DLP vs. LCD - Portable Projector Advice: Projectors from 5 to 12 pounds

DLP vs. LCD Portable Projector Advice: Projectors from 5 to 12 pounds.
03/04/2006-Art Feierman

Overview and Technology
DLP vs LCD Home Theater Projectors
DLP vs LCD Featherweight Projectors (under 5lbs.)
DLP vs LCD Portable Projectors
DLP vs LCD Fixed Installation projectors
A look at other technologies: LCOS, LED, CRT, Laser (coming soon)

By far the largest percentage of business projectors sold today, fit into the group defined here, as portable projectors. For purposes of this advice article, portable projectors are those from 5 to 12 lbs. in weight. Most models are actually between 5 and 10 lbs, but there are a few models weighing a bit more that might be used for portable applications where particularly bright projectors are needed. If you end up with a 12 pound "portable projector", it will almost certainly have more than 3500 lumens, and it will also (almost certainly) offer interchangeable lenses.

I should start out by saying that over 10 lb. DLP projectors (for business) are pretty rare, (at least until you get to the huge, heavy 3 chip DLP projectors which are all over $10,000). Most portable DLP's are in the 5 - 8 pound range. By comparison, thereare a significant number of LCD projectors toward the heavy side of this weight range.

Shown above is Mitsubishi's 6 pound XGA resolution DLP portable, the EX-100, with 2000 lumens. Although larger than the smallest DLP's it has a large number of inputs, more typical of fixed installation projectors than lightweight portables. It is very popular with universities and schools, as well as businesses.

One of the reasons for this difference is that the DLP projectors' key strength over the years, has been being smaller and lighter than LCD models. The first under 10 pound projectors were all DLP models, but as LCD's got lighter, they took over and dominated the weight class. This trend has continued. The first under 7, then under 5 pound projectors were again DLP. Today, as noted in the page on featherweight projectors (under 5 lbs.), virtually every projector under 3.5 pounds is DLP.

Perhaps more to the point, the big question is: After DLP successfully opened up new lighter classes of projectors, what is it that allows LCD projectors to take away marketshare over time?

Color saturation and Color accuracy

The best way to answer this is to say that LCD projectors have had two primary strenghs that allow them to capture marketshare.

The first is color saturation: As a general rule, LCD projectors produce richer colors, better able to defeat ambient light in the room, compared to DLP projectors with the same lumen rating.

Shown a bove is Panasonic's LB30NTU, a powerful 5+ pound 3000 lumen LCD projector. When released it was the smallest and lightest 3000 lumen projector on the market. It even has wireless networking.

The second reason, is color accuracy. Until recently, DLP projectors had a great deal of trouble (at full power), in doing yellows and reds. What should be bright "fire engine" red, tends to come out more like a red wine. At the same time, yellows tended to come out mustardy yellow green. And this is not exactly what presenters are hoping for when doing those pie charts in their presentations.

I said until recently. Let me further clarify. The weaknesses in basic color accuracy, can be corrected - equalized out, this is no different that using an equalizer or tone controls on a stereo. The problem is, doing so gives up brightness.

There are other ways that can also be used to improve color accuracy. Plus, one of the manufacturers of DLP projectors, now touts a multiple projector lineup, with many featuring two separate color wheels, with one optimized for best color. Now, that keeps it simple. I anticipate reviewing one of their dual color wheel projectors in the upcoming month or two.

One of the excellent DLP projectors I reviewed a few months ago was Mitsubishi's EX100. At full power, the colors were off much as as described abovce, but they offered a menu control, which allowed users to improve the color accuracy in steps, until at the other extreme, the color was downright excellent. The problem is, with best color the projector put out perhaps only 60% of the brightness of the projector in its brightest mode. Basically, at the click of a menu item you could choose essentially different brightness vs color accuracy choices.

Now that works fine for most. In fact, few would adjust the color to the best extreme, instead setting for good color and perhaps 80% of full brightness.

For those curious to see the color issue, you may want to check out the NEC LT170 review, where in the Image Quality section I show images of full power color vs adjusted color.

When I worked for an online reseller, we would occasionally get back a DLP projector from someone unsatisfied with the color, but it was pretty uncommon. (On the other hand, we never got back LCD projectors because of that issue).

DLP Advantages

But, in fairness, portable DLP projectors have their advantages too. Most notably, the average DLP projector will be physically smaller than an LCD model. So, even at the same weight, there can be a big "bulk" factor. People moving their projectors from room to room within a building or campus, normally won't worry about that, but the road warrior, who carries a projector on airline flights, for presentations in other cities, will likely prefer not just light, but compact, as well.

