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Casio XJ-UT310WN Ultra Short Throw Projector Review

Posted on October 17, 2014 by Art Feierman
This 3100 lumen Casio projector is an ultra-short throw with a 20,000 hour led/laser light source, that is suitable for classroom or conference room.   A single chip DLP projector with WXGA resolution, it  can be positioned only inches from the screen, either on a table or mounted to the wall directly above.

Specs Preview

Casio XJ-UT310WN Specs
Price 1799
Technology DLP
Native Resolution 1280x800
Brightness (Manufacturer Claim) 3100
Contrast 1800:1
Zoom Lens Ratio N/A
Lens Shift No
Lamp Life 20000 hours
Weight 12.5
Warranty 3 years

XJ-UT310 Projector Overview

This Casio is an ultra short throw projector, very well suited for business and education usage.

It sits only a few inches back to fill a typical screen size for a classroom or conference room.  The Casio uses a fixed lens and mirror system, not uncommon among ultra-short throw projectors.

For an UST projector, it's relatively small, and reasonably lightweight.  The weight shouldn't matter too much since most will use this projector wall mounted, or placed table top, in a single room, but for those needing a UST projector for a trade show, or other events, it's nice...to be light.  Note that ultra short throw projectors offer a number of advantages for many types of trade show, and smaller presentations in hotels, etc.

This Casio projector also offers interactive capabilities.  I should note here, though unlike many "interactive" projectors, the XJ-UT310WN does not use pens (or on the highest end interactive projectors - finger touch.

Instead, it relies on Apps for iOS and Android.   There's a plus in offering interactive this way.  You can use a traditional screen (which is already there for classrooms, conference rooms etc), rather than a whiteboard.  It also allows the presenter / teacher to work from anywhere in the room, and not have to be up front, right next to the screen.

And speaking of light - this Casio, like all the others we've reviewed uses an LED / Laser hybrid, solid state light source.  Casio proudly tells everyone that they have the largest marketshare of projectors with solid state light engines.

Casio claims a very bright 3100 lumens, and a 20,000 hour life for their light source.  20,000 hours should exceed the practical life of the projector (in terms of obsolescence).  In a classroom 5 hours a day, 4 days a week, 40 weeks a year, we're talking 25 years!  Hmm, let's see how technology has advanced in 25 years.  No HDTV, or LCDTVs.  A gigabyte was a huge amount of storage...

Let's see, 25 years ago, was before "Al Gore invented the Internet!"  (Yes, we all know he didn't, it dates back to the '60's.)  The world wide web is 20 years old.   Microsoft Windows 2.0 (the first version that sort of worked) was launched 27 years ago.

25 years ago, there were no modern projectors as we think of them today.  The first true "portable" projector (just under 20 lbs), and with 110 lumens was launched in 1994!    It's lamp was rated 50 hours.  There also were no DLP projectors back then.   Enough history lesson!

This Casio has all the usual inputs and connectors, and it has the ability to do PC free presenting, with 2 gig of memory on board.

It comes with a small remote control, and with a cable cover.  It supports 3D, but does not come with 3D glasses.

Not only is Casio focused on solid state light engines, but they are big time when it comes to "eco-friendly".   This projector for example, has two normal modes - Bright and Normal, and count them, 5 different Eco modes.  Even in its brightest mode it draws only 230 watts, which is on the low side, since few projectors with lamps have lamps that alone draw less than 200-250 watts. In it's lowest - and least bright eco mode, Casio says power consumption is 110 watts, which is typical for a 50" LCDTV, except that you can have an image 4 times that size with this projector.

This projector review is included in our 2015-2016 Best Classroom Projectors Report, which is sponsored by Epson America.

XJ-UT310WN Highlights

  • Ultra Short Throw design doesn't "blind" presenters and teachers
  • 3100 lumens max brightness - enough for conference room and classroom with full lights on
  • WXGA resolution - more than sufficient for most presentations
  • Combination of UST design using mirror/lens for very sharp image
  • Interactivity using Apple iOS and Android apps
  • 20,000 hour plus LED/laser light source no lamps to replace, color and brightness more stable
  • More energy efficient than almost any lamp based projectors
  • Excellent 3 year warranty and 5 years on the led/laser light source
  • Hefty 16 watt speaker - for carrying classrooms and conference rooms
  • Mic input allows speaker (teacher/presenter) to amplify voice to more easily be heard!

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