with lens shift:
Since all the other projectors have adjustable lens shift, your only restriction to screen size is if it fits on your wall, with the minimum height off the floor that you find acceptable (without the top of the projector hitting the ceiling).
For example, with that 128 inch screen and a projector with lens shift, the screen height (excluding frame), is about 63 inches. Thus, even with an 8 foot ceiling height, you could have the screen surface bottom as high up as 33 inches (96 inch room height - 63 inches of screen height = 33 inches). Now that would have the top of the screen flush with the ceiling, and doesn't allow for the screen's frame, so if you have a four inch frame at top and bottom, the 33 inches becomes 29 inches.
Please remember, we calculate the lower number from the bottom of the screen surface, not from its frame, so the bottom of the frame would be at 25 inches (29 - 4) with a four inch wide frame.
Good luck!
Anamorphic Lens Support
Using an anamorphic lens lets you use a 2.35:1 aspect ratio screen, the same ratio as most movies (which we will refer to as Cinemascope movies) use. The combination of screen and lens means no letterboxing at the top and bottom when watching most movies.
By "anamorphic lens supprt" we mean that the projector has the built in (internal) stretch scaling to properly resize the image to work with an anamorphic lens. Any projector can work with an anamorphic lens, even without this, but it would require an outboard processor to handle the correct scaling. Consider those outboard processors to start at around $800, with products like the recently reviewed DVDO Edge.
All of the projectors in this report have internal support for an anamorphic lens, except the following:
Epson Home Cinema 6100*, Home Cinema 6500UB*, Sony VPL-HW10
Also of note, is that some projectors with recessed lenses do make it difficult to mount an anamorphic lens and sled in front of them. Still all of them do have a solution, at least from one manufacturer. The Sanyos and JVCs are examples of projectors, where your choices of anamorphic lens providers is at least a little limited.
* While these two Epson projectors do not have the internal support, the two almost identical Pro Cinema models (7100 and 7500UB) do. So if you want an Epson, and plan an anamorphic lens, and Cinemascope shaped screen, choose the Pro versions, they will save you money overall.
Emulating an Anamorphic Lens Setup
Panasonic is the only company to provide an anamorphic lens emulation solution. Simply stated, they allow you to change the zoom position (it is motorized) when working with a 2.35:1 screen. In the wider zoom position, a Cinemascope movie just fills the screen. When you need to watch 16:9 or 4:3, you zoom out, so that those sizes do not overshoot the top and bottom of the screen.
What makes it work, is that Panasonic lets you save the lens positions, so that it is easy to toggle back and forth - as easy as controlling a real anamorphic lens/sled.
It's not a perfect solution, but it's free, and that compares well to the typical $4000+ for a lens/sled combination from a major manufacturer. The limits - the reasons it isn't quite as good, are two fold. First, when filling the screen with Cinemascope content, the letterboxes are still there, but they exist above the top of your screen and below the bottom. If your walls are light colored, you will still see them, but if your walls are dark (or you have dark draping around the screen), the letterboxes will be invisible.
The second downside relates to brightness. Panasonic's emulation still produces those letterboxes, so you are only using about 80% of the pixels for the movie image. With a real setup, you use 100%. Thus, you get about a 25% brighter image with a real lens/sled combo.
Lastly, The Panasonic has a 2:1 zoom lens ratio - that's about as good as it gets. However to support the two lens positions, you give up about half of your placement flexibility, reducing the working range. You won't be able to place the projector as far back. As a result, in many rooms you will no longer be able to shelf mount.
By the way, any projector with at least a 1.5:1 zoom lens can do the same thing, but since projectors are typically mounted where its inconvenient to reach them, it's not practical for projectors without motorized zoom and focus. (Who wants to climb a ladder every time you want to switch from a movie to HDTV or back?) If the projector has enough range, and motorized zoom and focus, such as the Sanyo PLV-Z700 and PLV-Z3000, the JVC RS10 and RS20 to name a few, you can do the same thing as the Panasonic does. The difference is you will be using your remote to make the zoom changes, and it will take a minute to get the size just right, and possibly refocus. By comparison, the Panasonic does it at the touch of a button, setting the zoom and refocusing. Nice touch!
NEXT: Image Quality