Don't get me wrong, there are a few very small LCD models, such as those mentioned on the Featherweight page, but you often pay a premium with an LCD projector to get the size reduction. Typical of the smallest LCD projectors are Panasonic's LB20u and LB30u series of projectors, and Epson's Powerlite 750, 755, 760 and 765. But, these are all sub-5 pound models, and still larger than their DLP counterparts

DLP projectors have another advantage as well. Because the pixels are less visible, many users prefer DLP for viewing videos and photos, whether inside a presentation, or separately. I will note, that when you go to the "video" mode preset, found on most projectors, the color on DLP's is normally excellent, but some lumens are sacrificed. The less visible pixels on DLP projectors can be important as well, especially for delivering a film like quality on video, or simply a smoother image on photos and data.

Bottom line, if you want excellent color, and maximum brightness, you should be leaning toward LCD projectors. If, compact size (for the dollars spent), and video quality are key, DLP may work better for you.

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With at least 250-300 projectors in this "portable projector" class, there are certainly many choices, and a whole lot of "me-too" products. That means you can focus on special features that may benefit you, and also consider other general, technical and non-technical requirements:,

How much range is there in the zoom lens, and will the zoom normally work in the type/size of room you normally present in?
How long is the warranty? (Depending on manufacturer and model, most projectors offer from 1 to 3 years - a big difference considering almost any significant failure out of warranty turns the projector into a doorstop).
What is the lamp life (only really an issue if you will be using the projector a great deal, as few projectors offer less than 2000 lamp life, and most get 3000 hours in their economy modes.
Do you need a monitor out - so you can also view the monitor of your desktop computer (a non-issue for laptop users).
Do you need 2 computer inputs
Does it have the video inputs you may require (highest quality for video is component or DVI (digital) /HDMI.
What is the service policy? This is a major point. Some manufacturers will overnight you a replacement if yours fails under warranty (or the first year of warranty... depending on the company), others will provide a loaner while they service yours. Still others - you are out of luck. Send it in, get it back days, or weeks later.

Which manufacturers offer DLP projectors, which offer LCD, which offer both?

First, as a general rule, Taiwanese companies (including those that build for US brands like Dell, Gateway, IBM, etc, are almost exclusively DLP manufacturers. The manufacturers include names like Optoma, Plus and BenQ

Japanese manufacturers tend to build either only LCD models or offer a mix of both LCD and DLP projectors.

Until about two years ago, the two leading manufacturers of the poly-si LCD's that go into LCD projectors were Epson (#1) and Sony (#2). Between them, they provided the LCD panels for almost all the LCD projectors on the market. More recently Sony stopped offering their LCD panels to the OEM market, so a number manufacturers that relied on Sony LCD's now offer a number of DLP products as well as LCD models. Mitsubishi, if I recall was one of the companies that used Sony panels. Their line today consists of both LCD and DLP. By comparison, Epson and Sanyo produce only LCD projectors.

I should mention InFocus, the best recognized name in the projector industry. This US company contract manufactures projectors "off shore", and their line is mixed with most of their lightest projectors using DLP technology, and their heavier ones being LCD. Basically, something for everyone.

Most projector companies that have been around a while, have projector lines with 6-12 different models, it isn't uncommon for them to offer both technologies.

Portable projectors - in the ceiling

It used to be that you put a big heavy projector in the ceiling of your conference room or training room, because you needed a really bright projector. Today, with the lightest projectors in this class offering 1500 - 2000 lumens, that is plenty of "horsepower" for most conference rooms. As a result, businesses now routinely buy under 10 lb. projectors for all but their largest or most demanding rooms.

One last note, those bigger and heavier LCD projectors; 8-12 pounds are more likely than lighter ones to not only use LCDs, but also offer bigger speakers and sound amplifiers, plus a lot more inputs (computer, video, and audio). Most people carrying projectors around don't need all that extra.

You will even see companies offering two projectors with the same brightness, but with different levels of features, for different prices. An example of that might be Epson who offers their 2000 lumen Powerlite 76c at around 6 pounds, and a physically larger 2000 lumen 81p at about 9 pounds. The 81p offers more inputs and has bigger more powerful speakers. That makes it popular for schools where the tiny speakers in small projectors are insufficient, so the schools would install separate ceiling speakers and run more wiring. Now instead they would opt for the 81p, pay a little more, but save even more still, in terms of not needing separate speakers and higher installation costs. Mitsubishi on the other hand offers two 2000 lumen XGA projectors - one DLP, one LCD.

As I said, there's a lot of choices out there. The good news, as a whole these are mature products, they perform well, and are reliable. You might think of it like choosing a vehicle. There are a lot of sedans out there, in any price range, so you look at things that are important to you, to figure out which one to buy. Same for projectors.

Warranties, I should note, vary greatly. Warranties on new projectors tend to run from one to three years. Some manufacturers offer overnight loaner or replacement units for 1, 2 or 3 years. And not all models from a brand, will necessarily have the same warranty. Projector repairs (out of warranty) tend to be very expensive, so figure there's a good chance that if your portable projector breaks out of warranty, it's probably not worth repairing.

Choose wisely.

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